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Endorsements

About 70 percent of Virginians voted in the last two presidential elections when President Barack Obama carried the state as the first Democrat to do so since Lyndon Johnson won the Old Dominion. In the gubernatorial election in 2009 voter turnout was half that number with the expectation that voter participation in the election on Nov. 5 will also be light. While the presidential elections get a lot of attention and high participation, statewide elections do not attract as many voters. In many ways, voters who stay home are pushing off their responsibility in voting to a group of people unknown to them who do bother to vote. Such a situation can lead to a small group of highly motivated voters swinging the outcome of an election. Please encourage your family, co-workers and neighbors to participate as the consequences of the election are critically important to the future of the commonwealth, and we each need to take part in the decision.

Independent Progressive

Draft Plan Jeopardizes Urban Reston

An overflow crowd at the Joint Community Forum last Thursday, Oct. 17 at the Reston Association learned the outlines of the draft Reston Master Plan for the Dulles Rail Corridor. The sobering assessment by community representatives on the Master Plan Task Force which began its work four years ago left the audience with many unanswered questions and concerns about the quality of planned growth for 40,000 more people and 60,000 more jobs in the corridor.

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Denim Do-gooders Help Put Zip on Homelessness

Deltek hosts “challenge breakfast” to turn $5 into $25,000.

Casual Friday got a twist on Friday, Oct. 18, as thousands of employees throughout Fairfax County became denim do-gooders by throwing on a pair of jeans to help prevent and end homelessness. Deltek, Inc., the Herndon-based global software and information solutions company, kicked off the third annual Jeans Day in Fairfax County by hosting a fundraising breakfast. The company, founded in 1983 by Don deLaski and his son Kenneth, hosted one of the first Jeans Day events in Fairfax County. “We were excited to see Deltek host this challenge breakfast that welcomed businesses, nonprofits and other community leaders interested in helping to make jeans day a huge success this year,” said Dean Klein, director of Fairfax County’s Office to Prevent and End Homelessness (OPEH). “Even though we continue to have great support from longtime supporters, we also saw so much energy and enthusiasm from new partners.”


Reston Ice Skater Wins Regional Championships

Local figure skater Christina Cleveland topped the competition in the recent 2014 Regional Figure Skating Championships. A junior lady, Christie won both the short and the long programs in the championships, held in Louisville, Ky. The top four skaters in each division progress to the Sectional Championships, which will be held in East Lansing, Mich. in November. From there, the top four earn a spot in the 2014 US National Championships in Boston, Mass. This year, the national competition will also be the United States Olympic Trials for the Sochi Olympics in mid-winter. Christie is a junior at Herndon High School and skates under Rashid Kadyrkaev at the Ashburn Ice House. Her team of coaches helps her to succeed. She does stretching, cardio, ballet, strength training and trampoline, as well as her on-ice regimen, as her daily fitness activities.

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Sheltering Animals & Families Together

Initiative promotes domestic violence shelters that accept pets.

Did you know that approximately 2.3 million people, primarily women, are victims of partner violence? Did you know that over 62 percent of the American households have, at least, one pet? Approximately 48 percent of abused women do not leave an abusive situation because they will not leave their pets behind. Pets are likely to be victimized by the household abuser. The abuser’s animal cruelty is used to force compliance from the victims. “What I do to the dog is what I can do to you” is the message the abuser sends, according to Allie Phillips, founder of Sheltering Animals & Families Together [SAF-T]. “As a prosecutor in Michigan, I saw women who stayed with their abusers to protect their pets,” said Phillips. “If they leave, the abuser will turn his anger on the pet. The pet usually is the primary target used to control the victim. “I created the safety program to help get these women out of their abusive homes.”

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Home Tour Celebrates Simon’s Vision

Annual tour gives glimpse of variety of Reston homes.

Danielle Harrison has lived in Reston for 10 years. She has attended a few events at the Reston Museum, is excited for Reston founder Robert Simon’s 100th birthday next April and considers herself very knowledgeable when it comes to Reston history.


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Planning Around Reston’s Metro Stations

Master Plan Special Study Task Force update presented at forum.

The Reston Association, Reston Citizens Association and the Alliance for Reston Clusters and Homeowners hosted a joint community forum Thursday, Oct. 17 to discuss Phase One of the Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force.

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Reston Hospital Provides Construction Update

Physicians expected in new medical office building after Thanksgiving.

Reston Hospital Center is currently in the process of adding more than 150,000 square feet of new office space and facilities.

