The Falls Church Independent

Your Gov't at Work: Mayor Hardi Testifies in Richmond By Cindy Sieden, This week and last, not only were our state legislators down in Richmond doing work on our behalf, but Falls Church City Mayor Letty Hardi joined them for some early morning subcommi...

What did Mayor Hardi say in Richmond? www.fallschurchindependent.com/your-govt-at...

Old School: Snow Memories Snow removal was no problem, even though it had been easy at our first Arlington house.... One year, we loaded our snowsuit-clad four-year-old onto her plastic sled, put the leash on our Golden Retrie...

In homage to our Snow-crete, today’s Old School! www.fallschurchindependent.com/old-school-s... #arlingtonva #northernvirginia #nova #dmv #fallschurchva #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #fairfaxva #snow

‘Love Story’ Garners $100,000 Grant for F.C.’s Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation A wave of joyful tears and emotions swept around the circle of human participants assembled together for a surprise announcement in the upstairs pet play area at Lost Dog & Cat Rescue Foundation of Fa...

Such a heart-warmer! www.fallschurchindependent.com/love-story-g... #fallschurchva #arlingtonva #cityoffallschurch #northernvirginia #nova #fallschurchcity #dmv #dogadoption #fcdcrf #animalrescue #petcolove #lovestories #loveletters #dogs

Dr. Rachel: Building Confidence, Part II ....The ability to choose gives us the perception of control and the sense of peace accompanying it. This helps build our confidence because the sense that we can do something and that it will make a ...

Today’s Dr. Rachel! www.fallschurchindependent.com/dr-rachel-bu... #Fallschurchva #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #nova #northernvirginia #psychology #neuroscience #confidence #behavioralpsychology

Old School: The Snow Must Go On ....I have fond memories of the white stuff from my childhood. Mom would spend 30 minutes getting me all “garbed up” to go outside. We’d find the boots from last winter were too small and the coat was...

What’s your favorite memory of snowy days past? www.fallschurchindependent.com/old-school-11/ #fallschurchva #nova #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #snow #memories

F.C. Bulletin: Jan. 28, 2026 1) Restaurant Week Extended to Feb. 8; 2) Richmond: State Sen. Salim's ICE Restrictions; 3) FCPS Launches VR Training Course; 4) Photo Treasures from the MRSPL Digital Archives

Guess our 4 stories from today’s FC Bulletin! www.fallschurchindependent.com/f-c-bulletin/ #fallschurchva #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #nova #thelittlecity #northernvirginia #virginia #dmv #restaurants #ICE #tech #jobtraining #digitalarchives #photography #fairfaxva

News Analysis: Is Spanberger More Moderate on ICE? Democratic office holders around the nation are searching for ways to rein in ICE’s “abuses” while the Trump administration is decrying the Democratic Party’s support of “sanctuary cities” and the har...

Is Spanberger more moderate on ICE? www.fallschurchindependent.com/news-analysi... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchva #fallschurchcity #thelittlecity #nova #northernvirginia #vadems #ice #immigration #minneapolis #protest #virginia

Homestretch Hosts Partnered Event to Donate 5,000 Pieces of Clothing to Local Families We salute local nonprofit Homestretch, at 303 S. Maple Ave., for stepping up just in time for this weekend's arctic blast to provide clothing to local families in need. For an in-depth look at what H...

Hats off to Homestretch! www.fallschurchindependent.com/homestretch-...

Mayor Hardi Serves Spanberger Transition Team in Richmond We asked Hardi about the nature of her service to Spanberger, who was inaugurated in Richmond Saturday, Jan. 17 as Virginia's first woman Governor. Spanberger selected Hardi for her expertise on local...

How did Mayor Hardi serve Gov. Spanberger’s transition team? www.fallschurchindependent.com/mayor-hardi-... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #thelittlecity #fallschurchva #nova #northernvirginia #housing #affordablehousing #abigailspanberger #livability #affordability

Old School: Form of Address ....I remembered my childhood tutelage from my mother, the Manners Maven. I was ALWAYS to address envelopes to Mrs. Ricky Ricardo. (Oops! No nicknames on envelopes. So Mrs. Ricardo Ricardo?)

