10 minute read
News & Notes
PAGE 8 | OCTOBER 8 – 14, 2020
LOCAL
Advertisement
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
N���-P���� C�������� N��� � N����
Dulin Church Does Virtual Blessings of Animals
Dulin United Methodist
Church will be having its Virtual Blessing of Animals during its 10 a.m. online service on Sunday, Oct. 11.
Pastor Dave will bless parishioners’ cats, dogs, hermit crabs or whatever other pets they have.
Those interested in joining in should watch the service at 10 a.m. at dulinchurch.org, in order to make sure that important member of their family receives a blessing.
Marymount Rises in ‘Best College’ Rankings
For the third consecutive year, Marymount University has risen in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges Rankings from 2021.
After jumping more than 20 spots in last year’s list, Marymount is once again moved up among the Best Regional Universities in the South – now ranked at No. 31 in the region (No. 37 in 2020 Rankings). The University also improved its standing in four other regional categories as well: • No. 1 for Most International Students (#2 in 2020) • No. 2 for Campus Ethnic Diversity (#3 in 2020) • No. 18 for Best Colleges for Veterans (#21 in 2020) • No. 51 for Best Value (#58 in 2020)
“We are at the beginning of a new era for this University, one in which we will reach national recognition for our student success, alumni achievement and faculty and staff excellence,” said Dr. Irma Becerra, President of Marymount University. “These latest rankings prove what we at Marymount already know – our community is incredibly unique, we have something important to offer all of our students and that momentum is on our side. This is great news, and it’s so rewarding to have our efforts recognized.”
According to data that stretches back to 2014, the 2021 ranking of No. 31 overall in the region is the highest mark that Marymount has achieved in the Best Colleges Rankings.
The scores from U.S. News & World Report are determined through several weighted key measures of quality that consist of graduation and retention rates, graduation rate performance, social mobility, undergraduate academic reputation, faculty resources, student selectivity, financial resources, alumni giving and graduate indebtedness.
New Board Members for F.C. Homeless Shelter
Friends of Falls Church
Homeless Shelter, Inc., a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide winter shelter and other services to individuals with need in the Greater Falls Church area, recently elected new board members and officers.
In conjunction with New Hope Housing, Friends of Falls Church Homeless Shelter operates the City of Falls Church’s winter hypothermia shelter on Gordon Road in Falls Church.
The shelter is open every night from Nov. 15 – March 31.
Two new members were also elected to Friends of Falls Church Homeless Shelter’s board, Luis Frontera and Robert Sharp.
Both have been long-term committed supporters of the Shelter.
Lastly, John Krotzer was elected as Co-Vice Chair of the board and Jim O’Keefe was elected as Recording Secretary of the board.
TREE OF POSITIVE ACTIONS is a sculpture by Falls Church artist Marc Robarge where audience participation is crucial to its expressive power. Observers are asked to respond by reflecting, then writing a specific positive action they will take to address systemic racism. The piece is a part of Sculpture Now 2020 at McLean Project for the Arts (1234 Ingleside Ave., McLean). Learn more at mpaart.org. (P����: C������� M��� R������)
The officers were elected for two-year terms, beginning immediately. Robert Fletcher will continue as Chair of the board; Frankie Clogston will continue as Co-Vice Chair; and Martha Mothershead will continue as Corresponding Secretary.
Send Us Your News & Notes! The News-Press is always on the lookout for photos & items for Community News & Notes, School News & Notes and other sections of the paper. If you graduate, get married, get engaged, get an award, start a club, eat a club, tie your shoes, have a birthday, have a party, host an event or anything else you think is worth being mentioned in the News-Press, write it up and send it to us! If you have a photo, even better! Because of the amount of submissions we receive, we cannot guarantee all submissions will be published, but we’ll try our best! Community News & Notes: newsandnotes@fcnp.com | School News & Notes: schoolnews@fcnp.com Mail: News & Notes, Falls Church News-Press, 105 N. Virginia Ave #310, Falls Church, VA 22046
Follow Us Online
twitter.com/fcnp facebook.com/fallschurchcity
Drive-in movie night at Eden Center – Saturday Oct 10 at 6:30pm
Featuring a ghostly family Halloween movie
Check out edencenter.com for details
Costume contest and candy for the kids, arranged by Bioprep LLC, for safety.
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
The Madman on
The Balcony
This week in the history of humankind.
How can it be explained? A new plague hits that a madman in the White House decided was not something to take action against but whose paranoia led him to see it as a personal threat to his rule.
Now, the White House is contaminated. The plague has zeroed in on it, threatening the lives of everyone therein. It is rife in those corridors.
The madman sees it as a badge of honor. Gasping for breath against its assault on his aging respiratory system, he stands on the White House Nicholas F. balcony like Evita, not singing but gasping for air. Benton He has had the benefit of the most extraordinary medical attention on the FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS planet, yet his message to his people is to be like him and “tough it out.” “Don’t let it dominate your life,” he says, speaking to the fields of the dead, the over 200,000 who’ve died from this in America in just six months.
“Those whom the gods would destroy, they first drive mad.”
The American poet Longfellow has the ancient Greek titan Prometheus announce this verdict in a work, “The Masque of Pandora,” in 1875. It derives from a similar phrase by Sophacles in “Antigone” from ancient Greece.
“Evil appears as good in the minds of those the gods lead to destruction,” Sophacles wrote.
So, is it America the gods are intent to destroy now? Have we so violated the paths of righteousness that at the hands of our commanderin-chief we are now being subjected to sheer madness as a prelude to our destruction? This is the twitterverse in which mad things happen, bombs are sent off, retaliations are swift and for most of us, we have no idea what’d happened. A flash of light, a terrible noise and then, like the ending of “The Sopranos” — nothing.
