In Fairfax County, Boys' Gymnastics Becomes a Victim of Budget Shortfall - The Washington Post

Funding for high school boys' gymnastics was eliminated in FairfaxCounty on Thursday when the school board voted 11-1 to adopt a budgetthat addresses the system's $40 million shortfall for the fiscal yearthat begins July 1.

Only 12 of the county's 24 high schools had teams with four ormore gymnasts this winter, with approximately 100 boys competing.Other than Alexandria schools Washington-Lee and Yorktown, no otherVirginia public high schools support boys' gymnastics programs.

'We took a big hit [with the budget] this year,' said BrucePatrick, Coordinator of Student Activities and Athletic Programs forFairfax County, who added that middle school and high schoolintramural sports were also cut and that some funding for athletictravel was eliminated.

Participation was down slightly from the 2001 season, when 116boys competed. By contrast, 21 Fairfax County schools had girls'gymnastics teams (with over 200 girls participating) last winter, andschools throughout the state field teams.

'At the beginning of the year, they said we were fine. Toward theend, we heard there was a potential place to drop the sport,' saidLake Braddock Coach Eric Kim, whose Bruins won the Virginia AAANorthern Region championship on May 14. 'Our $80,000 costs out of awhole [athletic] budget of $800,000 to $1 million. . . . We werehoping that because of that, dropping us wouldn't make an impact.It's not a shock, but it's definitely disappointing.'

Two days after the Northern Region championships, a group ofseniors from Northern Virginia's high school programs won theNational High School Senior Gymnastics championships in Las Vegas,with Lake Braddock senior All-Met Justin Spring setting a nationalrecord in the all-around.

'We were kind of banking on it being hard to shut us down afterwinning nationals,' Kim said.

The sport could be moved to club status, but Kim said he doubtsthat it will survive at that level because of the difficulty infinding qualified coaches and judges who will work for little or nopay.

St. Stephen's/St. Agnes Coach Kathy Jenkins was honored by theTeewarton Award foundation for her dedication to girls' lacrosse.Jenkins -- the All-Met Coach of the Year in 1995 and 1997 -- and DickEdell, the former head lacrosse coach at the University of Maryland,were the first coaches to be honored by the foundation, which wasestablished in 2000. . . .

In all, 10 Washington area boats came home with medals from lastweekend's Scholastic Rowing Association of America Championships inOak Ridge, Tenn. McLean's senior girls' quad was the only team towin, but the following teams also had top-three finishes: St. Albans'boys' varsity eight (second), McLean boys' junior double (third) andsenior four (third), Sidwell Friends' boys' junior single (second),Bethesda-Chevy Chase's girls' junior four (second), Jefferson'sgirls' freshman eight (third), T.C. Williams's girls' lightweighteight (third) and varsity eight (third).

Loudoun County's girls and Potomac Falls's boys each won VirginiaAA Region II tennis championships Saturday, and both teams did itwith victories over Handley in Winchester. The victories earned eachteam a berth in the state semifinals, scheduled for June 6-8 atRadford (girls) and Virginia Tech (boys).

Fairfax stifles Mack attack - Oakland Tribune

SACRAMENTO -- Ja'Shon Hampton had 14 points to lead Fairfax ofLos Angeles past McClymonds 53-29 in the Division I boys statechampionship game Saturday at Arco Arena.

Chase Stanback, Chris Soloman and Ron Singleton added 10 pointsfor the Pioneers (28-5), who tied the modern record for fewestpoints allowed in a state championship game. The game also saw arecord for fewest total points in a Division I championship game,breaking the 83 scored last yearby De La Salle and Clovis.

William Cherry led McClymonds (28-4) with 11 points, all butthree in the first quarter. The Warriors didn't help their cause bygoing 3-for-14 from the free-throw line.

After a relatively tight first period, McClymonds went scorelessin the second quarter, missing all eight of its shots as Fairfaxtook an 18-12 lead. The Warriors shot 25 percent from the floor inthe first half and just 22 percent (11-for-49) for the game.

Fairfax, with 3,174 students, is ranked 25th in the nation bySports Illustrated and RISE. The much smaller McClymonds isunranked.

DIVISION I GIRLS

Long Beach Poly 58, Berkeley 52

Jasmine Dixon had 23 points and 11 rebounds as Long Beach Polywon its second straight state championship.

