Upon their return from the Women’s March in Washington, D.C., in January of 2017, local moms Kristin Clarens and Amanda Sovik-Johnston felt empowered, but also challenged. “We were just emerging from the super-foggy days of having newborns and realized that we wanted to re-engage in our community,” says Clarens, an attorney. “It felt like a […]
Cutter Huston has never had to worry about clean clothes. But it wasn’t until he became involved with The Laundry Project that he realized not everyone takes something so basic for granted. The son of an Army brigadier general, Huston was living in Tampa, Florida, when his mother, Michelle, saw a news story about people […]
Holly Regan sat with her son in a lightened theater last year, watching a Four County Players production of A Charlie Brown Christmas. It was a special performance, and not just because of the time of year; it was a sensory-friendly production put on for people like Regan’s son, Jimmy Seidl, who’s autistic. The show […]
While it’s true that proper manners can take a lifetime to learn (or is that just us?), Etiquette Empowerment founder Patty Hughson teaches a local four-week course in the foundations of table manners and polite interaction to young adults. But because attention spans are fickle things, we asked her to distill it down even further […]
Five years ago, Cale Elementary School principal Lisa Jones instituted a Foreign Language in the Elementary Schools program for her incoming class of kindergarteners and rising first- and second-graders. For three years, offerings featured typical FLES programming—that is, 120 minutes a week of instruction in Spanish. However, as Jones saw it, that wasn’t enough. “By […]
As winter sets in caves offer surprisingly balmy family adventures. With temperatures hovering around 53 degrees, a subterranean visit provides hours of active outdoor fun sans the cold. From paved walking tours to rigorous guided explorations through wild caverns, the following resources will help you take advantage of the region’s many spelunking opportunities. Luray Caverns […]
Most teenagers have pretty predictable birthday wish lists … video games, iTunes cards, maybe money to use toward buying a car. Charlottesville’s Ashton Ryan is different. He wants coats. Lots and lots of coats. It all started six years ago, just before his 12th birthday. “I saw a kid in school without a coat and […]
Summer may be over, but the fun doesn’t have to stop there. After the beach trips and visits to train museums, the start of the school year brings its own kind of magic, between new supplies and unfamiliar faces and environments. In this issue, we’re checking in with public schools—what changed over the summer and […]
In P.L. Travers’ Mary Poppins series, the beloved nanny is blown by the East wind to Number 17 Cherry Tree Ln., home of the Banks family, which just happens to need a nanny at that very moment. Mary agrees to stay “till the wind changes.” Under her stern but loving care, Jane and Michael Banks […]
If you’re looking for a spicy night of dancing, not much beats Beleza. With a sound rooted in Latin- American and Spanish flamenco traditions—including lyrics sung in Portuguese, Spanish and English—the group performs either as a duo or a full band, and serves as the vehicle for the creative musings of husband and wife, Humberto […]
As temperatures drop and water attractions become less appealing, don’t let that keep you from venturing outdoors. Whether it’s soaring through a Shenandoah Valley forest, soaking up Blue Ridge Mountain views or exploring area biking trails, these four family-friendly activities will get you and the fam out of the house and exploring. HIKE Shenandoah National […]