Author: Scott McCaffrey

Middle- and high-school French Honor Society students of BASIS Independent McLean recently returned from a two-week service trip to the African nation of Madagascar.

After spending the year fund-raising, the students delivered a $10,000 scholarship to pupils at St. François Xavier School (SFX) School of Fianarantsoa in Madagascar.

When it comes to the local real-estate market, it seems that life’s a beach – and everyone currently is there.

Home-showings across the Washington region for the week ending July 14 were at their lowest level since the very onset of the COVID pandemic in 2020, and were less than one-third the market peak in the post-COVID rebound.

Despite a nearly double-digit drop-off in sales, Fairfax County’s homes market managed to surpass, if only slightly, the billion-dollar mark in June.

That sales decline, however, may be reversed in coming months, based on the number of transactions currently in the pipeline.

Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Blue and Gray Post 8469 presented three awards at a public-servant recognition ceremony at the Post’s home in Fairfax.

Two of the awardees were previous winners at the post level, and have since received honors from VFW’s Department of Virginia.

Arlington posted the fifth costliest median apartment-rental rate among the nation’s 100 largest urban areas in June, as rates at the local level continued to move higher.

The county’s median rental rate for June of $2,586 was up 1.5 percent month-over-month and up 4.2 percent year-over-year. That’s according to Apartment List, which tracks rental costs in the largest urban areas and reported data June 27.

As part of its Liberty Amendments Month celebrations, the Vienna town government (joined by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) will host a naturalization ceremony Saturday, June 29 at 5 p.m. at the Vienna Community Center.

Fifteen people are slated to become American citizens at the event, which is open to the public.

The median home-sales price of $640,000 across the Washington region in May tied the all-time high set just a month before and was up 6.7 percent year-over-year, according to new figures.

“Prices continue to rise despite the significant uptick in inventory,” said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist of Bright MLS, the region’s multiple-listing service.

Two Vienna students came away with honors in the International Aviation Art Contest, sponsored by the Switzerland-based Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) with this year’s theme being “Air Sports for a Peaceful World.”

“Today, two Virginia students are recognized for what they are – the best in the world,” said Greg Campbell, director of the Virginia Department of Aviation (DOAV), in announcing the results.

The fourth graduating class of the Global Leaders of Fairfax County program was recognized at a ceremony held May 19 at Woodson High School. A total of 130 Fairfax County high-school seniors successfully completed the program.

Global Leaders of Fairfax County, founded in 2020 by Ryan McElveen (a Fairfax County School Board member) aims to prepare “fellows” to be global citizens and change agents in their local community and the world. Throughout their senior year of high school, fellows have opportunities to engage with leaders from various fields and undertake field trips to civic institutions to advance their understanding of international affairs and global issues.

The sanctuary of Lewinsville Presbyterian Church reverberated with melodies of peace, harmony and unity May 5 as the seventh annual McLean Interfaith Concert unfolded.

This year’s theme, “Building Bridges Through Music,” encapsulated the essence of the event, which saw a combined choir from eight local congregations serenading an audience of about 250 attendees.