Bonnie & Clyde or Clyde & Bonnie? www.fallschurchindependent.com/old-school-f... #fallschurchva #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #fallschurchva #nova #northernvirginia

Mayor Hardi Enthusiastic about F.C. Restaurant Week, Jan. 23 to Feb 1 Get ready to sample Falls Church’s rich variety of international cuisines as the 2026 Falls Church Restaurant Week – with over 60 participating restaurants – begins Friday, Jan. 23 and runs through Su...

We spoke with Mayor Hardi about Falls Church Restaurant Week! www.fallschurchindependent.com/mayor-hardi-... #fallschurchrw #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchva #fallschurchcity #nova #northernvirginia #restaurants #cuisine #business

Your Gov't at Work: To Local Audiences, Va. Del. Simon, Sen. Salim Share Richmond Agenda Before, during, and after every Virginia General Assembly session, delegates and state senators typically hold events with their constituents to inform them about legislation they’re sponsoring or vot...

Today’s “Your “Gov’t at Work” ! www.fallschurchindependent.com/your-govt-at...

Old School: Super Suppers ....about those fabulous events called Church Suppers.... I know they happened based on my mother's recipe file entries... Chili for 75 folks....

What do you remember about church suppers? www.fallschurchindependent.com/old-school-s...

Your Gov't at Work: EDA's First '26 Meeting Examines Citywide Events, Outdoor ABC Licensing ....One item on the agenda discussed at great length was a meeting that had taken place between owners of a dozen or so local restaurants, who wanted to voice grievances about — among other things – c...

What’s the EDA considering? www.fallschurchindependent.com/your-govt-at... #fallschurchcity #cityoffallschurch #thelittlecity #fallschurchva #fallschurchedo #nova #northernvirginia #development #localbusiness #yourgovtatwork

F.C. City Council Elects Mayor, Vice Mayor During their Jan. 5 meeting, the City Council voted in Letty Hardi as Mayor, and Laura Downs as Vice Mayor. New Council Member Arthur Agin joined his colleagues on the dais for the first time since he...

First orders of business! www.fallschurchindependent.com/f-c-city-cou... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #thelittlecity #fallschurchva #nova #northernvirginia

F.C. Arts: 'Women Artists of the DMV' Opens Jan. 10; 'Kinship' People's Choice & Juror's Prizes 60 Contemporary Artists Working in a Wide Range of Media to be Showcased. This groundbreaking survey of female visual artists from the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia was selected by D.C....

Wonderful news from Falls Church Arts! www.fallschurchindependent.com/f-c-arts-wom...

Dr. Rachel: How Our Mistakes Can Help Build Confidence By Dr. Rachel Boehm, “It’s good for you. If you make mistakes it’s good, it shows you where the weaknesses are,” renowned Pilates instructor Alycea Ungaro said during an on-demand workout I was squee...

Today’s Dr. Rachel! www.fallschurchindependent.com/dr-rachel-ho... #fallschurchva #fallschurchcity #cityoffallschurch #nova #northernvirginia #thelittlecity #psychology #cognitivetherapy #selfefficacy #confidence

Can We Stop with the TV Weather Hype? Could the nation’s TV meteorologists tone down the weather hype a bit? Lately, instead of being told it might drizzle soon in our area, TV weather forecasters have taken to .... cranking up their mete...

Have you noticed the hype? www.fallschurchindependent.com/can-we-stop-...

Weekend Buzz: Dec. 31, 2025 Ready to celebrate New Year's? Here are numerous local indoor and outdoor options for you. We also feature new listings in local film, theater, visual arts, and museums (musea?). A Joyous 2026 to you!

Ready for New Year’s? www.fallschurchindependent.com/weekend-buzz... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchva #fallschurchcity #nova #northernvirginia #thelittlecity #arts #entertainment #weekend #theater #galleries #newyears

Old School: Mega-Retrieving ....Duke employs “resource guarding behavior,” which means he becomes protective over items he values. But these aren’t typical dog toys or even small, fluffy teddy bears. These are large household it...

What sort of antics has your dog been up to? www.fallschurchindependent.com/old-school-10/ #goldenretriever #dogadoption #dogs #fallschurchcity #cityoffallschurch #thelittlecity #pets #humor #fallschurchva #nova #fostering #nova

Old School: No Shows We all know the sweet Christmas story called “the Gift of the Magi,” about the young couple who bought each other gifts for their first Christmas....

