opinion, page 6 ‘the dance numbers are...

Holiday Entertainment0

Festival of Lights andCarols, this SaturdayNews, Page 3

‘A New Tradition For Fairfax City’News, Page 3

‘The Dance NumbersAre Spectacular’

Holiday Entertainment, Page 8

From left, Ashleigh Wood, Kendra Walsh, Rithika Ashok, Tiffanie Jones and Myra Lawson strike a pose. En-core’s Christmas show starts Dec. 7.

online at www.connectionnewspapers.com November 29-December 5, 2018

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2 ❖ Fairfax Connection ❖ November 29 - December 5, 2018 www.ConnectionNewspapers.com

Fairfax Connection ❖ November 29 - December 5, 2018 ❖ 3www.ConnectionNewspapers.com

NewsFairfax Connection Editor Kemal Kurspahic

703-778-9414 or [email protected]

By Bonnie Hobbs

The Connection

If people can be dressed in their fin-est, holiday attire to celebrate theseason, then so can windows. So

participating Fairfax City businesses willbe adorning their storefront windows forthe City’s first Holiday Window Decorat-ing Contest.

Sponsored by the Office of EconomicDevelopment, the purpose of the com-petition is to not only bring awarenessto the local businesses, but to connectvisitors and residents to them. “It’scitywide,” said Danette Nguyen, Officeof Economic Development business de-velopment associate. “We want to callattention to the entire City of Fairfax andbring a little of Fifth Avenue New York’sholiday spirit to Fairfax City.”

Business owners who would like to bepart of the fun should sign up by Nov. 30at fairfaxcityconnected.com/hwdc. Deco-rations will be up for all to enjoy from Dec.2-Jan. 6. Judging will begin on Dec. 3.

The theme is “Classic Holiday Stories,”so participants will transform their

ground-level, storefront windows to illus-trate seasonal favorites such as “How theGrinch Stole Christmas,” “Elf,” “Polar Ex-press,” “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer”and “Frosty the Snowman.”

“The great thing about this contest is thattwo awards will be given,” said Nguyen.“There’ll be both a Grand Prize and aPeople’s Choice award.”

The Grand Prize award will be decidedby the mayor, City Council and OED. Win-dows will be judged on craftsmanship, origi-nality, creativity and effective use of colorand material.

To determine the People’s Choice awardwinner, said Nguyen, “We’ll post photos ofthe participating businesses’ window deco-rations on the Economic DevelopmentAuthority’s Facebook page, Facebook.com/FairfaxCityEDA. Then, from Dec. 3 throughDec. 7, Fairfax City residents and visitorscan vote for their favorite, holiday windowdisplays by liking their photos on that page.”

Winners will be announced via the EDA’sFacebook page and blog atfairfaxcityconnected.com/hwdcwinners onFriday, Dec. 14. Award winners will be pre-sented with a trophy to keep in their place

of business until next year’s competition.Displays must be family-friendly and

have no blinking lights, since they coulddistract passing motorists. They must bevisible from the sidewalk, but should notblock the pedestrian right of way or thesidewalk, itself.

Businesses that have already signed upto participate include:

Chubby Squirrel Brewing Co., 10382Willard Way; Flooring America, 9979Main St.; Room Escape Fairfax, 3949University Drive; Paint Your Own Pottery,10417 Main St.; YogaWorks Fairfax, 3950University Drive; Smash’d Creamery,10427 North St., No. 103; Common-wealth Dry Goods, 10409 Main St., UnitC; and Mara Hair and Mode Studio, 4011Chain Bridge Road.

“This is my favorite time of year and anew tradition for Fairfax City,” saidNguyen. “It’s a great way to get into theholiday spirit and to see all the businessesin the City decorated for the season.”

For more information about thecontest, including which businesses areparticipating, go tofairfaxcityconnected.com/hwdc.

Time for the first Holiday Window Decorating Contest.

‘A New Tradition for Fairfax City’ Submit civic/community announcements atConnectionNewspapers.com/Calendar. Photos andartwork welcome. Deadline is Thursday at noon, atleast two weeks before event.

HOLIDAY DONATIONSBlanket and Coat Drive. Through Dec. 8.

Organized by NOVA Relief Center, blankets andcoats will be sent to refugees in three camps inJordan this winter. Blankets and coats should benew or gently worn. Monetary donations arealso needed and may be made to NOVA ReliefCenter online and at some drop-off locations.For drop-off sites or to make a tax-deductibledonation, visit novareliefcenter.org.

Holiday Basket Donation. Christmas baskets byDec. 17. Preparing a special holiday meal andjoining one’s family around the table to givethanks are visions that come to mind when wethink of Christmas dinner. For many familiesand individuals, enjoying a special holiday mealwhen finances are tight is just not possible. Visitwww.koinoniacares.org/holiday-baskets.html forsuggestions and to sign up to donate a basket.

Food for Fines. Nov. 1-30. Fairfax County PublicLibrary will be hosting a food drive called “Foodfor Fines.” Canned goods and other non-perishable items collected during the drive will bedonated to Food for Others, a not-for-profit foodpantry and food rescue operation that servesFairfax County. Each item donated will erase $1from a patron’s overdue fines up to a maximumof $15. Customers may donate even if there areno fines accrued. Visit www.fairfaxcounty.gov/library/food-fines for more.

Toys for Tots Donations. Nov. 28-Dec. 8 atPaperMoon, 6315 Amherst Ave., Springfield.PaperMoon, a gentlemen’s club in Springfield,will give back to the community by collectingnew, unwrapped toys for Toys for Tots. Call703-866-4160 or visit www.papermoonvip.comfor more.

Toys for Tots Drive. Through Dec. 10. AreaSheehy Auto Stores will collect new and

Bulletin Board

By Bonnie Hobbs

The Connection

The City of Fairfax officially kicksoff the holiday season this week-end with a flurry of fun-filledactivities for the whole family.

It all begins with the second annual City ofFairfax Holiday Market in Old Town Square,10415 North St. in downtown Fairfax.

❖ Holiday MarketFriday, Nov. 30, from 5-8 p.m.; Saturday,

Dec. 1, from noon-6 p.m.; and Sunday, Dec.2, from noon-4 p.m.

An array of craft vendors will offer theirwares under the venue’s twinkling, holiday

lights. The Holiday Market will run the first,three weekends of December on Friday,Saturday and Sunday, with different ven-dors each weekend.

❖ Pancake BreakfastThis Saturday, Dec. 1, is the annual Pan-

cake Breakfast with Santa. It’s on the thirdfloor of Fire Station 3, at 4081 UniversityDrive, from 8-11 a.m.

❖ Festival of Lights and CarolsThis holiday event will be held Dec. 1,

from noon-6 p.m., in Old Town Square andOld Town Hall, 3999 University Drive. En-joy live music, hot cider and s’mores, andalso tour the historic Ratcliffe-Allison-Pozer

House at 10386 Main St. Then, at 5:30 p.m.,enjoy caroling and the lighting of the City’sChristmas tree. For more information, call703-385-7858.

❖ Christmas in CampOn Sunday, Dec. 2, from noon-4 p.m., visit

Historic Blenheim at 3610 Old Lee Hwy. toparticipate in the holiday customs of CivilWar soldiers and civilians at home. For fur-ther information, call 703-591-0560.

