Three students from Woodbridge High School helped their classmates throughout the year and to repay them, Walden University gave them surprise gifts to help shape their future.

A video produced by the for-profit university catering to working adults features the story of three seniors who were recognized by Walden University for their work to support Washington, D.C.- Area Students Graduating During the pandemic.

Donovyn James was looking forward to performing in his last musical and concerts before the pandemic hit and shortened the school year. James showed in the video sent to us that he only had an iPad and headphones to create the music he has a passion for.

“You got to work well with what you have,” James stated in the video.

James’ mother stated how she had struggled for a long time to get pregnant with James and now that many years later, he has missed out on his last prom that she wished she could see him have.

“To not be able to see him enjoy his last prom or graduation, it was very disheartening.”

When all seemed lost, James received a letter from Walden University thanking him for his impact on the community and how they would like to repay him with a gift that would help his future. Walden University gifted James a new laptop to produce and perform music along with a new microphone, headphones, and a gift card for other musical equipment.

“It’s not everyday where something really spectacular happens to me and ends up making me feel special. So yeah, I feel pretty honored,” James said.

Ava Pumpelly was another student who had a big passion for creating in high school. Pumpelly was the one who was behind the scenes of other student’s lives by taking pictures and making videos on her phone.

With Pumpelly’s family, her parents discussed the struggles they have gone through together that have affected Pumpelly’s way of obtaining appropriate equipment for her video creating passion.

“We have had money, we lost money, there have been surgeries, and unexpected health issues,” her father stated.

Pumpelly received a letter from Walden University, thanking her for all her positive impact on the students around her during her high school career. To repay her efforts, Walden University gifted her with a new camera along with a subscription to a high-quality image and video editing software.

When hearing this news, Pumpelly tearfully hugged her mom in happiness.

Jessica Benitez was another student with big plans after High School. Benitez planned to go to Marymount University to study Human Rights and Sociology on a Pre-Law track.

Benitez’s mom discussed in the video their wishes for Benitez and her future.

“My greatest dream is that my children become professionals and that they have a better future than what we as parents had.”

Benitez received a letter from Walden University explaining that students from her school had nominated her to receive recognition from the University. To repay her impact on her fellow student’s lives, Walden University gifted her with gift cards to her college bookstores as well as gift cards to IKEA to help her pay for dorm room furniture and supplies.

Benitez tearfully read the news aloud and her mom hugged her in response to the news.

Along with awarding these seniors with gifts, Walden University also donated $7,500 to the Black Lives Matter charity that Woodbridge High School Student Senior Board chose as their most important charity.

The Virginia Railway Express (VRE) has added a new round trip option to its Fredericksburg Line to support social distancing effective Monday, July 27.

“We are closely monitoring ridership on both the Fredericksburg and Manassas lines and will adjust service as the number of passengers grows,” said Rich Dalton, VRE’s acting CEO. “We have seen enough of an increase on our Fredericksburg Line to warrant an additional round trip. These two new trains, along with other measures, will allow us to continue to protect the health and safety of our passengers and train crews.”

Karen Finucan Clarkson from the Office of Public Affairs explained in a press release that train 300, which departs Spotsylvania at 4:54 a.m., will take commuters northbound while train 307, which departs Union Station at 4:10 p.m., will carry them southbound. These two trains will supplement VRE’s reduced-service “S” schedule consisting of eight daily trains on each of two lines, which the commuter railway applied on March 17 in response to the pandemic.

The new morning train will help reduce the number of riders on what currently is VRE’s first northbound train of the morning, where the number of available seats is approaching 50 percent, according to Clarkson. The afternoon train will serve as an alternative for riders of two trains, where the number of available seats is about 40 percent.

VRE also installed decals on its platforms and in rail cars to support social distancing back in June. Onboard graphics now indicate where passengers should sit or stand, guiding them to window seats in every other row to ensure proper distancing, according to Clarkson.

The effect of the decals has reduced the number of available seats, on average, from 130 to 45 per rail car. VRE’s train utilization trends web page has been updated to reflect total seats, maximum capacity to support social distancing, and current daily ridership.

VRE also is exploring ways to notify passengers when trains are at or near capacity, according to the press release.

Clarkson stated that VRE has started a new train-cleaning process and has installed hand-sanitizer dispensers on trains and platforms to complement VRE’s social-distancing measures. VRE’s mobile app allows riders to purchase and validate tickets on their smartphones, thereby avoiding contact with ticket vending machines on platforms.

The pandemic has drastically lowered the number of passengers on VRE trains. On During the week of March 20, 2020, 15,500 riders were reported to have taken the train compared to the 95,000 on March 20, 2019 the same week the previous year, a decrease of 83 percent.

As recent as July 17, 2020, 5,500 riders were reported, compared to the 97,600 riders on July 17, 2019, according to numbers from VRE’s coronavirus ridership chart.

VRE is the thirteenth largest commuter rail service in the United States, and its mission is to provide safe, cost-effective, accessible, reliable, convenient, and customer-responsive commuter-oriented passenger rail service. The 4.5 million rides the railroad provides annually in Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C. helps removes 100 million vehicle miles from the region’s interstates, according to Clarkson.

Learn more at vre.org.

International Gourmet Foods, Inc. will move its headquarters from Fairfax County to Prince William County.

he Prince William Board of County Supervisors announced International Gourmet Foods, Inc. will invest $15.6 million to establish new 130,000 square-foot headquarters at 13405 Telegraph Road in Woodbridge, next to the Horner Road commuter lot — the largest commuter lot in Virginia.

The new facility will house 170 jobs, and service the company’s customers in the Washington, D.C. region, and as far away as North Carolina.

