youth – Page 2 – Notes n Letters

Aquatic Center opens

The Round Hill Aquatic Center at Woodgrove Park opened last week, almost 24 years after it was proffered to Loudoun County in a rezoning that allowed development of the Villages of Round Hill, Mountain Valley and Lake Point.

The opening was the culmination of a decades-long process that included public meetings, shifting plans for the facility, an appeal by the developer and rulings by the county’s zoning administrator.

The indoor facility has drawn criticism because of its size and operational costs. With four 25-yard lap lanes, it will provide space for swim team practices but is too small to host meets. The facility was built with private funds, but it will cost the county about $400,000 annually to operate. About one-third of the cost will be recovered by user fees in the first year, county officials said.

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Washington Post, May 31, 2015

Walk for Teen Suicide Awareness

Hundreds of walkers took part in a six-mile trek along Spriggs Road in the mid-county area last weekend to raise awareness about teen suicide.

Prince William County school officials estimated that more than 400 people participated in the walk, a round trip between Forest Park and Hylton high schools. Although most of the walkers were high school students, participants included young children, adults — some pushing strollers — and even a few dogs.

Students in Advanced Placement government classes at Forest Park organized the event as their final project, which their teacher, Shannon Geraghty, allowed them to do in place of a final exam.

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Washington Post, May 31, 2015

Ballet for special-needs children

A disability need not keep a child from enjoying ballet classes.

That’s the message the Gainesville Ballet is spreading with the launch of its first class designed solely for children with disabilities.

Washington Post, September 21, 2014

Law camp ends with mock trial

Two juries agreed: Washington Senators starting quarterback Robert Triffy IV was not guilty of malicious wounding and assault and battery. Triffy had been charged with the crimes after his errant pass struck receiver LeSean Trackson in the face as Trackson chatted with a cheerleader on the sideline. Trackson suffered a broken nose and was eventually traded to another team.

The fictitious scenario — inspired by players for another Washington football team — played out simultaneously in four Loudoun County courtrooms June 20. The teams of attorneys on both sides were actually high school students participating in mock trials, the culmination of the 14th annual Thomas D. Horne Leadership in the Law summer camp.

Washington Post, June 29, 2014

Briar Woods helps Briarwood

Brooke Wivagg, a student at Briar Woods High School in Ashburn, has organized a tornado relief effort to benefit Briarwood Elementary, which was ravaged by a tornado in Moore, Okla.

Washington Post, May 28, 2013

Interfaith baseball team

An interfaith Babe Ruth League baseball team that emphasizes practicing good values was rewarded with what the parent of one player called the “experience of a lifetime” — playing at Nationals Park in the District.

Washington Post, May 28, 2013

School community rallies to help student

After years of instability, abandonment, abuse and homelessness, Kieu-thu Kim Tran’s life hit bottom during her junior year at Dominion High School in Sterling. Living with the latest in a series of unstable relatives had become unbearable, she said, so she took her belongings and walked out, not knowing where she would go.

A year later, Tran is thriving, thanks to a high school community that rallied around her.

Washington Post, March 16, 2013

Tag: youth