We’ve died, you see. Like so many before us, senselessly but we don’t know that because we’re dead.
But for many of us, looking at a madman saluting on the White House balcony waist deep in coronavirus, the signal of our death has been given. This is not going to end well, my friends.
But here, as with all great tragedies, the awful outcome lies with the foreshadowing, because that is where we’re being told what’s to come, in the hours before the pitch black, and where the chance still exists to do something. Do something!
Who saw the Great War coming? Who, that is, who thought it really shouldn’t be allowed to happen? Many saw it coming, and all they did was to set about turning it to their advantage in one way or another.
Even now, the madman saluting as he gasps for breath on the White House balcony is signaling to us all a great bath of poisoned blood soon to engulf us. We all like stunned hairy little mammals stare at what we see and have no plans but to do what we always do. Maybe actually vote this time. Well, maybe.
Our menace is our prophet. The gasping man on the balcony is signalling to us. He means us no good, but in foretelling our doom, he is also predicting our chance.
Prometheus cries out the prophetic truth, and it tells us that we must change our habits, we must be ready for an impending destiny that will call out of us our native energy, our native connections.
Dear ones, this orb upon which we mostly slumber is all we’ve got, for quite awhile, at least. It’s a long way to our neighbors who we’ll find need us more than we need them.
Is it more fear or sloth that inhibits us? Face the fear, and you can vanquish it. Sloth requires a terrible ghost to score its release.
Look at that ghost, my friend. He’s you, mangled, distorted and horrid. Let his visage stun you deeply and spur you to take up arms for the salvation of all.
The madman on the White House balcony is beckoning you now. He’s empty and tells you that his emptiness is your destiny, right now, unless you twist and violently set yourself free. Cut yourself free.
Nicholas Benton may be emailed at nfbenton@fcnp.com.
COMMENT
OCTOBER 8 – 14, 2020 | PAGE 9
Our Man in Arlington months cataloguing plants and By Charlie Clark pulling out invasive ones (garlic
Attention outdoor recre- mustard). “The sad upshot is that ators: Culture clash just off the we created a perfect hill for mounWashington & Old Dominion trail. tain bikers to ride down,” Allen
Certain mountain bikers have said. blazed new unauthorized trails Consensus is that the culprits down the historic hillock known are young kids, socially isolated for 300 years as Brandymore during the pandemic, she noted, Castle. They’ve angered tree who, without expert planning, cut stewards and parks protectors who what are called “commuter trails” bemoan damage to plant life on or “goat paths.” Those muddy that secluded tree-lined formation grooves “will eventually underin Madison Manor Park. mine tree roots,” which leads to
I recently climbed that topo- erosion. Plus, stones “that have graphic feature (near the 1700 been here for thousands of years” block of N. Roosevelt St.) with Jo have rolled down the slopes. Allen, a Virginia master natural- When we reached the hilltop, ist and volunteer park co-steward we found a freshly burned fire pit, for Brandymore Castle. We met trash and graffiti painted on trees at the official bike trail’s historic (“love” and “Jesus”). sign that explains how the rocky Mountain bike advocacy outcropping was first described groups acknowledge the problem. in a 1724 survey by Charles “Part of our review process is to Broadwater. verify trails by comparing what
The problem, Allen said, is not was submitted to land manager that mountain biking is inherently maps,” said Zander Goepfert of bad, but that a few practitioners the MTB Project, referencing a lack education in the environmen- recommended Arlington route tal impact of their behavior on a by MORE (Mid-Atlantic Offhill that “takes your breath away.” Road Enthusiasts). “Sanctioned
She is sentimental about the trails are built with sustainabilsite, showing me Minie balls ity in mind, mitigating erosion found by her late husband in the and limiting impact on sensitive 1950s on the natural lookout site areas.” But MORE’s website procontaining earthworks perhaps motes mountain bike rides atop from the Civil War. As a youth, Brandymore. her husband met the “get off my Jon Levine of the 200-member lawn” old man who lived in the Facebook group Arlington Trails hill’s sole house. Allen and vol- says “Brandymore is a flashunteers recently removed an old point,” but bike groups are 95 boiler, bed springs and golf clubs percent in agreement on sustainfrom its still-visible foundation. ability. He has spoken to the kids
Those volunteers worked for who made the illegal trails, hoping to educate them. But his group thinks Arlington’s policy banning bikes on natural trails should be eased for responsible users.
Parks department spokeswoman Susan Kalish verified that natural trails are to be used only by walkers. “Wheels on trails compact the ground and have impact on flora and fauna,” she said. We’ve taken steps to inform users about appropriate uses, including placing signage along the trails, increasing Park Ranger presence and have installed some barriers.” Repeat violators can be banned.
Others see a need for greater public education. “There are limited personnel for enforcing rules in our 148 parks,” says Bill Ross, chair of the Park and Recreation Commission.
Allen agrees that public education is key, given the limited enforcement capabilities. Mountain biking “is fun — your own personal roller coaster,” the tree protector acknowledges. “If I were younger, I’d do it.” ***
County Manager Mark Schwartz on Sept. 29 delivered his delayed-by-pandemic commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Arlington taking its name.
Unveiling modern analysis of census data from 1920 (combined with a shout-out to the 2020 work of Arlington’s Complete Count Committee), Schwartz took to Facebook, YouTube and county TV to demonstrate a nifty new tool from the mapping office. It allows you to hover over a century-old street map online and view photos of the same site today.