Candice Nichols added 17 points and eight rebounds for theJackrabbits (36-1), who are ranked No. 2 in the nation by SportsIllustrated and Full Court Press.

Alexandria Mitchell had 19 points for Berkeley (27-7), which lostto Long Beach Poly in the state finals for the second straightseason. Jennifer Gross had a double-double, with 10 points and 13rebounds.

The first quarter went back and forth, but after theYellowjackets tied the score at 15, Long Beach Poly went on a 15-2run that decided the game. Dixon had nine points in that burst and12 in the second period.

At the half, it was 35-23 Poly, and though Berkeley cut it to sixin the final 30 seconds, the issue was never in doubt.

The game was the final one in Berkeley coach Gene Nakamura's 24-year career, which included two California titles, the last in 1997,and five other trips to the state championship game.

DIVISION III BOYS

Artesia 91, Bishop O'Dowd 64

James Harden scored 24 points to lead Artesia of Lakewood overBishop O'Dowd, earning its second straight state championship.

The Pioneers set a Division III record for most points in a titlegame, and the teams' combined total was also a record. Other double-figure scorers for the Pioneers (33-2) were Renardo Sidney (18),Malik Story (14), A.J. Gasporra (13) and Lorenzo McCloud (13). Thewin gave Artesia its fifth California championship.

Brandon Walker had 24 points for Bishop O'Dowd (26-7), which haslost five straight state title games since winning the first modernDivision I championship in 1981. Shawn Lewis added 18.

Artesia took over the game early, jumping out to a 40-15 lead,but the gritty Dragons refused to buckle. Backed by an emotionalcrowd, O'Dowd eventually cut the lead to six in the third period, 55-49, but Artesia's talent -- the Pioneers are ranked seventh in thenation by Sports Illustrated and RISE -- was just too much for theDragons to overcome.

DIVISION IV GIRLS

Marlborough 67

St. Patrick-St. Vincent 54

Nikki Speed scored 25 points and had five steals as Marlboroughof Los Angeles overcame a 16-point second-half deficit against St.Patrick-St. Vincent of Vallejo to win the girls' Division IV statetitle, 67-52, at Arco Arena on Saturday.

The Mustangs (27-7) outscored the Bruins 41-12 in the secondhalf, when Speed scored 20 of her points in the final 16 minutes.

The title was the first for Marlborough, which was making itsdebut in the state championship game.

Alex Cowlings led St. Patrick-St. Vincent (30-4) with 32 points,but 24 came in the Bruin-dominated first half. The team led 40-26 atthe break and scored first in the third quarter, but after that itwas all Marlborough.

DIVISION III GIRLS

Sacred Heart Cathedral 60, Bishop Amat 54 (OT)

Jazmine Jackson scored 25 points as Sacred Heart Cathedral of SanFrancisco pulled off another miracle finish to beat Bishop Amat ofLa Puente.

The Irish (32-2) trailed by three with time running out, andTierra Rogers drove to the basket for a two-point layup but wasfouled with three seconds left.

Sacred Heart had no timeouts left, and had Rogers scored withoutbeing fouled, under high school rules, the clock would have run outbefore Bishop Amat would have had to inbound the ball. But Rogersthen made the free throw to tie the game, and in overtime, theLancers made just two of nine free throws, and the Irish pulledaway.

Kristen McCarthy topped Bishop Amat (27-6), the two-timedefending Division III champions, with 17 points.

DIVISION IV BOYS

Campbell Hall 70,

Cardinal Newman 34

Jrue Holiday scored 20 points as Campbell Hall of North Hollywoodrolled over Cardinal Newman of Santa Rosa to win its second statetitle in the past three years.

Holiday also had seven rebounds and four assists for the Vikings(33-1), who are ranked 13th in the nation by Sports Illustrated andRISE. Justin Holiday and Robert Ford each had 15 points, and KeeganHornbuckle added 10.

Marjorie Carlson Knutson, Fairfax Educator, Dies at 61 - The Washington Post

Marjorie Carlson Knutson, 61, a former physical educationteacher who retired in 1990 as assistant principal of Stuart HighSchool in Fairfax, died July 20 at a hospital in Fergus Falls,Minn., after suffering an asthma attack while kayaking at BattleLake, Minn. She lived in Fairfax.