❖ Holiday MarketFriday, Dec. 7, from 5-8 p.m.; Satur-

day, Dec. 8, from noon-6 p.m.; andSunday, Dec. 9, from noon-4 p.m., inOld Town Square.

❖ Lunch with SantaChildren 10 and younger may have Lunch

with Santa Claus on Saturday, Dec. 8, at 11a.m., noon and 1 p.m., in Old Town Hall.Tickets are $6 each and are available online(https://www.fairfaxva.gov/) and at theParks and Recreation Department offices inCity Hall, 10455 Armstrong St.; theSherwood Center, 3740 Old Lee Hwy.; andGreen Acres Center, 4401 Sideburn Road.For information, call 703-385-7858.

❖ Holiday MarketFriday, Dec. 14, from 5-8 p.m.; Satur-

day, Dec. 15, from noon-6 p.m.; andSunday, Dec. 16, from noon-4 p.m., inOld Town Square.

Festival of Lights and Carols, this Saturday

Girl Scouts fromService Unit 55-6sing carols duringthe 2017 Festival ofLights and Carols.

Children and adultsbrave the heat of thefire pit to toastmarshmallows fors’mores during lastyear’s festival.

Photos by Bonnie Hobbs/

The Connection

See Bulletin, Page 15


News

By Mike Salmon

The Connection

In 1799, a 17-pound nugget of gold was foundnear Charlotte, N.C., starting the lesser knownEast Coast Gold Rush, that spread into Virginia.As the years passed, and gold coins were pro-

duced in Charlotte, the east coast gold belt thatstretched from the Harpers Ferry area to the Piedmontdied down and talk of gold went to California.

This was a topic of discussion of Mike Johnson’srecent lecture titled “Prehistory of Gold (Au) inNorthern Virginia,” Burke Historical Society spon-sored at the Pohick Library. Johnson, a former FairfaxCounty archeologist, offered geological and archeo-logical data and displayed a vial of gold dust that hefound in Northern Virginia over the past year. “Thisis all year, at least once a week,” Johnson said, hold-ing up the glass vial. “That took a lot of work,” headded.

On the title page, there was an arrowhead hefound, with a penny and a little pile of gold dust,just to show a size comparison, and show how pan-ning for gold in Northern Virginia should only be ahobby. There was a nugget found more recently that

weighs two ounces, but it’s another rarity and is morevaluable to show off than it is to melt down and sell.“That piece is priceless,” said Scott Sprague, a mem-ber of the east coast chapter of a prospecting withroots in California. “It’s not about money.”

Johnson’s presentation started with the geologicprocess to make gold, and evolved into a period18,000 years ago when the Chesapeake Bay was cre-ated, the Bering Land Bridge, the Clovis points andPaleo America. “Five thousand years ago, at least inthis area, there were foragers,” Johnson said. A cavedrawing of sorts called the Silsby’s Rock pictographwas found at Great Falls in recent years and is nowon display in the Great Falls Visitors Center.

The attendees wanted to know about gold aroundhere though, and when talking gold, the hot spotsare a big secret – similar to fishing. Around here,most of the land is owned by the government or pri-vate individuals so hunting for gold or panning orgold is not allowed.

“There aren’t many places, you’re going to have toget permission,” Johnson said. “One of the rules is,you don’t reveal your source,” he added.

Someone in the audience brought up the BurkeGold Mine, which Johnson wasn’t familiar with butanother person did know that it was about 200 yardsfrom Pohick Creek. There were a few whispers, butthe topic quickly changed. Fountainhead Park is inthe gold belt, Johnson said, and noted that this wasdetermined from a micro speck of gold he found there.

Local gold prospectingpays off in tiny amounts.

Burke Has a Heart ofGold Somewhere

Former county archeologist Mike Johnson with a vial ofdust that took him a long time to find.

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People

Theresa M. Morthland of Burkeearned the Stars & StripesAward, the highest recognition

that American Heritage Girls offers to girlmembers. The award requires a greatdeal of time, sacrifice and devotion toachieve.

In addition to living out the AmericanHeritage Girls creed and oath, awardrecipients complete a number of require-ments, including earning a total of 16merit badges; holding a leadership posi-tion in their troop for a minimum of sixmonths; planning, developing and pro-viding leadership to others in a serviceproject lasting more than 100 hours;writing a life ambition/spiritual walkessay and résumé; and passing a Boardof Review.

Morthland chose to serve the Churchof the Nativity Catholic School by design-ing and building an elevated sandboxwith an innovative design so preschoolchildren in wheelchairs and children withtactile difficulties can play in the sandwith their friends. The sandbox has be-come a focal point in the playground andwith multiple classes of children. Sheworked with multiple schools before ac-tual construction, making presentationsto each administration to seek approval.She also made a presentation to theparish’s Knights of Columbus Council7992 seeking and ultimately receivingtheir financial support to complete theproject.

Morthland served as the troop’s SeniorTroop Leader, Closet Coordinator, andearned multiple awards, such as, theHarriet Tubman Level Award, DolleyMadison Level Award, and the Mary, theFirst Disciple Religious Medal.

A member of Immanuel Bible Church’sAmerican Heritage Girls Troop VA1115,

Morthland is the 448th girl nationally— and the 37th girl in Virginia — to earnthe Stars & Stripes Award. She will berecognized in a court-of-honor ceremonyat 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 17, at ImmanuelBible Church in Annandale.

She is the daughter of Sam andMichele Morthland of Burke and thefamily attends the Church of the Nativ-ity Catholic Church in Burke. She gradu-ated Lake Braddock Secondary Schoolin June where she was active in the ColorGuard. She currently attends West Vir-ginia University as a Freshman in Foren-sics Biology. She was recognized by thecollege with both academic and leader-ship scholarships.

American Heritage Girls Inc. is a na-tional character-development organiza-tion for girls ages 5 to 18 that embracesChristian values and encourages familyinvolvement. For more information, goto www.americanheritagegirls.org.

Theresa M. Morthland of Burke.

Burke Student EarnsAmerican Heritage Girls Award

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Historic PohickChurch MinisterReceives AwardRev. Dr. Thomas A.Costa of the HistoricPohick Church DocentGuild received theBronze Good Citizen-ship Medal from Presi-dent Ernie Coggins ofthe George WashingtonChapter of the Sons ofthe American Revolu-tion at the conclusionof a program thathonored seven veter-ans living at the Sunrise at Mount Vernon assisted-living facility inAlexandria on Nov. 10. After honoring the esteemed veterans of ourarmed forces for Veterans Day, the Bronze Good Citizenship medal wasawarded by the chapter for Reverend Costa’s service to the residents,to the local SAR, and for supporting Revolutionary War-era historyprograms in the area.


Opinion

During the last week of each year,this newspaper devotes its pagesto the creativity of local studentsand children. The annual Children’s

Connection (including Children’s Gazette,Children’s Almanac and Children’s Centre View)is a tradition of well over a decade.

We welcome contributions from pub-lic and private schools, art classes, in-dividuals and homeschoolers. We pub-lish artwork, poetry, essays, creative writing,opinion pieces, short stories, photography,photos of sculpture or gardens or other cre-ative efforts.

