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Stafford County Public Schools, the Stafford Education Foundation, Amazon, and the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank opened two automated community food kiosks Thursday at North Stafford High School and Shirley C. Heim Middle School. The units operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and are funded by a $200,000 Amazon investment that is part of a larger $560,000 partnership announced in May. That partnership also includes $360,000 over three years for teaching grants.
“No student should have to sit in a classroom hungry, and no parent should have to choose between groceries and the electric bill,” organizers said at the ribbon cutting. Amazon Stafford Data Center Area Manager Andrew Trapasco said the company is “proud to put $200,000 behind” the kiosks “in partnership with Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank” because the approach “respects them and preserves their dignity.” School Board Chair Dr. Elizabeth Warner and Superintendent Dr. Daniel Smith said students cannot reach their potential or focus on learning when basic needs go unmet. Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank President and CEO Dan Maher cited a recent statewide study that found 42 percent of Virginia residents reported food insecurity in the past year, including 40 percent in the region and 44 percent among families with children. The kiosks build on an existing unit at Rising Star Early Childhood Education Center that opened in 2023.
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StoryWorx: Workhouse's First Ever FREE Book Festival
Sat, Nov 14 | 11 a.m.–5 p.m. | Lorton, VA
Meet bestselling authors Angie Kim (Happiness Falls), 4× NFL Pro Bowler Ken Harvey (first-ever dramatic reading), and Emmy-winning WUSA9 anchor Wisdom Martin, plus Marcie Atkins, Omar Abed, Ellen R.B. Smith, and more for panels, signings, poetry, and workshops. Kids' Corner features author readings, crafts, and storytime. Browse the artisan market, catch a live Upstart Crow podcast, and explore the Workhouse galleries and artist studios—all part of Second Saturday.
James Stuart, 46, of Northwest Washington, was one of six people shot Thursday in Washington, D.C.’s Logan Circle neighborhood and the only person killed, police said Friday.
A reader who contacted Potomac Local News said Stuart graduated from Osbourn High School in Manassas in 1999. A James Stuart appears in the Class of 1999 in Osbourn’s 1998 yearbook, The Eyrie.
Parents press Fredericksburg school board on disability accommodations and nepotism policy loopholes
Parents told the Fredericksburg City School Board on Monday that the division must do more to identify and support students who need medical or mental health accommodations, and that a proposed family-employment policy still leaves too many exceptions.
Suha Charney of 110 Braehead Drive said she is the mother of three students in Fredericksburg City Public Schools and described the exhaustion of navigating modified schedules and treatment plans. She asked how many other students had previously needed schedule changes that were never implemented. Charney called for earlier identification of disabilities, clearer written guidance for families, coordinated support while students are in treatment, and accountability when those supports do not arrive.
American Legion Post 290 is collecting shelf-stable and nonperishable food for its annual Holiday Food Basket Program through Dec. 11, Stafford County Public Schools said.
The program supports the Stafford County Department of Social Services Holiday Program, which provides Thanksgiving and Christmas help to local families in need. Donations can be dropped off at the Alvin York Bandy Administrative Complex, 31 Stafford Ave. Volunteers to sort and pack donations can sign up at staffordpost290.org.
Marine Corps Base Quantico said live-fire demolition training will be louder than usual on Nov. 18, 23, 24 and 25.
Those days include demolitions of up to 200 pounds. Training on Nov. 18 runs from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., and the Nov. 23 to 25 sessions run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Smaller demolitions, rockets and small-arms fire are also scheduled Nov. 13, 19 and 20, according to the base’s training advisory for Nov. 13 through Nov. 27.
Land use, transportation and public safety are among the topics on the agenda for the Prince William Board of County Supervisors meeting Tuesday, Nov. 17, Prince William County said.
The meeting will include public hearings on proposed developments, a discussion of the county’s noise ordinance and consideration of historic preservation efforts. Regular board meetings now stream live on Facebook, and the agenda is posted at pwcva.gov/bocsmeetings.
Lake Ridge Golf Course in Woodbridge will close for the winter season starting Nov. 23, Prince William County said.
During the shutdown, crews will restore three to five bunkers, convert the remaining bunkers to grassed areas, reseed all greens and remove selected trees and limbs. Other seasonal amenities at the park will stay open. The county pointed golfers to Prince William Golf Course and Forest Greens Golf Club during the closure.