Back in November, Jewelry by Designs on Smoketown Road announced it was closing its doors and clearing its inventory.

Now, during a global pandemic, it has reopened under new ownership by the Nelson Coleman Company.

The Nelson Coleman Company is a family-run jewelry business and the owner of Nelson Coleman Jewelers in Baltimore. The company is headed by Amanda Coleman, its CEO, who also acts as Jewelry by Designs’ chief of sales and strategist. Coleman came into ownership of the store when approached by its former owner, Jenny Caro, who had overhead Coleman discussing opening a new store, and proposed that she purchase Jewelry by Designs.

“She [Caro] approached me […] and was like ‘we’re gonna have a going out of business sale, we’ve decided to close the store, and instead of you opening up another location would you be interested in buying our store?’ And so we kind of started the journey right then and there,” said Coleman.

After finalizing the purchase of the store in March, Coleman remodeled the interior.

“We did all new carpets, new paint, we did reconfigure some of the cases and created a seating area up front. And we redid the kid’s corner, we put a Play Station there,” said Coleman.

Along with the new decor and environment, Jewelry by Designs also received a revamp in its inventory. A third of the business done at Nelson Coleman Jewelers consists of estate and antique jewelry, and much of that collection was brought to Jewelry By Designs, as well as various pieces of bridal jewelry.

“…[estate and antique jewelry] is something I know [the old Jewelry By Designs] didn’t really have a lot of before,” said Coleman.

The global coronavirus pandemic has meant Coleman has not been able to bring back all the store’s employees. She’s had to change her original plans for grand opening and had to make a large investment in personal protective equipment (PPE) for her employees.

“We’re not suffering a hardship, but it’s definitely made us pivot and change how we were going to do things. Just writing our reopening plan has been different because there are guidelines and safety measures that were weren’t anticipating before,” said Coleman.

To ensure customer safety, the store has plexiglass shields on its cases and six-feet social distancing markers on the floor. There is additionally a disinfectant routine that is used on all jewelry and a sanitation schedule that is kept every 30 minutes to an hour.

Even with these restrictions and difficulties, however, Coleman still has plans to expand to more locations sometime in the future.

“While yes expansion is definitely in the plan, it’s kind of taking a backseat right now to see how things unfold with the pandemic,” said Coleman.

Jewelry By Designs is located at 2932 Prince William Parkway in Woodbridge. The store is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

Vehicle theft is a problem in Manassas.

The city's police department has applied for an over $12,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice to purchase an additional license plate reading system, which would aid the police department in finding stolen cars.

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The Coronavirus pandemic created a hardship on nonprofit organizations that assist and help others throughout our community. To support these groups and help them continue the work they do every day, Stafford County has awarded $432,078 from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding to community organizations in the area who have been impacted due to COVID-19. Recipients were chosen through a stringent application process via Stafford’s Nonprofit Sustainability Grant Program.

“Social safety net nonprofit organizations are a critical part of our region’s health and human services system, working closely with our local government to serve the most vulnerable individuals and build stronger, more equitable communities,” said Stafford County Deputy County Administrator Donna Krauss. “These grants are funded by the CARES Act and will be administered by Stafford County.”

Fourteen organizations were awarded amounts ranging from $10,193 to $59,200. The grants were based upon the size and demonstrated needs of each organization. Grants can be utilized for project expenses related to COVID-19 response or organizational capacity in response to COVID-19. The goal is to ensure the sustainability and maintenance of the organizations that serve the community and, in turn, the people who are served. Please see a summary below of each awardee:

Big Brothers, Big Sisters received $25,000 to foster resilience through communications with mentees, funds will be used for staff salaries, equipment for remote working, and program activity costs.

Boys and Girls Club received $10,000 to support personnel, cleaning supplies, masks, and sanitizer that will assist with providing virtual learning support to its recipients.

Empower House will use its $25,000 award to defray the costs of the shelter, to provide rental housing assistance and for technology needs.

Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank received two $25,000 awards. Data currently shows an increase of 11.1% in overall food insecurity and a 17.1% increase in child food insecurity. Funds will be used for the mobile pantry to support distributions as well as to establish alternative distribution sites in place of close pantries.

Healthy Families Rappahannock Area will utilize its $23,314 award to transition to a virtual platform for engaging and supporting families as well as for virtual platform subscriptions, mailings, and creation of video engagement tools.

Moss Free Clinic was awarded $59,200 to integrate telehealth for its patients, to upgrade technology to improve team interaction, and to pay for staff support in place of volunteers lost to the fear of COVID-19.

