F.C. Little League Celebrating 75th Anniversary in 2023
As the first Little League in the state of Virginia, the Falls Church Kiwanis Little League is looking forward to celebrating their 75th anniversary in 2023. They are asking for the community’s help to create a special logo for the 75th anniversary and everyone is welcome to enter the Logo Contest.
Be creative and be innovative. One can design whatever they like — it just has to celebrate FCKLL’s 75 anniversary (1948 – 2023) and a love for baseball! The logo will be used on promotional materials, jerseys and merchandise throughout the 75th anniversary year. For full details and for logo submission instructions, please visit www.fckll.org or email erika@fckll.org with questions. Designs must be submitted by December 2nd to be included in the contest.
McLean Project for the Arts to Open Winter Exhibitions
McLean Project for the Arts will open its winter exhibitions—In the Round: Dimensional Fiber Works (Emerson Gallery) and Trees on the Edge: Artwork in Layered Paper by Ronni Jolles (Atrium Gallery) — on December 9th, 2022. Both shows will run through February 18th, 2023, with an Opening Exhibition Reception presented by The Mather on Friday, December 9th, 2022 from 7-9pm. RSVP here (www.tinyurl.com/mpawinterexhibits).
MPA’s Atrium Gallery will feature Trees on the Edge: Artwork in Layered Paper by Ronni Jolles. Jolles creates beautiful paper paintings through a unique process using many different kinds of paper from all over the world. She cuts, tears and layers hundreds of pieces to build each of her images, creating works with active texture, infinite color and distinct presence. Although Jolles works with a variety of subjects, the pieces in the MPA exhibit focus on forms in the landscape as interpreted through trees. These engaging works bring the spirit of the woods alive, celebrating the beauty, strength and importance of this majestic life form.
The Atrium Gallery exhibit (Trees on the Edge) will be available for viewing during McLean Community Center operating hours. In the Round: Dimensional Fiber Works will be open for visitors Tuesdays through Fridays from 1:00 p.m. — 4:00 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:00 a.m. — 3:00 p.m.
Nominations Open for Small Business Week Awards
The Washington Metropolitan Area District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has opened nominations for the 2023 National Small Business Week (NSBW) awards program. The National Small Business Week awards issued through the Washington Metropolitan Area District Office include the following categories: Small Business Person of the Year, Northern Virginia (as well as one each, in Suburban Maryland and Washington, DC); 8(a) Graduate of the Year, Small Business Exporter of the Year; Small Business Prime Contractor of the Year; Small Business Subcontractor of the Year; Small Business Development Center (SBDC) Excellence and Innovation Center Award; and Woman’s Business Center (WBC) of the Year. To access forms, criteria, and instructions for submitting a nomination package, please visit https://www.sba.gov/national-small-business-week/awards. All nominations must be submitted online by December 8, 2022.
Holiday Happenings at the Workhouse Arts Center
The Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton will present several holiday events and activities in November and December for visitors to shop for holiday gifts, attend performances, and take part in holiday-related arts and craft classes. In addition to these themed events, visitors can visit the Workhouse campus throughout the holiday season to browse art galleries and artist studios, attend a theater performance, and participate in numerous classes from art to music to yoga. For more information visit the Workhouse Arts Center website.
Alexandria’s West End Welcomes of Art Center
Hilton Alexandria Mark Center – a warmly, inviting upscale hotel with 428 elegant guest rooms – is proud to announce a partnership with Torpedo Factory Art Center—the nation’s largest collection of working-artists’ open studio under one roof. Following the recent multi-million-dollar renovation at Hilton Alexandria Mark Center, the exhibition “Torpedo Factory Art Center on the Road: Hilton Alexandria Mark Center” showcases an articulate collection of artworks created by some of the Art Center’s most distinguished artists, set within the hotel’s refreshed lobby. The art will be on view through February 12, 2023.
Hilton Alexandria Mark Center and Torpedo Factory Art Center are now offering guests, locals, and art-lovers, from far and wide an up-close, in-person opportunity to engage and connect with Alexandria’s creative and innovative local talent. “Torpedo Factory Art Center on the Road: Hilton Alexandria Mark Center” includes a collection of 15 original artworks from top Resident Artists and Artists Pro Tem, all selected through a detailed, competitive, jury process. All artwork on display will be available for purchase and feature contact details for its respective artist.