We ask that all submissions be digital so theycan be sent through email or delivered on flashdrive. Writing should be submitted in text for-mat. Artwork should be photographed orscanned and provided in jpeg format.

Some suggestions:❖ Drawings or paintings or photographs of

your family, friends, pets or some favorite ac-tivity. These should be photographed orscanned and submitted in jpeg format. Photosof sculpture or larger art projects are also wel-come.

❖ Short answers (50 to 100 words) to someof the following questions: If you could giveyour parents, family or friends any gift thatdidn’t cost money what would that gift be?What are you most looking forward to in theupcoming year? What do you want to be when

you grow up? What is your favoriteanimal? What is your favorite toy?What makes a good friend?

❖ Your opinion (50 to 100 words)about traffic, sports, restaurants, video games,toys, trends, politics, etc.

❖ Poetry or other creative writing.❖ News stories from school newspapers.❖ Photos and text about activities or events.To be published, we must have the full first

and last name of the student artist/writer.Identify each piece of writing or art, includ-

ing the student’s full name, age, grade andtown of residence, plus the name of theschool, name of teacher and town of school

location. Home schoolers’ contributions arewelcomed.

To send flash drives containing artwork andtyped, electronic submissions, mark themclearly by school and hometown and mail theflash drive to: Children’s Connection (includ-ing Children’s Gazette, Children’s Almanac andChildren’s Centre View), 1606 King Street, Al-exandria, VA 22314.

Please send all submissions by Monday, Dec.3, 2018. The Children’s Edition will publishthe last week of 2018.

You can see last year’s editions by visitingwww.connectionnewspapers.com/PDFs/ andscroll down to Children’s Edition.

Email submissions for the Children’s Editionto the following editors:

For Burke, Clifton, Fairfax, Fairfax Station,Great Falls, Herndon, Lorton, McLean,Reston, or Springfield, email to KemalKurspahic [email protected].

For Arlington, Potomac, CentreView,Chantilly, Alexandria and Mount Vernon,email to Steven Mauren,[email protected]

Get creative and sendart, poetry and more.

Call for Children’s Connection 2018

Editorial

By Joe Fay

Executive Director, FACETS

Fifteen years ago, twoFairfax men froze to deathduring the fall. At the

time, FACETS was a nonprofit thatwas primarily serving meals to thecounty’s homeless in partnershipwith several churches. FACETS’leaders knew that feeding peopleonly to send them back into the extreme coldwas not a great answer for the growing num-ber of people who were homeless in the com-munity.

That winter FACETS responded by offeringtemporary shelter in conjunction with its part-ner churches, the Lamb Center, and SalvationArmy to get people in from the cold. The firstyear, these hypothermia shelters rotated toseveral different churches and only openedwhen the temperatures dropped below freez-ing. Soon the centers were serving up to 60people on cold nights.

The program has evolved as theregion’s population has grown. In2006, FACETS worked on policiesand procedures with the countyand formally began managing cen-tral Fairfax’s Hypothermia Preven-tion and Response Program. Thisyear 36 churches will be host sitesfor the program with more than50 churches and other faith com-munities providing volunteers.

These faith community partners rotate whenopening their doors to provide shelter. In an-ticipation, churches and temples are preparingtheir facilities to welcome people in need dur-ing the cold months ahead — cleaning, gettingsupplies, and preparing the space. Other vol-unteers are planning menus. Unique partner-ships have formed as a result of the programas Christians, Muslims, Jews, and more jointogether to help the homeless and in the pro-cess learn about each other.

The effort also matured beyond just provid-ing safe haven. Guests now receive life-chang-

ing case management. By interacting withguests at the shelters, FACETS’ case managersare able to address their needs in a very per-sonal way by gaining their trust and connect-ing them with housing solutions and criticalservices. They also receive a variety of servicesfrom the county.

Last year 283 guests were given shelter fromthe biting cold. More than 3,800 people vol-unteered 33,000 hours last season to care forthese guests who are homeless. By the end ofseason, 41 of these people had lefthomelessness behind and were housed.

This year’s Hypothermia Response and Pre-vention Program began the Sunday of Thanks-giving weekend and runs seven nights a weekthrough April 1. With the projected cold andforecasts of a very snowy winter season, de-mand is expected to grow.

To learn more, donate or volunteer, visit usat www.FACETSCares.org.

FACETS is a Fairfax-based nonprofit workingto prevent and end homelessness.

This year 36 churches will be host sites for the hypothermia program.

Bringing People in from the Cold

Protecting OurDiversityTo the Editor:

I want to thank you for publish-ing the article about the Fairfax ForAll coalition’s recent activities(“Advocating for Immigrant Pro-tection”).

As the daughter of two immi-grants, immigration policy has al-

ways been important to me — es-pecially as the debate over depor-tation and ICE has escalated. Myparents were fortunate enough tobe able to immigrate legally, andhave been citizens for about 10years, but in examining the dataI’ve come to see that that’s mostlikely to do with the fact that theyare white and had college degrees.Our town is so beautifully diverse,

and I believe that we’re losing animportant part of our culture whenimmigrants are scared to partici-pate in the community for fear ofdeportation.

If what Fairfax For All says is true,then there is an entire group ofpeople in our town who are beingexcluded from important decisions,prevented from seeking medicalattention, and afraid to participate

in the community — all out of fear.I’m learning just how importantthese relationships to the commu-nity, or social ties, are. They allowindividuals a sense of purpose andhelp them to feel assimilated intothis community that we like to pro-fess as being so diverse.

Emma SteinhobelHerndon

Letters to the Editor

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Fairfax


Holiday Entertainment

By David Siegel

The Connection

For its Holiday Season production, theProvidence Players are presenting aspecial adaptation of Charles

Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” with an Ameri-can Depression era setting. The Rob Zappleadaptation is directed by Beth Giles-White-head. She cast more than two dozen actorsto bring the show to vivid life along withlive Bluegrass music.

Zapple’s “A Christmas Carol” is set dur-ing a bitter cold December 1933, in a down-on-its-fortunes St. Louis neighborhood.Times are hard. People are out of work andhave lost hope. An unemployedShakespearean actor and his manager runout of gas. The townsfolk agree to supplythem with gas if they tell them the story ofEbenezer Scrooge, Bob Cratchit and TinyTim. “The story of Ebenezer Scrooge’s re-demption and turn to love and service forothers will always need to be heard nomatter how many Christmas seasons comeand go,” said Barbara Gilles-Whitehead,Providence Players director. “Our produc-tion will provide audiences the opportunityto see this familiar story through a differ-ent lens.” Tiny Tim is played by CadenMitchell (Mantua Elementary School), whosaid: “Tiny Tim is a really giving boy whowants to help everyone around him, eventhough he is one that needs help himself,due to his illness and disability. I like howmuch he loves everyone and they love him.”

Talia Cutler (Kilmer Middle School) playsthe Ghost of Christmas Past. “The ghost ofChristmas Past has immense power andmagic. She is a very different character than

Holiday Story ofRedemption and LoveProvidence Players present Rob Zapple’sadaptation of ‘A Christmas Carol.’

what I normally play,” Talia said.Bob Cratchit is portrayed by Daniel

Lavanga: “Cratchit is so utterly devoted tohis family. He would do anything for them,including putting up with Scrooge’s abuseday in and day out. And yet he is not a bit-ter man.” Roxanne Waite plays Mrs.Cratchit: “The moral of the importance ofputting other people above material trap-pings, the power of interpersonal relation-ship, and redemption are timeless. It’s im-portant to be reminded of such themes andwe can always use a good dose of it.”