Mental Health America received $10,193 to mitigate the increased level of calls to its helpline due to COVID-19 and $12,250 to provide additional staff to support seniors, a high-risk category, by providing grocery and medication delivery, removal of trash and other related needs.

Rappahannock Council Against Sexual Assault will direct its $11,559 award towards technological upgrades and supplies needed for safely engaging the community.

Loisann’s Hope House was awarded $40,000. The funds are for upgrading the computer systems impacting client data and information focused on emergency shelter, prevention, rapid rehousing, and the homelessness helpline.

Rappahannock Area United Way’s $50,000 in funding will go to the Alice Assistance fund that provides support to households experiencing financial hardships. An exponential increase in requests for assistance has occurred since COVID-19.

S.E.R.V.E. provides financial stability and food to the community and was given $25,000 for its assistance with its paycheck protection program and payroll tax credits.

Stafford Junction was the recipient of $25,000 that they would use for general operating costs, which includes supplies and support necessary to continue to serve low-income residents.

Thurman Brisben Center, the area’s homeless shelter, was awarded $50,000 to be used to address the impact of COVID-19 for hotel rents for physically-distanced clients, food now unavailable from volunteer organizations, client teleconferencing capability, and UV cleansing lights for the HVAC system to reduce airborne transmission risk.

Virginia Community Food Connections connects low-income residents with access to affordable food from local family farms. Awarded funds in the amount of $15,561 will support staff, equipment, and material costs for its food access programs.

Prince William County high school students will be getting an extra hour of sleep this upcoming school year, as the division’s Superintendant, Dr. Steven L. Walts, has moved the schedule forward by one hour.

All high school students within the county regardless of their participation in online or in-person learning will now start school at 8:30 am, instead of the typical 7:30 a.m., and end at 3:30 p.m. instead of 2:10 pm. The decision took into consideration various parent and student surveys, the majority of which preferred a later school start time, as well as the health/academic benefits students, could reap, according to an email from the school division.

All 92,000 county public schools students will head back to class virtually beginning September 8.

“Surveys conducted of PWCS students and parents have shown that a majority prefer mid-late-morning to early afternoon to engage with content. There have been a number of studies demonstrating the health and instructional benefits of later start times,” stated an email from the school division.

Transporation and athletics, however, could theoretically be a limiting factor in implementing this new start time, according to Prince William County Public Schools.

“The most significant limiting factors in changing the start time are transportation and athletics. As we only have approximately 3.5 percent of total students attending in person the first nine weeks, and per [Virginia High School Lea there are no organized athletic competitions, we have significantly more flexibility than in a typical year,” stated an email from the school division.

This schedule change will apply for the first quarter, which will be fully virtual for the majority of Prince William schools’ students but could extend longer if the majority of students remain in virtual learning. If the school division reverts to a hybrid model or full in-person learning after the virtual first quarter, high schools will begin at 7:30 am again.

“If we were to move to the 50 percent model for the second quarter in November, then high school will revert to the 7:30 a.m. start time, and if we were to remain virtual, the later start time could remain in place,” stated an email from the school division.

Prince William schools are, however, looking into keeping this later start time in place.

“PWCS will still continue with the plans to study more in-depth the potential for a more permanent change for the 2021-22 school year or beyond,” stated an email from the school division.

More information on the schedules for the upcoming year can be found on the Prince William County Public Schools website.

Stafford County Schools may be beginning the school year online, but they will still be providing meals to students.

During its August 11 meeting, the Stafford County School Board was presented with the division's School Meal Distribution Plan for the 2020-21 school year. According to the plan, hot meals for all Stafford County Schools students, regardless of whether or not they qualify for free and reduced lunches, will be provided via curbside pickup and a community bus drop off service. The school division will also give free lunches to all students enrolled in the reduced-price lunch program.

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After 15 years of service and a recent Twitter scandal, Prince William County Schools Superintendant Dr. Steven L. Walts announced that he is planning to retire on July 1, 2021, when his contract with the school division expires and his daughter graduates from high school.

This announcement was made to both the school board, as well as to parents and students via email. In his resignation announcement, he detailed his accomplishments.

“I think my proudest achievement was to recommend to the 2005-06 School Board, full-day kindergarten for every student after my first year. The budget was good that year, and we were able to complete this initiative, the very next year,” stated Walts.

Walts’ announcement comes nearly a year before he plans to step down, because, as he states, he wanted to “ensure the School Board has the time to select the next great Superintendent for Prince William County Public Schools.”