Mrs. Knutson was a native of Appleton, Minn., and a graduateof Luther College, in Iowa, which gave her its distinguished serviceaward for her work in developing music and physical educationcurriculums. She received a master's degree in education from GeorgeWashington University.

She began her 26-year career in Fairfax County as a teacher atLuther Jackson High School. She later was a curriculum specialistfor the county and assistant principal at Jefferson High School.

Mrs. Knutson sang in the choir at Lord of Life Lutheran Churchin Fairfax. Her interests included golf and other sports. She had avacation home at Deep Creek Lake in western Maryland.

Survivors include her husband of 36 years, William Knutson ofFairfax; two sons, Richard Knutson of Fairfax and Paul Knutson ofSt. Paul, Minn.; a sister, Leatrice Benson of Appleton; and threebrothers, Orion Knutson of Ottawa, Ill., David Carlson of Wilmer,Minn., and Elmer Carlson Jr. of Crystal Lakes, Minn.

BASIL J. CANDELA

Engineer

Basil J. Candela, 71, who did engineering work for MitreCorp., TAMS Consultants Inc. and Sverdrup Corp., died of prostatecancer July 23 at the Hospice of Northern Virginia.

Mr. Candela, who lived in Fairfax, was born in Harrison, N.Y.During World War II, he served in the Navy. He graduated fromColumbia University.

In 1976, he moved to the Washington area after having workedin New York for the Hudson Institute. He did engineering work in thearea until illness forced his retirement from Sverdrup.

His wife, Lorene Gibbar, whom he married in 1947, died in1992. Survivors include six children, Stephen Candela of MountLaurel, N.J., James Candela of Dale City, Felicia Candela of Bowie,John Candela of New Paltz, N.Y., Lawrence Candela of Philadelphiaand Michele Abdow of Bethesda; and five grandchildren.

RICHARD D. NOTES

Psychiatrist

Richard D. Notes, 53, a psychiatrist who was born inWashington and raised in Prince George's County, died of cancer July3 at his home in Boca Raton, Fla.

He was a graduate of Northwestern High School, the Universityof Pennsylvania and George Washington University medical school. Hedid his internship and residency at the University of Floridamedical school. He was a diplomate in psychiatry and neurology. Heserved in the Navy.

Dr. Notes was in private practice in Florida and was chairmanof the psychiatry department at Boca Raton Community Hospital.

Survivors include his wife, Joan Notes of Boca Raton; twochildren, Randolf Notes of New York and Nancy Notes of Boca Raton;his mother, Narcia Notes of Bladensburg; and a brother, Ronald Notesof Columbia.

ETHEL POPICK

Volunteer

Ethel Popick, 91, who did volunteer work for the Red Cross andthe Hebrew Home for the Aged, died July 29 at her home inWashington. She had cancer.

Mrs. Popick was born in Madison, N.J. She attended college inNew Jersey and taught elementary school there until the mid-1930s.

In 1947, she moved to Washington and worked briefly as abookkeeper and a billing clerk at Carter Industrial Laundry, awork-uniform rental operation she started with her husband.

She was a member of Adas Israel Congregation and WoodmontCountry Club.

Her husband, Nat Popick, died in 1991. Survivors include twochildren, Harriet Bubes and Dorothy Block, both of Chevy Chase; sixgrandchildren; and 16 great-grandchildren.

WILLIAM BEVERLEY MASON JR.

Housing Specialist

William Beverley Mason Jr., 88, a retired housing specialistwho served as executive assistant secretary of the Federal HousingAdministration, died July 29 in his doctor's office in Leesburgafter a heart attack.

Mr. Mason, who lived in Upperville, Va., was born inWashington. He graduated from Episcopal High School in Alexandriaand attended the University of North Carolina.

During World War II, he served in the Navy. After the war, heworked for the FHA as a housing specialist. He was executiveassistant secretary of the agency during the Eisenhower and Nixonadministrations. He also worked for the Department of Housing andUrban Development and as a self-employed housing consultant untilretiring in the mid-1980s.

Mr. Mason was a golfer and member of the Chevy Chase Club, andhe won several amateur golf tournaments. He was a member of theGeorgetown Assembly and the Society of the Cincinnati. He was amember of Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Middleburg.

Survivors include his wife, Helen Ann Mason of Upperville; twosons, William Beverley Mason III of Washington and Randolph DulanyMason of Fort Worth; and three grandchildren.