Ebenezer Scrooge is played by DavidWhitehead, who said: “I love the changethat Ebenezer takes from coldness and dis-dain to compassion and gratitude. There isno other story like it, it lifts my spirits justplaying it.”

The Providence Players production ofZapple’s “A Christmas Carol” will remindaudiences that even during the most des-perate of times, there is hope with commu-nity and family to help shelter you.

Ebenezer (portrayed by DavidWhitehead) in the ProvidencePlayers production of RobZapple’s adaptation of “A Christ-mas Carol” by Charles Dickens.

Roxanne Waite portrays Mrs.Cratchit in the Providence Playersproduction of Rob Zapple’s adap-tation of “A Christmas Carol” byCharles Dickens.

Where and WhenProvidence Players present the Rob Zapple ad-

aptation of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” atThe James Lee Community Center Theater, 2855Annandale Road, Falls Church. Performances: Dec.7 to Dec. 15, 2018. Thursday, Friday and Saturdayat 7:30 p.m. with Saturday and Sunday Matineesat 2 p.m. on December 8, 9, 15 & 16. Tickets $17;seating is General Admission. Call 703-425-6782or visit www.providenceplayers.org

Note: This production will benefit the workofºThe Young Hearts, a group of teens who raisefunds to battle blood cancers and otherdiseases.ºHalf of all net proceeds from this produc-tion will be donated to Young Hearts Foundationin pursuit of their mission. This year, The YoungHearts are raising money in support of the Leuke-mia and Lymphoma Society.

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By Bonnie Hobbs

The dancers of Encore TheatricalArts Project are kicking up theirheels with glee, getting readyfor their upcoming, holiday ex-

travaganza, “An Invitation to Christmas.”The show runs Dec. 7-16 in the RichardErnst Theater at NOVA’s Annandale campus.

In the story, the elves at the North Poleare super-busy with so much work to dothat they need extra help. So they send outinvitations to children selected by Santa toattend Elf-Training School. However, one ofthe new recruits is a full-grown man, andhis classmates wonder why he’s there. Hedoes, too, since he thought he was goingon a job interview.

The cast of 24 dancers, plus adult guestperformers Jack Stein and Allen McRae,have been rehearsing since August, andDirector/Choreographer Raynor van derMerwe says things are coming along reallywell. “We had our first, dress rehearsal and,suddenly, the characters came to life,” shesaid. “And many of the performers are triplethreats — dancing, singing and acting.”

“Besides being a visual feast for the eyes,the show is uplifting — from the story tothe music,” she continued. “We have lots of

new numbers, plus some old favorites. I lookfor music that might be familiar, but notsomething people will hear over the radio.So I choose songs that move the story for-ward, put people in the holiday spirit andlet them escape this busy season for twohours.”

The scenes take place in New York City,Santa’s workshop at the North Pole andoutdoors in a snow-covered, winter won-derland. And van der Merwe describes thecostumes as both “colorful and glamorous.”

“Everybody’s working hard and hasclicked really well,” she said. “It’s a greatunity and, when everything comes together,it’s magic. And that’s what I love about the-ater — the community of it. No one does iton their own; the script, choreography, setsand lighting are among the puzzle pieces

Encore presents holiday show,“An Invitation to Christmas.”

To GoShow times are: Dec. 7 at 7:30 p.m.; Dec. 8 at

noon, 4 and 7:30 p.m.; Dec. 9 at noon and 4p.m.; Dec. 14 at 7:30 p.m.; Dec. 15 at noon, 4and 7:30 p.m.; and Dec. 16 at noon and 4 p.m.Tickets range from $19-$26 via www.encore-tap.org or 703-222-5511.

Location: Richard Ernst Theater, NOVA campus,8333 Little River Turnpike in Annandale.


‘The Dance NumbersAre Spectacular’

See Encore, Page 14

From left:Ashleigh Wood,Kendra Walsh,Rithika Ashok,Tiffanie Jonesand MyraLawson strikea pose.Encore’sChristmasshow startsDec. 7.

Photo Courtesy of

Linda Helms

Photography


UNIVERSITY MALL THEATRESwww.universitymalltheatres.comWe’re located in University Mall, Fairfax

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MultipleSanta

Clauseswill

enter-tain

duringEncore’supcom-

ingChrist-

masshow.

Encore’sdancersalwaysperform aRockettes-themednumberduring theirshows.

Photos

Courtesy of

Linda Helms

Photography



Image by

Ruth Judson /

Elizabeth Lucrezio

BalletNovaPresents TheNutcracker

BalletNova’s Nutcrackerhas become a holidaytradition. BalletNovapresents a brand-newproduction of the holidayclassic with new cos-tumes, new charactersand new choreography.The Sugar Plum Fairy isbeing danced by WillaFrantz, of Fairfax.Thursday-Friday, Nov. 29-30, 7:30 p.m.; Saturday,Dec. 1, 1 and 5 p.m.;Sunday, Dec. 2, 3 and 7p.m. at George MasonHigh School Theatre,7124 Leesburg Pike, FallsChurch. $18-42. Call 703-778-3008 or visitwww.BalletNova.org formore.

Submit entertainment announcementsat www.connectionnewspapers.com/Cal-endar/. The deadline is noon on Friday.

ONGOINGRed Cross Fundraiser. Through

Saturday, Dec. 15 at Crafthouse,11861 Palace Way, Fairfax. All threeCrafthouse locations in NorthernVirginia are donating 10 percent ofall bottled beer purchases to theAmerican Red Cross – CaliforniaWildfires Fund to assist thoseaffected by the wildfires inCalifornia. Call 703-825-1811 or visitwww.crafthouseusa.com for more.

Pop-Up Art show. Through Dec. 16 atGallery 57, 11899 Grand CommonsAve., Fairfax. Emerging ArtistsInitiative and the PetersonCompanies are partnering to bring anartistic and creative facet to theFairfax community. A new pop-up artgallery at Fairfax Corner Center willexhibit paintings and sculptures byfour resident artists in vacant retailspace. Free. [email protected] orvisit eaiinc.org

Glass National 2018. Through Jan.13 at The Workhouse Arts Center,Vulcan Gallery, W-16, 9518Workhouse Way, Lorton. TheWorkhouse Arts Center presents its3rd Annual Glass National exhibition.Glass National is a juried exhibitionwhich promotes and displays thebreadth of contemporary glassartwork being created throughout theUSA and Canada by highlighting bothfunctional and sculptural works. Thisyear’s juror is artist and educatorCarmen Lozar, director of theMerwin and Wakeley Galleries atIllinois Wesleyan University. Visitwww.workhousearts.org/event/glass-national-2018.

Founding Artists Exhibition.Through Feb. 3 at The WorkhouseArts Center, Vulcan Muse Gallery,9518 Workhouse Way, Lorton.Workhouse Arts Center presents agroup exhibition highlighting Studioand Arches artists that have been apart of the organization for its 10-year span. In honor of theirdedication and support, theexhibition will survey their works invarious mediums including painting,sculpture, fiber, glass, preciousmetals, and mixed media. Visitwww.workhousearts.org for more.