His resignation comes announcement comes as he and the school board have become embroiled in a scandal involving Walts’ now-deactivated Twitter account. According to the school division, he participated in over 2,000 private conversations, mostly with students, on Twitter. School officials in May launched an investigation into Walts’ usage of his Twitter account, as his actions could be a violation of the school district’s electronic communication policy.

While the investigation into Walts’ Twitter account is complete, the findings of the probe have not been made public. Walts’ resignation announcement made no mention of the investigation into his social media account.

Additionally, Walts and the Prince William School Board are currently being sued for $2.3 million over a video he posted on his Twitter in relation to this by former school board Chairman Ryan Sawyers. The video was of Walts announcing the suspension of his Twitter account after pressure was mounting from the allegations against him. In the now-deleted video, Walts called the allegations against him an attempt to ‘smear and slander him for political purposes,’ presumably in reference to former Chairman Sawyers.

More information on Walts’ retirement can be found on the school division’s website.

Walts has led the school division since 2005 after coming to Prince William County from Greece, N.Y. The school division has 92,000 students and is the second-largest school system in Virginia.

Prince William County Public School students will be headed back to class virtually, at least for the first nine weeks of school, starting September 8.

A multitude of Virginians mail in their ballots each election cycle, this year, however, thousands have received unsolicited and incorrectly labeled absentee ballot applications.

Earlier this week, the Prince William County Office of Elections released a statement stating that the office has been receiving ‘numerous phone calls and complaints’ regarding absentee ballot applications sent from The Center for Voter Information, a third-party organization unaffiliated with the state, or Prince William County Office of Elections.

The county has, however, not been affected by the issue of incorrect return addresses.

“It appears that the return address issues that have cropped up have not affected Prince William County. If you have received one of these letters with a Virginia Vote by Mail Application Form, you can use it to apply to have a ballot mailed to you (we will begin mailing ballots in mid-September). If you do not want to vote by mail, ignore the application you have received,” said Matthew Wilson, the Senior Deputy Registrar for the Prince William County Office of Elections.

Other counties, however, have not had it so easy.

According to The Center for Voter Information, half a million Virginians received absentee ballot applications with incorrect information on them, including incorrect return addresses. Fairfax City and Fairfax County, Franklin City and Franklin County, Richmond City and Richmond County, and Roanoke City and Roanoke County all received applications with the incorrect addresses.

“Approximately half a million applications sent to eligible voters in Virginia included incorrect information, and we are working diligently to address the issues. Mistakes in our programming are very rare, but we take them seriously,” stated a press release from The Center for Voter Information.

Aside from the return addresses, the applications are causing confusion among voters who already submitted absentee ballot applications, according to Fairfax County Election Officials, as The Center for Voter Information is ‘mass mailing pre-filled, absentee ballot applications to county voters without their request.’ The practice has left Fairfax voters who already applied with a second application and some with the suspicion that the application may be fake.

“These voters are worried that their applications were not received, leading them to think they need to apply again. While the mailing may appear to be from an official government agency, the Fairfax County Office of Elections did not send it,” stated a press release from the Fairfax County Government.

The Center for Voter Information offered an apology for any confusion the applications may have caused. The applications were a part of a campaign to encourage absentee voting due to the current global pandemic, as according to the Center for Disease Control, ‘elections with only in-person voting on a single day are higher risk for COVID-19 spread.’

“We know that voters are on high alert as the November election approaches, and we regret adding to any confusion. Please rest assured that we are working with local election officials in Virginia to re-direct the vote-by-mail applications to the proper locations, and will rectify any errors at our own expense,” stated a press release from The Center for Voter Information.

Similar issues with absentee ballot applications have also occurred in states across the country, including North Carolina and Pennsylvania, according to WTOP News.

To receive an absentee ballot application, eligible Virginia voters can visit the Virginia Department of Elections website.

As coronavirus case counts rise in Virginia, free coronavirus testing is being offered in Prince William County and Manassas.

The tests are free to anyone living within Prince William, Manassas, and Manassas City Regions, and are being conducted via test via drive-thru or walk-up. Those receiving a test must provide their full name, telephone number, and a home or work address to receive their results.

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On Wednesday, August 5, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam announced the launch of COVIDWISE, 'an innovative exposure notification app that will alert users if they have been in close contact with an individual who has tested positive for COVID-19,' according to a press release from the governor's office.

The app will make Virginia the first in the nation to utilize Bluetooth Low Energy technology developed by Apple and Google.

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