WE NEED YOU, REF: A dwindling supply of high school officials is an ongoing concern. Page 13
September 9, 2020 | Vol. 19, No. 37 | www.princewilliamtimes.com | 50¢ Covering Prince William County and surrounding communities, including Gainesville, Haymarket, Dumfries, Occoquan, Quantico and the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park.
See PrinceWilliamTimes.com for coronavirus updates
‘Working together, we will get this done’ School board tries to reassure teachers ahead of school start By Jill Palermo
Times Staff Writer
TIMES STAFF PHOTOS/DANIEL BERTI
Rescued donkeys Delilah and Violet are among the 149 animals who have found a safe home at Hope and Serenity Farm Sanctuary in Nokesville.
Seeking sanctuary Nokesville animal rescue facing closure is half-way to its fundraising goal
See SCHOOL START, page 2
‘A frenzy in the real estate market’
Despite COVID-19, low interest rates, need for more space spark homebuying
By Daniel Berti
Times Staff Writer
The owners of a Nokesville farm animal rescue at risk of going out of business have raised over $100,000 on their GoFundMe page in less than a month, bringing them one step closer to saving the farm. The 11-acre Hope and Serenity Farm Sanctuary is a nonprofit organization that provides animal tours, volunteer work and work for disabled adults in Northern Virginia. The sanctuary is home to 149 rescued farm animals including horses, chickens, pigs, goats, donkeys and sheep. Renee and Joe Small, the couple who run the sanctuary, have rented the sprawling Nokesville farm for several years, but that could be coming to an end. The farm’s owner, who lives in Florida, suddenly put the property on the market earlier this year, meaning they could lose the farm unless they purchase the property themselves or buy a new property somewhere close by.
Despite teachers’ ongoing concerns about safety and equity issues, Prince William County began the new school year with virtual instruction for most students while inviting about 1,200 special education students into schools Prince William County up to four days a week. School Board Chairman Teachers were being told Dr. Babur Lateef as late as Thursday, Sept. 3, whether they would teach students in person on the first day of school, Tuesday, Sept. 8. Decisions about which students would be learning at school were protracted by the need to rewrite all 12,000 special education students’ individualized learning plans, which had to be adapted for distance learning and entered into a new computer system before the new year began. Teachers said the task was taking as many as six hours per student. Based on those updates, 1,206 special education students, as well as those learning English who have experienced significant gaps in their education, will to return to school for in-person instruction, said Superintendent Steven Walts.
By Aileen M. Streng Contributing Writer
Prince William home sales by the numbers:
“If we were to lose the property, it would be over,” Renee Small said. Small said she was reluctant to ask for donations but said that without outside help, they wouldn’t be able to purchase the farm on their own. That’s when she decided to create a GoFundMe online fundraising page, which as of Sunday, Sept. 6, had topped $106,000. Small said that she was overwhelmed by the outpouring of support the sanctuary received over the last month.
After the pandemic shut down the housing market in the spring, it 906 has roared back to life this Sales – ˄ 16.5% summer in part because of 979 pent-up demand and low New listings – ˅ 10.6% interest rates. “The housing market is $420,000 well past the recovery phase Median price – ˄ 9.1% and is now booming with SOURCE: JULY 2020 STATS higher home sales comFROM THE REALTOR ASSOCIATION pared to the pre-pandemic OF PRINCE WILLIAM days,” said Lawrence Yun, National Association of Realtors’ chief economist. “With the sizable shift in remote work, current homeowners are looking for larger homes and this will lead to a secondary level of demand even into 2021.”
See SANCTUARY, page 2
See REAL ESTATE, page 4
Renee and Joe Small hope to raise $200,000 to save their Nokesville animal sanctuary farm.
INSIDE Classifieds...........................................17 Library Page.......................................11 Looking Back........................................9 Obituaries...........................................16
Opinion.................................................7 Public Safety.........................................6 Puzzle Page..........................................8 Real Estate..........................................14 Sports.................................................13
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