Second Saturdays. 6-9 p.m. at theWorkhouse Arts Center, 9518Workhouse Road, Lorton. TheSecond Saturday Art Walk is theperfect time to meet nearly 85Resident and Associate Artists,creating art in the studios orexhibiting in our galleries. Visitwww.workhousearts.org/.

Smoke Free Bingo. 7 p.m. EveryFriday. Fairfax Volunteer FireDepartment, 4081 University Drive,Fairfax. Free coffee, entertainingcallers, $1,000 jackpot (with breaksfor smoking friends).www.fairfaxvd.com. 703-273-3638.

THURSDAY/NOV. 29Geneology Workshop. 6:30-9 p.m. at

Pohick Library, 6450 SydenstrickerRoad, Burke. Anna Maria FitzhughChapter, NSDAR, will have aGenealogy Workshop. ProspectiveDAR members will receive assistancewith the application process. Contact703-690-7136 for more.

THURSDAY/NOV. 29-DEC. 2BalletNova presents The

Nutcracker. Thursday-Friday, 7:30p.m.; Saturday, 1 and 5 p.m.;Sunday, 3 and 7 p.m. at GeorgeMason High School Theatre, 7124Leesburg Pike, Falls Church.BalletNova’s Nutcracker has becomea holiday tradition. BalletNovapresents a brand-new production ofthe holiday classic with new

costumes, new characters and newchoreography. The Sugar Plum Fairyis danced by Willa Frantz, of Fairfax.$18-42. Call 703-778-3008 or visitwww.BalletNova.org for more.

THURSDAY/NOV. 29-DEC. 1Holiday Book Sale. Thursday, 3-9

p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.;Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at RichardByrd Library, 7250 Commerce St.,Springfield. More than 10,000 likenew books in all categories, most at$2 or less, plus loads of CDs, DVDsand special gift offerings. Over 3,000children’s books, too. Funds raisedwill pay for our children’s programsand more. Free admission. [email protected] or call 703-451-8055.

FRIDAY/NOV. 30-SATURDAY/DEC. 1The Pajama Game. Friday, 7 p.m.;

Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. at FallsChurch High School, 7521 JaguarTrail, Falls Church. A musical basedon the 1953 novel “7 1/2 Cents” byRichard Bissell. $7. Visitwww.fchsdrama.org orwww.itickets.com/events/408638.html.

SATURDAY/DEC. 1Holiday Extravaganza. 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

at South County High School, 8501Silverbrook Road, Lorton. Santaarrives at 8:30 a.m. courtesy of theLorton Volunteer Fire Departmentkicking off the Candy Cane Kids FunRun for kids age 12 and under. At 9a.m., 170 vendors featuring all sortsof handcrafted items will offereverything from handmade glassornaments and jewelry to soaps,lotions, clothing, and holiday décor.Cookies with Santa, free, 9:30-12;Fairfax Co Sheriff, Child ID andfingerprinting, free, 9-3; Santa’s BookEmporium, 9-3. Proceeds benefit theSCHS All Night Grad Party, PTSO,Band Boosters and Athletic Boosters.Free, $3. Visitwww.southcountyptso.org.

Tyler’s Mission Fundraiser. 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at South County High School,8501 Silverbrook Road, Lorton.Tyler’s Mission, in partnership with

Beyond Batten Disease Foundation501(3)(c), strives to raise awarenessand funding for research, treatmentand a cure. Tyler’s Stars will beholding a fundraiser during theSouth County Holiday Extravaganza.Visit www.defeatbatten.org to learnmore about Tyler and Batten Disease.

Advent Festival. 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at St.Stephen’s United Methodist Church,9203 Braddock Road, Burke. Open toall and designed with busy families inmind. Includes a Fair TradeChristmas Market, Christmas Concert(11 a.m.), Food Trucks, DIY Adventcraft stations, free coffee and cookiesand more. Free admission. Visitststephensfairfax.org.

Christmastide at Gunston Hall. 10a.m.-7 p.m. at George Mason’sGunston Hall, 10709 Gunston Road,Mason Neck. Holiday activities startwith a visit from Santa to games andcrafts for all ages. The evening hoursprovide a romantic holidayexperience by candlelight as visitorssample period food in the kitchenand explore the grounds. $15 foradults; $10 for children. Visitwww.gunstonhall.org/ or call 703-550-9220.

Joyful Music in Clifton. 4:30, 5:30,and 6:30 p.m. at Clifton PrimitiveBaptist Church, 7200 Main St.,Clifton. Art Guild of Clifton presentsQuest Singers in three holiday musicprograms, opening this festiveseason. Tickets not required. Freewill donation sustaining Art Guildscholarship programappreciated.Horse parade at noon.Holiday Homes Tour, 4-7 p.m. Call703-830-8466 or visitwww.artguildofclifton.org.

A Cathedral Brass Christmas. 6p.m. at Living Savior LutheranChurch, 5500 Ox Road, FairfaxStation. The Cathedral Brass willpresent “Christmas Cheer!” – a festiveprogram of holiday favorites. TheCathedral Brass is a 23-playersymphonic brass ensemble. Free. Visitwww.livingsaviorlutheran.org orcathedralbrass.org for more.

SATURDAY-SUNDAY/DEC. 1-2Holiday Arts and Crafts Show.

Saturday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sunday, 10a.m.-3:30 p.m. at Audrey Moore

Recreation Center, 8100 BraddockRoad, Annandale. One of NorthernVirginia’s longest running arts andcrafts shows with plenty of great giftsto choose from. Top-qualityhandmade arts and crafts will beoffered by 100 of the area’s finestartisans. Admission is $2 per person;children ages 12 and under are free.Door prizes. Call 703-321-7081

SUNDAY/DEC. 2Christmas Musical: “Here Comes

Heaven.” 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. atJubilee Christian Center of Fairfax,4650 Shirley Gate Road, Fairfax.Jubilee Christian Center presents“Here Comes Heaven,” composed ofadults, youth, and children. Therewill be a reception with refreshmentsafter the 11 a.m. service. The event isfree. Call 703-383-1170 or visitwww.jccag.org for more.

Concert: for King & Country. 6-10p.m. at Eagle Bank Arena, 4500Patriot Circle, Fairfax. Two-timeGRAMMY Award winners for King &Country Christmas tour. Joining theduo on tour is Zach Williams. $28.,$40., $42.5 Reserved, $78.50 VIP.Call 703-993-3000 or visitwww.TheConcertSpot.com

TUESDAY/DEC. 4Burke Historical Society Research

Seminar. 7-9 p.m. at Burke CentreLibrary, 5935 Freds Oak Road, Burke.Preserve heirloom photographs anddocuments – photographs, letters,ledgers, and more. Virginia Roomlibrarian Chris Barbuschak will sharepreservation techniques to use athome. Free. [email protected] or visitwww.burkehistoricalsociety.org

THURSDAY/DEC. 6Winter Wonderland. 4-7 p.m. at

Insight Memory Care Center, 3953Pender Drive, Suite 100, Fairfax. Joinus Insight Memory Care Center incelebrating the season at their WinterWonderland Holiday Party withtreats, drinks, holiday cheer, and tocelebrate the families, supporters,volunteers, board and staff memberswho support Insight. Visit

www.insightmcc.org for more.Holiday Open House. 5:30-7:30 p.m.

at Mount Vernon GovernmentalCetnter, 2511 Parkers Lane. JoinSupervisor Storck, his staff andmembers of the Mount VernonDistrict Boards, Authorities andCommissions for a holiday openhouse. Enjoy an evening ofrefreshments, get to know the staffand tour the office. Considersupporting those in need by donatingto the Blanket & Coat Drive forRefugees sponsored by the NOVARelief Center. New or gently usedcoat and blanket donations can bedropped off at the Mount VernonDistrict Office until Friday, Dec. 7.RSVP by Dec. 1, appreciated but notrequired. Call 703-780-7518.