The firm received economic incentives in the amount of $250,000 from The Prince William Board of County Supervisors, and from the county’s Industrial Development Authority for a total of a half-million dollars.

The area on Telegraph Road where the warehouse will be built will require $350,000 in retaining walls in order to build the faculty, due to the steep topography of the area.

While the company prepares to relocate, transportation crews are about to ramp up a project to extend Summit School Road, which will connect the Horner Road lot with Minnieville Road at the Sentara Lake Ridge medical center.

“I am delighted to see International Gourmet Foods bring their headquarters to Prince William County,” said Christina Winn, executive director of the Prince William County Department of Economic Development. “This investment really highlights Prince William County’s strategic location and competitiveness in the Greater Washington metropolitan area.”

“Prince William County has welcomed us in ways that have enabled us not just to build our dream facility but invest in and grow our workforce,” said Christine DiBenigno, president of International Gourmet Foods, Inc. “This location provides proximity to our primary market, the DC Metropolitan area, and access to the I-95 corridor, which is essential to reaching a customer base that extends from the West Virginia border to Charleston, South Carolina. Prince William County is helping us invest in our future.”

The Board of County Supervisors approved a $250,000 grant from the Economic Development Fund Opportunity fund to assist with the development of the facility, according to Johnson. Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chair Ann Wheeler noted this project meets several of the Robust Economy goals of the County’s Strategic Plan.

The project is expected to generate an estimated $1.5 million in new property taxes to Prince William County over the next 11 years, representing a 583% return on investment to the county, according to county officials.

Police said a man followed a woman to her vehicle and grabbed her by the arm so she couldn’t leave after they got into an escalating argument.

The incident occurred on Tuesday, July 21, at 7:53 p.m., when police arrived in response to a call reporting of a domestic problem. Police said that when they arrived at 4700 Block of Kilbane Road in Dale City, a woman, also the victim, told police that she and an acquaintance of hers were in an argument that escalated.

The victim told police that the man followed her out to her car before grabbing her by the arm, preventing her from leaving the scene. When the two managed to separate, police said the suspect ran away from the residence before police arrived at the location.

Police said the victim had only minor injuries from the incident. Police have obtained arrest warrants for the suspect but attempts at finding him have been unsuccessful, according to police.

The suspect was identified by police as Paul Gordon Parker, 61, with no fixed address.

He’s described as a black male, 5’4 in height with a weight of 135 pounds. He is said to have brown hair and eyes.

Parker is wanted for charges of abduction and assault and battery. Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact the Prince William County Police Department’s tipline at 703-792-7000 or submit a web tip at pwcgov.org.

For all the brunch lovers out there, Ornery Beer Company has announced its hours so you can stop by and satisfy your brunch cravings.

Every Saturday and Sunday, Ornery Beer Company will be serving brunch from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Customers can choose a variety of brunch plate options like biscuits and gravy, chicken and waffles, steak and eggs, smoked salmon benedict, and more with a side of arugula salad.

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Virginia State Police have invited local residents to take part in a free motorcycle self-assessment, “Ride 2 Save Lives,” course this Saturday.

It is a free course that will be held Saturday, July 25 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Morton’s BMW Motorcycles located at 5099 Jefferson Davis Highway in Fredericksburg. Space is limited to 30 people.

According to a press release from Public Relations Director for Virginia State Police Corinne Geller, Richmond Division Motors Unit will be instructing participants on all aspects of rider safety through the use of SIPDE (Scan, Identify, Predict, Decide, Execute). SIPDE is the same training required of all VSP motorcycle operators.

The course provides riders with proper techniques on how to handle hazards, special situations, interstate highways, curve negotiations, and much more, according to Geller.

Social distancing measures will be in place for the safety of those in attendance, according to Geller. Riders must have a valid operator’s license with a class “M” endorsement, appropriate riding attire, a helmet, and eye protection.

The motorcycles must be street legal and helmets must be Department of Transportation approved to participate in this program, according to the press release.

Registration closes Wednesday, July 22. For those interested, registration is available online through the Virginia State Police Facebook page under “events” or at eventbrite.com.

Many have been struggling to make ends meet on their bills since the coronavirus outbreak, and now Columbia Gas of Virginia is giving its customers a break when it comes to paying their bills.

From a press release:

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A Stafford woman is charged with assault and battery after she commanded her dog to attack deputies, according to the Stafford County Sheriff's Office:

From the sheriff's office:

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The Prince William Board of County Supervisors approved the $142 million Balls Ford Interchange Project that is expected to help relieve traffic congestion.

Construction will begin this fall and is expected to be completed in November 2022.

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors recently approved the final design for the Prince William Parkway Interchange and Balls Ford Road Realignment project.

According to communications analyst Keith Walker, the project will realign roughly 1.9 miles of Balls Ford Road, between Devlin Road and Doane Drive, into a four-lane, divided roadway. The roadway will also contain a raised median, a sidewalk on one side, and a multi-use path on the other side.

Walker states the project will take Balls Ford Road over the Prince William Parkway with a diverging diamond interchange. The project will also include a bridge over the existing Norfolk Southern Railway.

The Prince William County Department of Transportation will administer the project with state money that came through the Transform I-66 Outside the Beltway Concessionaire Fund. That fund granted $143 million to fully finance the project, according to Walker.

The goal of the completed road project is to relieve existing and predicted future traffic congestion and improve the safety of drivers at the Balls Ford Road-Prince William Parkway intersection, according to Walker.

Anyone with questions on the project can email the project manager Mary Ankers at [email protected] with “Realigned Balls Ford Interchange” referenced in the subject line.

More information about transportation projects in the county is available at pwcgov.org.