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Screamin’ for a Reason at Bradley Farm

Bradley Farm Haunted House returns to benefit Herndon-Reston FISH.

The annual Bradley Farm Haunted House will be resurrected this year on Friday, Oct. 25 and Saturday, Oct. 26. The annual haunted house, which raises money for Herndon-Reston FISH, is themed “Panic Attack: Confront Your Fears and Phobias.”


Creating a Spooky Halloween Dinner

Local culinary experts offer ideas for turning an ordinary meal into a ghoulish adventure.

Halloween dinner in Christine Wisnewski’s Vienna home is often a balancing act between healthy and sugary. On the sweetest holiday of the year, for example, the mother and culinary instructor at Culinaria Cooking School, also in Vienna, prepares a wholesome dinner for her eager trick-or-treaters, managing candy-induced sugar highs and inevitable post-confection lows.

Reston Home Sales: September, 2013

In September 2013, 81 Reston homes sold between $1,165,000-$169,300.

Reston Home Sales: September, 2013

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Lake Anne Walks to School, PTA Plans to Make it Habit

The Lake Anne PTA sponsored a rally for Walk to School Day, last Wednesday, Oct. 9, at a local park before school. The international day dedicated to walking to school inspired the PTA to host a walk to school the first Friday of every month. Students received charms with a chain to put on their backpacks to commemorate the initiative. Parents, staff and students crossed streets with the help of guards and even Assistant Principal Melissa Goddin, to get everyone safely to school.


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Wiehle-Reston East Station Nears Completion

The station is approximately 98 percent complete.

While the precise opening date for Phase 1 of the Silver Line has not been set, Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project crews are putting the finishing touches on the systems and structures at the future Wiehle-Reston East station.

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Herndon Homecoming Parade Beats Drizzle

The theme of the 2013 parade was “Sea Swept.”

Despite overcast weather and a continued drizzle, Herndon High School held the annual homecoming parade in downtown Herndon on Saturday, Oct. 12. Parade participants began staging on Sterling Road, where the parade kicked off at 9:30 a.m. The parade then turned left onto Elden Street and headed into downtown.

Editorial: Don’t Let Negatives Keep You From Voting

Choices are stark; think about what principles should guide governance in Virginia for the next four years.

Every Virginia voter will have the option to cast a ballot for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and their member of the Virginia House of Delegates. While much of the coverage and advertising at the top of the ticket has been negative in the extreme, it will still matter who is governor. Don’t turn up your nose, hold your nose if necessary, and go vote. You can vote on Nov. 5; most likely you can vote before that.


Classified Advertising October 16, 2013

Read the latest ads here!

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Council Approves Preliminary Boundary Agreement

Agreement would help settle western town border issue with Loudoun County.

The Herndon Town Council voted unanimously a resolution that would begin the process of settling a dispute over the town’s western border Tuesday, Oct. 8. The approval sets in motion a process by which the town and Loudoun County could come to an agreem

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Town Center Hosts Oktoberfest Reston

Annual festival features German food, dance.

Thomas Redding had one thing on his mind during last week’s succession of rainy days, and it could only be found Saturday morning at Reston Town Center.


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Battleground Northern Virginia

What role will the region play in the election?

For many years, Northern Virginia has been written off by both parties as a Democratic stronghold — a place where Republicans simply try to cut their losses while they focus on the rest of the commonwealth. But this election cycle may be different. All three of the gubernatorial candidates are from Fairfax County. And recent statewide candidates have not been able to win without picking off selected jurisdictions in Northern Virginia. "As you look at Northern Virginia that's further from Washington, you see a more Republican area — Prince William, western Fairfax, Fauquier," said Stephen Farnsworth, professor at University of Mary Washington. "That's where the real action is in Northern Virginia politics." As Election Day draws closer and television becomes a virtual battlefield for attention, a real battle is brewing on the ground here in Northern Virginia. Candidates and their advisors are looking at the path to victory back in 2009 for Republican Bob McDonnell, who won Prince William County, Fairfax County and Fauquier County. Although this race is likely to be closer than 2009, the importance of Northern Virginia is looming larger than ever.

Week in Reston

Community Forum to Review Master Plan

With the Reston Master Plan Special Study Task Force work nearing completion, Supervisor Cathy Hudgins (D-Hunter Mill) is hosting a community meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 7 p.m., to review the draft language for the Fairfax County Comprehensive Plan. The plan will guide development around the three transit station areas in Reston through 2030. The meeting will be held at South Lakes High School, Lecture Hall, 11400 South Lakes Drive, Reston.