FRIDAY/DEC. 7Holiday Benefit Concert. 7:30-9

p.m. at St. Andrew’s EpiscopalChurch, 6509 Sydenstricker Road,Burke. Celebrate the holiday seasonwith candlelight and carols withhammered dulcimerist, KarenAshbrook and friends Paul Oorts,Eileen Estes and Jamie Sandel. Freeadmission. All donations will go toFairfax Area Community Emergencyand Transitional Services (FACETS)and Ecumenical Community HelpingOthers (ECHO) to help people inneed. Childcare provided. Receptionto follow. Email [email protected] call 703-455-2500 for more.

FRIDAY-SATURDAY/DEC. 7-8The Pajama Game. Friday, 7 p.m.;

Saturday, 2 and 7 p.m. at FallsChurch High School, 7521 JaguarTrail, Falls Church. The PajamaGame is a musical based on the 1953novel “7 1/2 Cents” by RichardBissell. $7. Visit www.fchsdrama.orgor www.itickets.com/events/408638.html.

SATURDAY/DEC. 8Winter Open House. 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

at Kings Park Library, 9000 BurkeLake Road, Burke. Celebrate theseason with crafts, activities, seasonalmusic with a recorder ensemble andlight refreshments for the wholefamily. Children can join Kingsley’sWinter Reading Club by reading fivebooks between Dec. 8 and Feb. 2 andreceive a prize. Free. Call 703-978-5600.

Art & Crafts Marketplace. 10 a.m.-2p.m. at Lake Braddock SecondarySchool, 9200 Burke Lake Road,Burke. Santa and his elves will be onduty for picture taking; gift wrappingavailable (all sizes welcome);vendors with something foreveryone; babysitting for parentswhile shopping; food for sale; 50/50raffle; drawings hourly and anauction. Contact Carrie Holmes,Chairperson at 571-205-9083 or BobGaylord, LBSS PTSA Second VicePresident at 703-338-3033.

Night in Bethlehem. 6-8 p.m. atFranconia United Methodist Church,6037 Franconia Road, Alexandria.Experience a live recreation of theChristmas Story. Free to thecommunity and includes a livingNativity, manger petting zoo, crafts,and hot cider. Call 703 971 5151 orvisit www.franconiaumc.org.

SATURDAY/DEC. 15Jazz Brunch and Vendor Expo.

Vendor Expo, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; JazzBrunch, noon at Thomas JeffersonHigh School for Science andTechnology, 6560 Braddock Road,Alexandria. Fairfax County NAACPoffers a Jazz Brunch and Businessand Vendor Expo, featuring morethan 40 vendors. Shop for holidaygifts and stay to enjoy the jazzbrunch celebration. Proceeds benefit



Stan the Stallion and Santa get ready to run aprevious Candy Cane Kids’ Fun Run.

Holiday ExtravaganzaSanta arrives at 8:30 a.m. courtesy of the Lorton Volunteer Fire Depart-

ment kicking off the Candy Cane Kids Fun Run for kids age 12 and under.At 9 a.m., 170 vendors featuring all sorts of handcrafted items will offereverything from handmade glass ornaments and jewelry to soaps, lotions,clothing, and holiday décor. Cookies with Santa, free, 9:30-12; Fairfax CoSheriff, Child ID and fingerprinting, free, 9-3; Santa’s Book Emporium, 9-3. Proceeds benefit the SCHS All Night Grad Party, PTSO, Band Boostersand Athletic Boosters. Saturday, Dec. 1, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at South CountyHigh School, 8501 Silverbrook Road, Lorton. Free, $3. Visit

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scholarships and advocacy efforts.Jazz Brunch, $65; expo admission isfree. Visit www.fairfaxnaacp.org.

Pet Adoption Event. 11 a.m.-2 p.m.at Pet Supplies Plus, 11054 LeeHighway, Fairfax. Find a new foreveranimal friend with the help of theCity of Fairfax Animal Control andAnimal Shelter. Visitwww.fairfaxva.gov/government/police/programs/animal-control/adopt-a-pet for more.

SUNDAY/DEC. 16Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker. 4

p.m. at GMU Center for the ArtsConcert Hall. Experience this timelessholiday classic with the FairfaxSymphony Orchestra and the FairfaxBallet. Enjoy a winter wonderland ofdancing snowflakes, sugar plumfairies and epic battles betweenheroic toy soldiers and mischievousmice. There will not be a pre-concertdiscussion for this matineeperformance. $49-$89. Visitwww.fairfaxsymphony.org/nutcracker-1-1/ fore more.

BHS General Meeting. 3:30-5 p.m. atPohick Regional Library, 6540Sydenstricker Road, Burke. CindyBennett shares anecdotes from hernew book Wicked Fairfax County,recounting events like the typhoidepidemic at Camp Alger, a 1918murder in Burke, and, of course, theBunnyman. Free. [email protected] or visitwww.burkehistoricalsociety.org.

FRIDAY/DEC. 21Moscow Ballet’s Nutcracker. 4 and

8 p.m. at GMU Center for the Arts

Concert Hall, 4373 Mason PondDrive, Fairfax. Experience MoscowBallet’s Great Russian Nutcrackerduring their Dove of Peace Tour,spreading goodwill in over 100 citiesacross North America during theholiday season. $28 and up. Go towww.nutcracker.com for tickets.

WEDNESDAY/DEC. 26Holiday Concert. 6-7:30 at The John

F. Kennedy Center for the PerformingArts, 2700 F St. NW, Washington,D.C. Featuring local Encore Choralegroups from Alexandria, Arlington,Fairfax, and Reston. EncoreCreativity for Older Adults, thenation’s largest choral program forsingers 55+, will present thecombined talents of more than 250Encore Chorales and Encore ROCKSsingers in concert. Free, the public isinvited and no tickets are required.Call 301-261-5747 or visitwww.encorecreativity.org for more.

THURSDAY-SATURDAY/DEC. 27-29The Nutcracker. 2 and 7 p.m. at

Northern Virginia CommunityCollege Annandale Campus in theErnst Community Cultural CenterTheater. Virginia Ballet Company andSchool will present its 68th season ofthe classic Nutcracker ballet. $30 foradults; $20 for children, students andseniors at www.vaballet.org. Alimited number of general admissiontickets is available for the WorkingStage Rehearsal on Dec. 26 at 6:30p.m. ($10) at www.vaballet.org. Thetickets for the Working StageRehearsal must be purchased inadvance.


