Fairfax County supervisors on Aug. 25 recognized the founder and owner of Jake’s Gourmet Popcorn and Jake’s Ice Cream, who recently was honored by the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society (PBATS).
The organization earlier this summer presented Robin Rinearson with its Ability Transcends Challenges Award for her efforts to integrate individuals with disabilities into the Fairfax County workforce.
The Aug. 25 recognition by supervisors was sponsored by Mason District Supervisor Andres Jimenez, whose district is home to both the ice cream and popcorn stores.
“Our district and Fairfax County are fortunate to have such passionate and dedicated businesses and organizations, like Jake’s, that invest deeply in improving the lives of people living with disabilities and enriching the greater community,” Jimenez said.
Jake’s Ice Cream, located in the Barcroft Plaza Shopping Center in Lincolnia, was founded in the summer of 2021 and currently employs 24 people on its staff, Rinearson told FFXnow. An additional 11 work at the popcorn shop, which opened three years ago at Seven Corners Shopping Center.
Rinearson said her employees are hardworking and often stay in their jobs for years. They also are great recruiters of potential workers from among their circle of friends.
“I have a waiting list for employees,” said Rinearson, a retired pediatric and developmental optometrist.
The skills employees master at the stores open up other employment opportunities.
“That’s the whole idea,” Rinearson told FFXnow.
The businesses “strengthen the independence of their employees and provide them with vital skill sets for the workplace while fostering a more inclusive and supportive community for all,” the county proclamation noted.
The Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society provides continuing education in the field of athletic training, enhancing the professionalism of members who work with Major League Baseball teams and in the minor leagues.
The Abilities Transcends Challenges honors are designed to spotlight organizations across the nation that support an inclusive workforce.
“As athletic trainers, we spend our lives focused on the health and potential of the athletes we serve. Those same values — support, opportunity and inclusion — belong in every corner of our communities,” PBATS president Nick Kenney said when the 2026 awards were announced.
The awards program, now in its third year, honors a business from each of the 30 communities with MLB teams. The initiative is supported by the National Down Syndrome Society.
“Together, we’re celebrating employers who see talent and possibility first, while helping build a future where every person with a disability has the opportunity to contribute and thrive,” National Down Syndrome Society President Kandi Pickard said.
The awards program also is supported by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy.
