Arlington Local

“Flourishing After 55”

“Flourishing After 55” from Arlington Office of Senior Adult Programs for April 7-12. Senior trips: Monday, April 7, U.S. Botanic Garden, D.C., $8; Wednesday, April 9, Brandywine River Museum, Chadds Ford, Pa., $35; Friday, April 11, Lee-Fendall House and Garden, Alexandria, $13. Call Arlington County 55+ Travel, 703-228-4748. Registration required.

Commentary: Mental Health and Expansion of Medicaid

There is a growing consensus forming in the General Assembly that now is the time to improve the safety net for mental health services. Both the House and Senate budgets increase funding for these services by millions of dollars (House proposed a $10 million increase and the Senate $20 million) above the proposed budget of $36 million that Governor McDonnell presented in December.

Arlington Home Sales: February, 2014

In February 2014, 167 Arlington homes sold between $2,600,000-$135,000.

Arlington Home Sales: February, 2014

Seven Scouts Achieve Eagle Rank

The largest group of Scouts from Boy Scout Troop 167 in Arlington to achieve the rank of Eagle Scout was honored for their achievement on March 1 at Mt. Olivet Methodist Church. Those attaining Eagle Rank were: * Brian Claeys – junior, Gonzaga College High School, * Spencer Cobb – senior, Yorktown High School, * Nicholas Goryachev – junior, Yorktown High School, * Ross Kocher – junior, Yorktown High School, * Callan Rogers – senior, HB Woodlawn Secondary Program, * Andrew Schweser – senior, Wakefield High School, * David V. Wein-Kandil – senior, HB Woodlawn Secondary Program. The Scouts have been friends for several years and elected to participate together in the Eagle Court of Honor — the first time in the troop’s history to so honor a group of young men.

Yorktown Girls’ Lacrosse Team Facing New Challenges

After eight straight National District titles, Patriots move to Conference 6

The Yorktown girls' lacrosse team won eight straight district titles before the VHSL's six-class re-alignment.

‘Oh Dad, Poor Dad’ To Debut in Arlington

The American Century Theater is presenting the Arthur Kopit farce, “Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mamma’s Hung You in the Closet and I’m Feelin’ So Sad,” March 21-April 12 at Gunston Arts Center, Theatre Two, in Arlington. Described by the playwright as “a Pseudoclassical Tragifarce in a Bastard French Tradition,” this antic, absurdist black comedy about the most dysfunctional family imaginable was an Off-Broadway sensation in 1962 and a hardly-watched 1967 film starring Rosalind Russell, Barbara Harris, and Jonathan Winters. A farce in three scenes, “Oh Dad, Poor Dad …” tells the bizarre tale of wealthy, domineering mother Madame Rosepettle, who travels to a luxury resort in a Cuban hotel, bringing along her stuttering son, a man-eating Venus Fly Trap plant, a piranha, and her deceased husband, preserved and in his casket.

Synetic Theater Stages “Hamlet”

Synetic Theater is remounting Shakespeare’s “Hamlet … the rest is silence,” the abstract and wordless show that struck gold for them in 2002 when it debuted in Washington. This silent rendering stars Alex Mills, 24, as Prince Hamlet, Irina Tsikurishvili as Gertrude, Iraakli Kavsadze as Claudius and Irina Kavsadze as Ophelia. To help celebrate the Bard’s 450th birthday this year, Synetic took an abstract approach to the tragedy set in Denmark by using sparse sets, minimal props (originally by Georgi Alexi-Meskhishvili), dramatic lighting design (by Brittany Diliberto), minimal black-and-white costumes (Claire Cantwell) and intense sound design (Irakli Kavsadze). Synetic is best known for fusing the classical elements of drama, movement, mime, dance and music. The storyline of “Hamlet” centers on the revenge the grief-stricken Prince Hamlet exacts on his uncle Claudius for murdering Hamlet’s father, Claudius’s brother. He succeeds to the throne and takes his wife Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother. The play explores everything from incest to revenge to madness and corruption.

The Annual Shamrock Crawl

Clarendon Boulevard was filled with participants on the annual Shamrock Crawl on Saturday. March 15.

United Way Awards $259,862 to Nonprofits

United Way of the National Capital Area recently awarded 20 grants totaling $259,862 to member organizations serving Arlington. The funds came through designations to the Arlington Community Impact Fund in United Way NCA's annual workplace giving campaign. Each of the grants addresses programs that fall within United Way NCA's focus areas of education, financial stability and health.In total, $1.7 million was raised through Community Impact Funds in United Way NCA's eight regions thanks to the support of employees from more than 800 workplaces with more than 3,000 locations throughout the Washington, D.C. region.

CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield’s Contributions to Arlington Free Clinic Top $1 Million

March 05, 2014 - Baltimore — CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield (CareFirst) plans to contribute another $110,000 to Arlington Free Clinic to help the Northern Virginia health clinic better coordinate care during the next year for more than 500 uninsured patients – many of who have chronic diseases that require increased monitoring and adherence to strict medication schedules. Arlington Free Clinic intends to use CareFirst’s latest funding to strengthen its relationship with its network of community medical partners, equip diabetic patients with more resources and education to help them control their disease, and increase its patients’ compliance with recommended immunization schedules.

Eleanor Bune Celebrates Her 96th

Sharp as a tack and mentally “with it” as a younger person, Eleanor Bune, an Arlington resident, is not missing a beat. On March 14, she turned 96-years-old. With a full head of her own hair that often draws compliments from strangers, she had her hair done on her birthday and wanted to look her best for a night out on the town. Her birthday was celebrated at Essy’s Carriage House in Arlington with her daughter, Karen L. Bune, and friends.