Schools

The students ofRobinson SecondarySchool welcomed thenew drama teacher

and are enjoying working with heron their fall production, ThorntonWilder’s “Our Town.”

Rambunctious Theatre Com-pany presented the classic playduring the second weekend ofNovember. “Our Town” guides theaudience through the town ofGrover’s Corners and the lives ofthe people in the town; followingthe lives of George Gibbs, playedby senior Nico Ochoa, and EmilyWebb, played by senior Erin Reno.With a cast of 23 students fromRobinson Secondary and 60+ techmembers, the students haveworked tirelessly over the courseof three months to prepare for fourshows over the course of the sec-ond weekend in November. Fromthe makeup crew to the actors,each student has contributed a vi-tal aspect to the show. Everythingwas student designed from theposter design to the set. The sounddesign was performed live with asound crew creating the noises inreal time with the show.

“The show has a connection toevery single person who watchesit and it really makes you thinkabout how precious life is.” saysassistant director Zachary Foley,who is a senior at Robinson. “Itreally makes you think about howyou can live your life to the full-est.” Zachary has worked along-side director Madeline Marshall

Robinson Secondary welcomes new drama teacher andopens the season with Thornton Wilder’s ‘Our Town.’

Welcoming New DramaTeacher to ‘Our Town’

In the second act, senior Lizzy Lawrence and freshmanAndy Lawrence walk across stage together, workingtogether on a show as the siblings.

As her character joins in conversation with her father,senior Erin Reno and senior Cole Terra at RobinsonSecondary enjoy their last fall play together of their highschool career.

Listening tothe notes atthe end ofthe run,freshman atRobinsonSecondaryShailey Pratttakes ineverythingfrom theday’s run forthe show thatupcomingweek.

Photos by

Khuyen Dinh/

The Connection

See ‘Our Town’, Page 13


COMMUNITIES OF WORSHIP

bbTo Advertise Your

Community of Worship,Call 703-778-9418

Worship Gathering – Sunday 8:45 & 11 AMSunday School 10:10 AM

Sun. Evening – Realtime Worship & Youth 6 PMFamily Night – Wednesday 7:15 PM

Home Life Groups, College/Young AdultMinistries, and Living Free Support Groups

Visit our Website: jccag.org

4650 Shirley Gate Road, FairfaxBill Frasnelli, PASTOR 703-383-1170

“Loving People to Life”

Schools

throughout the whole process, in order to gain anunderstanding of what he would like to pursue inhis future.

Marshall is the new high school drama teacher atRobinson Secondary and is thrilled to start off theseason with this play. “It has been an absolute joy tobe able to begin working with the incredible studentsof Rambunctious Theatre Company. There is alwaysa measure of intimidation when producing a showas well-known as ‘Our Town;’ there are so manyschools of thought on Wilder’s iconic piece. Whattruly impressed me was the brilliant creativity andthoughtfulness of all the students involved, both onand off-stage.” said Marshall.

“They have brought so much heart and hard workto the play, which has made my job as their newteacher so much fun. Every day they impress me moreand more, and have made me feel warmly welcomein the Robinson family.”

From Page 12

With an upcoming season of “Almost, Maine,”“Mary Poppins,” and more, Marshall has a full sea-son of shows with her students ahead and is thank-ful for the experience of working on “Our Town” toget to know her students.

‘Our Town’

Photo by Khuyen Dinh/The Connection

Recalling lines in a vital scene betweentheir characters in which they flashback towhen their characters realized they were“meant to be”, seniors Nico Ochoa andErin Reno participate as the leads in ‘OurTown,’ having to truly develop their char-acters together.

Assistance League of Northern Virginia’s Week-end Food for Kids program was the featured vol-unteer service activity for the “Feed Your FutureVolunteer Relay” that took place during the re-cent Allstate Insurance Company Regional Advi-sory Board conference in Washington, D.C.

Lynn Barron and Karen Amster, board memberswith the all-volunteer ALNV, were invited to at-tend and speak about Assistance League’simpactful program that increases food security inthree local school districts in the region. AssistanceLeague provides bags of nonperishable food forat-risk children to take home on the weekendswhen school meals are not available who other-wise could be hungry.

Following the keynote presentation, the eventturned competitive. Executives, regional advisoryboard members — exclusive agents and exclusivefinancial specialists from D.C., Delaware, Mary-land, Virginia and West Virginia — participatedin a volunteer relay, packing food for hungry chil-dren.

Allstate Senior Communication ConsultantCaitlyn Barron coordinated the resources and pur-chased the nonperishable food items to supportThe Allstate Foundation Helping Hands in theCommunity group volunteer event. A team ofmore than 40 volunteers packed 500+ bags of

Allstate Contributes to ‘Weekend Food for Kids’

food for at-risk children whose families struggleto put food on the table on weekends when schoolmeals are not available.

This partnership provided an opportunity tosatisfy an immediate need for food assistance attwo Title I elementary schools not currently sup-ported by the Weekend Food for Kids program.

See www.assistanceleague.org/northern-virginia/

From left: Karen Amster (ALNV), CaitlynBarron (Allstate), Lynn Barron (ALNV)and Christine Angles (Allstate).


From Page 9


Encore Presents Holiday Showthat must fall into place to make something uniqueand special. And with a live audience, each perfor-mance is different.”

Chantilly High sophomore Kate Persell portraysJingles the elf, who supervises the children who’vebeen invited to become elves. “She’s really cute, butlikes to stay organized,” said Persell. “She’s friendlywith the kids, but snarky with the adult trainee. Ienjoy acting, and it’s fun to play someone differentfrom my own personality.”

She’s danced with Encore since third grade andloves the many, different styles of dance. “I can getmy energy out, it’s a good form of exercise and I doit with all my favorite people,” she said. Persell’s fa-vorite dance is the “Once-A-Year Day” number. “Allthe elves are doing a hectic dance, running aroundlike crazy, getting ready for Christmas,” she said.“There’s no resting point, and I love rushing withadrenaline, the whole time. And when we do thefinal pose, it feels so good.”

Persell said the audience will enjoy the storylinebecause “It’s humorous, with the businessman in anelf costume that doesn’t fit him. The children in thecast are super-cute and talented, and the dance num-bers are spectacular.”

High-schooler Bea Tremblay dances in the en-semble and portrays a mail carrier. “She delivers theinvitations to the kids, as well as to the adult, GeorgeParker,” said Tremblay. “She’s undercover from theNorth Pole, so she’s in New York street clothes. I weara U.S. Postal Service hoodie and hat, plus gray slacks.She’s a little mischievous and jolly because she knowsshe’s handing out invitations to a magical experi-ence.”

Tremblay enjoys taking her character in a humor-ous direction and working with the other actors anddancers. She especially likes the “Santas” number.“We wear big bellies, wigs, hats, boots and Santacostumes,” she said. “It’s a high-energy dance, and26 of us are onstage; and it’s so much fun that I’msmiling the whole time.”

She’s danced since age 10 and is in her fourth yearwith Encore’s performing company. “The companycreates a community, and the other girls and I sup-port each other and have formed a family,” saidTremblay. “And it’s so nice dancing together withouthaving to compete. We can concentrate on the artand performance quality.”