All art on view is two dimensional and includes media such as collages, photography, wood, oil and acrylic paint, as well as natural pigments. Tara Barr and Sierra Barnes’s work includes fun and whimsical depictions and styles of carousel horses. Charlene Nield and Jacelyn Orellana explore figurative painting, abstracted through process. Photographers Jenny Nordstrom and Mike Stevens find narrative and composition through the lens of their cameras, while artists such as Beverly Ryan, Alison Sigethy, and Sally Veach use varied processes to develop abstract forms rotating between flat plain and dimensional space.
Small Treasures Comes to American Painting Fine Art
American Painting Fine Art offers a grand opportunity to relax and de-stress from holiday pressures and blues, with its annual Small Treasures exhibition and sale. Gallery owner and artist Andrei Kushnir notes that art has a well-known soothing and healing effect on frazzled nerves and high anxiety. Kushnir, this year’s awards judge in the Falls Church, VA, Plein Air Festival, offers that “[t]he show provides an opportunity for weary shoppers or escapees from insane malls and non-stop parties to rest, catch their breath, and bask in the aura of artworks that range from whimsical to museum quality. Many neighbors stop by just to decompress, relax, and then be on their way again to join the merriment of the holidays.”
Collectors of contemporary American art (traditional and abstract) will have many excellent opportunities to add to their walls.
A Holiday Open House Reception will be held 5 — 7 p.m. on Saturday, December 3rd. Regular Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday, from 11 a.m. — 7 p.m., and by appointment. Special Holiday hours will be posted on the gallery website. Admission is free.
Scouts BSA Troop 895 Celebrates 65 Years
Scouts BSA Troop 895 recently held its fall Court of Honor, where it recognized the achievements of its scouts and celebrated the Troop’s 65 years serving the youth of Falls Church, Fairfax, Arlington, and Washington, DC. The celebration included former Troop leaders and alumni. This year the Troop’s adventures have included summer camp at BSA’s Summit Bechtel Reserve in West Virginia, canoe camping on the Shenandoah River, and service to the community through Scouting For Food. The Troop is chartered by the Falls Church Presbyterian Church. For more information about the Troop please see its website at https://bsatroop895.net/, or contact the Troop at troop895fc@gmail.com.
Moe’s Southwest Grill Hosts Toy Drive
Moe’s Southwest Grill will be hosting a toy drive. People can donate new, unwrapped toys at their local Moe’s through December 7th. Upon donation, one can enjoy a special thank you offer.
Dehgani-Tafti Announces Campaign for Second Term
On Tuesday, November 22nd, Parisa Dehghani-Tafti announced she is running for reelection as Commonwealth’s Attorney for Arlington County and the City of Falls Church. Dehghani-Tafti won her first term as Commonwealth’s Attorney in 2019 by promising to turn our community into a model for how to run a criminal justice system that provides safety & justice for all.
Dehghani-Tafti also included with her announcement the endorsements of a number of elected officials, including Congressman Don Beyer, former Virginia gubernatorial candidates Jennifer Carroll Foy and state Senator Jennifer McClellan, Delegates Marcus Simon and Patrick Hope, Arlington County Board Members Matt de Ferranti and Takis Karantonis, Arlington County Clerk of Court Paul Ferguson, Arlington Commissioner of Revenue Ingrid Morroy, Arlington School Board Member Mary Kadera, state Senator Scott Surovell, former state Senator Mary Margaret Whipple, former County Board Member Mary Hynes, former School Board Members Nancy Van Doren and Monique O’Grady, House of Delegates candidate Adele McClure, and former candidate for Lt. Governor and former federal prosecutor, Gene Rossi.
Jingle in the Season with the Alexandria Symphony
The Alexandria Symphony Orchestra (ASO) will present a holiday program, “Jingle!” Saturday, December 17, 2022 (7:30 p.m.) at the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center and Sunday, December 18, 2022 (3:00 p.m.) at the George Washington Masonic Memorial.
On December 17, ASO welcomes back dancers from BalletNOVA to the Schlesinger stage where they will perform excerpts from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker. Both Saturday and Sunday concerts will also include selections from Duke Ellington’s The Nutcracker Suite. Soprano Helena Colindres will sing traditional and popular holiday favorites: a Swedish carol, a selection from Handel’s Messiah and Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas is You. Leroy Anderson’s A Christmas Festival, popular film scores, and an audience sing-along will add cheer to the season. The concerts are family-friendly, interactive and presented with no intermission. Parking is free at both of ASO’s conveniently-located venues.
Adult prices for single tickets start at $20, and all tickets for youth are priced at $5, making ASO concerts affordable for families. Military, senior and group discounts are also available in select sections. Seating is very limited at the George Washington Masonic Memorial and is almost sold out, so book tickets early. Visit www.alexsym.org or call (703) 548-0885 for more information.