Two humorous tales for the season! www.fallschurchindependent.com/old-school-n... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #arlingtonva #fallschurchva #christmas #gifts #skating #nostalgia #memories

City of Falls Church Celebrates 2025 as Year of Substantial Progress Following is based on a Dec. 19 press release by the City of Falls Church: Today, the City of Falls Church released its 2025 Year In Review, highlighting a year of substantial action and community-fo...

Guess why the City’s celebrating? www.fallschurchindependent.com/city-of-fall... #fallschurchcity #cityoffallschurch #thelittlecity #nova #northernvirginia #dmv #fallschurchva

The AI Experience at Meridian H.S.: Parent Coffee Reveals School's Adaptive Responses to Generative AI’s Disruptions .... At Meridian High School in the City of Falls Church, Principal Peter Laub, and IB Diploma Program Coordinator Josh Singer hosted “From Chalkboards to Chatbots,” a Dec. 11 Parent Coffee with a pan...

What are your views on AI in schools? Here’s what’s happening at Meridian H.S. www.fallschurchindependent.com/the-ai-exper... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #nova #northernvirginia #ibprogramme #fallschurchva #education #teaching #schools #artificialintelligence #meridianhs #thelittlecity

Old School: Counting the Days By Carol McEwen, As you may know by now, I had an idyllic childhood with doting parents who spoiled me rotten. At Christmas, Santa left me plenty of loot: that electric train you’ve read about, an Ea...

How did you countdown the days? www.fallschurchindependent.com/old-sch/ #fallschurchcity #cityoffallschurch #nova #northernvirginia #adventcalendar #fallschurchva #wisconsin #thelittlecity #christmas #presents #nostalgia #thelittlecity

Weekend Buzz: Dec. 11, 2025 The Santamobile is zipping through Falls Church neighborhoods, Cherry Hill Farmhouse has delightful mid-19th century holiday tea parties, holiday markets and art fairs abound, outdoor ice skating at t...

What’s the 🐝 this weekend? www.fallschurchindependent.com/weekend-buzz... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #fallschurchva #thelittlecity #nova #dmv #northernvirginia #fairfaxva #weekend #holidays #arts #entertainment #theater#arlingtonva

F.C. Bulletin: Dec. 10, 2025 1) Meridian H.S. Graduate Recognized as National 'Food Hero' 2) FCEF Awards Wollenberg Family for Scholarship Program 3) VPIS Donates Over $1K to Community Food Pantry 4) $1 Billion Women-Led Falls Ch...

Can you guess our 5 stories today? www.fallschurchindependent.com/f-c-bulletin... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #fallschurchva #nova #northernvirginia #thelittlecity #education #womenibbusiness #vpis #meridianhs #schools #scholarships #community #fcef #hunger #homelessness

Dr. Rachel: Avoiding Cognitive Dissonance over the Holidays ....Expectations in the sense of hope can motivate us. But taken too far, these predictions about the future can leave us unmoored. It’s called cognitive dissonance, a gap between what we expected and...

How will you avoid cognitive dissonance over the holidays? www.fallschurchindependent.com/dr-rachel-av... #fallschurchva #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #thelittlecity #nova #dmv #psychology #cognitivedissonance #holidays

Old School: 'Logued Out ....We received only two Christmas catalogues each year: Sears and Spiegel’s. If valued by the pound, the Sears Catalogue, aka The Wish Book, would win hands down. The thing must have weighed 50 pound...

Which catalogues were your faves? www.fallschurchindependent.com/old-school-9/

Weekend Buzz: Dec. 4, 2025 ....In Falls Church, don't miss the Santamobile, the Holiday Craft Fair and the Children's Holiday Shoppe at the Community Center, as well as many nearby Holiday Markets. Georgetown's hosting a major ...

What’s the 🐝 this weekend? www.fallschurchindependent.com/weekend-buzz... #fallschurchva #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #thelittlecity #nova #northernvirginia #arts #weekend #events #holiday #theater #film #fun #dmv

Editorial: How Long Can This President Continue to Serve? Talk of removing an “unfit” President by invoking the 25th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution has been swirling lately as President Trump, 79, has exhibited increasingly erratic behaviors and marked s...

Why are concerns about the president’s health mounting? www.fallschurchindependent.com/editorial-ho... #cityoffallschurch #fallschurchcity #fallschurchva #thelittlecity #nova #northernvirginia #mentalhealth #dementia #stroke #trump #health #potus #fairfaxcountyva