Calling the show “fun-loving and happy,” she said,“We have lots of little kids acting, too, and they’rereally doing a great job. We’ve got bright and beau-tiful costumes, and the set puts you in the Christmasspirit as soon as you see it. We also have cool props,neat vocal numbers and a lot of actors who make itwhat it is.”

High-schooler Becca Perron plays Digits the elf.“She works in the mailroom and is very serious,” saidPerron. “She doesn’t like her supervisor, Dally, be-cause she bosses her around. Digits also thinks Dallyis lazy and she should have her job. She’s fun to playbecause she’s not like me, and being an elf is just thebest time. I get to be over-the-top and really let my-self go.”

It’s Perron’s ninth year with Encore and sixth withits performing company. She likes the “Rag Dolls”number because, she said, “We get to make reallyfunny faces and expressions as Raggedy Anns andAndys. And we especially like it when the kids in theaudience laugh.”

“As a group, we put so much passion and love intoour shows,” she continued. “So when we see a big

audience, it’s just the greatest feeling. We’re well-known for our professional sets and performancesthat set us apart from other dance groups.”

High-schooler Faith Chun plays an elf namedCookie. “She loves baking treats and has an ener-getic personality,” said Chun. “She gets excited aftermaking cookies and other baked goods, but is disap-pointed when they’re all gone. It’s fun playing herbecause of her energy, and I’m sometimes that way,too.”

Chun’s favorite dance is “Rockettes,” during whichthe dancers wear white leotards with white fluff inback and have their hair in high ponytails. “I likethat style of dance, with the kickline, and the num-ber has both fast and slow parts,” she said. “We havesharp poses, so we have to really be in synch.”

Dancing since age 3, it’s her seventh year withEncore. “Dancing is always my passion,” said Chun.“It makes me happy and is my favorite thing to do. Ittakes me away from my stress and schoolwork, andI really enjoy doing it.” Regarding the show, she saidaudiences will like “the storyline and the dance styles.It will allow them to connect to Christmas in a dif-ferent way and is enjoyable to watch.”

Dancers rehearse a number from Encore’snew show, “An Invitation to Christmas.”

From left: Faith Chin, Maya Tischler andTiffanie Jones are among Encore’s dancers.

Photos Courtesy of Linda Helms Photography


Kenny Lourie is an Advertising Representative forThe Potomac Almanac & The Connection Newspapers.

By KENNETH B. LOURIE

... Not gently by the stream, and not by yours truly, either. Yet another task that seems beyond this homeowner’s ability.

that which that doesn’t make me happy. Throw in a lung cancer diagnosis and the last thing my re-

to do is anything which doesn’t put a smile on my

work ranks up there with most household tasks that a typical able-bodied homeowner takes pride

Sharp objects, mechanical objects and/or electrical/spinning/rotating objects, objects with

pliers, etc. No power tools. Nothing electrical that re-

-

they didn’t really realize what they were missing.

and hung on a nail in the bathroom down the hall

-

passed on their instincts and priorities to the their

home repairs, yard work, tools and what to do

other homeowner-type tasks. -

-

as a salesman.

and other than taking out the trash and the rub-

skills.

-

Mow, Mow, Mow Your Grass ...

From Page 3

unwrapped toys to benefit the U.S. Marine CorpsReserve Toys for Tots Program, which willdistribute those toys as gifts to less fortunatechildren in the community in which thecampaign is conducted. Sheehy’s Toys for Totsdrop-off locations include:

❖ Sheehy Volkswagen of Springfield. 6601 BacklickRoad, Springfield

❖ Sheehy Ford of Springfield, 6727 Loisdale Road,Springfield

❖ Sheehy Subaru of Springfield, 6571 BacklickRoad, Springfield

❖ Patriot Harley-Davidson, 9739 Fairfax Boulevard,Fairfax

Christmas Wish Donations and Volunteers.Koinonia is now accepting donations ofunwrapped Christmas gifts so that their clientscan pick out gifts for their families. This yearChristmas wishes will be held at FranconiaUnited Methodist Church from Dec. 10-12.Donations will be accepted through Dec. 10.Visit www.koinoniacares.org for a list ofsuggested toys and gift cards. Volunteers neededDec. 9-12, call 703-971-1991.

Sponsor a Local Family. Through Dec. 14,Fairfax-based non-profit Britepaths (formerlyOur Daily Bread) is seeking volunteers tosponsor families in need who live throughoutthe Fairfax County area. Sponsors are matchedwith an individual or family with demonstratedneed, and may opt to provide a Decemberholiday meal, and/or gifts for children under 18.Cash donations and gift cards are welcome toassist those who are not sponsored. A wonderfulfamily, company or group holiday serviceproject. Register and learn more atbritepaths.org. Contact 703-273-8829 [email protected].

Toy Drive. Through Friday, Dec. 14 at localWeichert, Realtors offices. Members of thecommunity are invited to drop off new,unwrapped toys at the company’s sales offices.The toys will be delivered throughout theholidays in conjunction with local charities thatassist financially and physically disadvantagedchildren. To find a local office, go towww.weichert.com/offices/.

VOLUNTEER DRIVERS NEEDED.The Shepherd’s Center of Fairfax-Burke

needs volunteer drivers for trips to medicalappointments (Monday - Friday) and companionshopping (Tuesday, Friday) within the Fairfax-Burke area and in the South County area (westof Route 1, Alexandria). Office volunteers arealso needed to work in the SCFB (Olley Glen)office to schedule rides. Bilingual volunteers(English and Spanish) are needed as drivers andoffice volunteers. Email Shavaun Wall [email protected] or call 703-323-4788.

FRIDAY/NOV. 30Application Deadline. The Northern Virginia

Soil and Water Conservation District is seeking aspring intern. Help to support the NVSWCDoutreach programs, which reach thousands ofpeople and have a deep impact on many youthand adults. Visit www.fairfaxcounty.gov/soil-water-conservation/spring-internship-2019 fordetails.

Portrait of an ADHD Graduate. 10 a.m.-noon atDunn Loring Center for Parent Services, 2334Gallows Road, Entrance 1 – Room 100, DunnLoring. This workshop will highlight the strengthsand challenges of students with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, the effectiveness ofparenting as a consultant, and more. Informationand ideas for parents of children of ALL ages.Free to parents, educators and communitymembers. Call 703-204-3941 or visitwww.fcps.edu/resources/family-engagement/parent-resource-center for more or to register.

IEP Transition Plan. 10 a.m.-noon at VirginiaHills Center, 6520 Diana Lane, Multi-purposeRoom #1, Alexandria. Join FCPS Career andTransition Services to learn the importance ofthe IEP Transition Plan for effectivepostsecondary planning in middle and highschool. Have in-depth conversations with CTSstaff. Free to parents, educators and communitymembers. Call 703-204-3941 or visitwww.fcps.edu/resources/family-engagement/parent-resource-center for more or to register.

Blue Christmas Service. 7:30-8:30 p.m. at Unityof Fairfax, 2854 Hunter Mill Road, Fairfax.knowledge loss or difficulty during the holidayseason. Free. Email [email protected],call 703-281-1767 or RSVP atwww.eventbrite.com/e/blue-christmas-service-tickets-52684194845.

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