JEAN CARNAHAN WEST

Librarian and Volunteer

Jean Carnahan West, 83, a former law librarian whose volunteeractivities included board and committee work at ChristCongregational Church in Silver Spring, died of congestive heartfailure July 29 at her Silver Spring home.

Mrs. West, a Washington native, worked for the Bethesda lawfirm of Wolpoff and Abramson in the 1970s and early 1980s. She was agraduate of McKinley Technical High School and Katherine GibbsSecretarial School in New York.

She was a secretary, an office manager and a disaster serviceworker for the American Red Cross from 1932 to 1943.

She served on the Congregational Church Home Board ofWashington and was president of the service group at SpringvaleTerrace, a church-sponsored retirement home in Silver Spring thatshe helped found. She was a tutor with the Literacy Council ofMontgomery County.

Her husband, Stanley E. West, died in 1981. Survivors includefour children, Sandra West of Frederick, Md., Stanley E. West Jr.and Paul A. West, both of Silver Spring, and Stuart E. West ofWestmoreland, N.H.; two brothers, Robert G. Carnahan of Sun CityCenter, Fla., and William E. Carnahan of Silver Spring; and fivegrandchildren.

KENNETH HENRY BRUNJES JR.

Operations Manager

Kenneth Henry Brunjes Jr., 59, a retired AT&T operationsmanager, died of cancer July 29 at his son's home in Fairfax.

Mr. Brunjes was born in New York and graduated from theUniversity of Vermont.

He began his professional career in 1957 as a managementtrainee with Bell of Pennsylvania, where he later became a marketingmanager and then a district manager.

In 1982, he relocated to the Washington area as an AT&Toperations manager. He was involved in implementing thecourt-ordered AT&T divestiture. He retired from AT&T in 1989 and in1990 joined the General Services Administration as a communicationsmanagement specialist. He retired from GSA in 1995.

He was a golfer and a member of International Town and CountryClub in Fairfax.

On his retirement, he moved from Fairfax to Pine Knoll Shores,N.C.

Cannons Aim for Stadium in Fairfax - The Washington Post

The owner of the Prince William Cannons minor league baseballteam says he will change his team's name and move it to FairfaxCounty because Prince William officials won't give him the money hewants to help build a $150 million sports and entertainment complexon the Potomac River.

Arthur L. Silber, expressing anger and frustration at thePrince William decision, has talked to Fairfax officials and saidhe's looking for property there along the Interstate 95 corridor onwhich to build an 8,000-seat stadium.

School Sparks Fervent Battle; Fairfax Boundaries Make Parents Lobby - The Washington Post

Capt. David Morriss rushed home from the Pentagon, where he is alawyer in the Navy's Office of Legislative Affairs, to work for thecause that matters most in his household. This night, the father ofthree went before the Fairfax County School Board with an emotionalplea. 'I'm speaking from the heart,' he said. 'Please include us.'

Morriss's family, and hundreds of others in a swath of southernFairfax from Newington Forest to Mason Neck, believes that theboard's coming decision on whose children will -- and whose won't --attend the county's newest public high school will affect the veryway they live their lives. It will determine how much time theirchildren spend on a school bus, how much time they have for sportsand family and homework, where their friends live, how often theirparents can attend their games and concerts.

More than 1,000 people turned out for each of three communitymeetings last fall, and more than 200, including students, parentsand grandparents, spoke at recent public hearings. Their concern isnot about the quality of instruction their children will receive --they know it will be good either way -- but about the quality of lifethat comes with a school close to home. Talk of where the lines willbe drawn has dominated discussions at dinner tables and in schoolparking lots and has created tensions among neighborhoods.

Emotional battles over school boundary changes are a recurrenttheme in growing suburbs across the country. But Fairfax Countyparents, many of whom are drawn to the area because of the schoolsystem's reputation as one of the nation's best, don't simply ask toremain within one school's boundary or be shifted to another. Theyorganize their passions into sophisticated public relationscampaigns.

From wearing brightly colored matching T-shirts to draw attentionto their group to crunching numbers on student enrollment andcreating their own boundary recommendations, southern Fairfaxresidents are going to great lengths to sway the School Board.Parents from the Mason Neck area sent each board member a tiny globe,a symbol of the long commutes their children face. (They calculatethat each child will travel 1.3 times the circumference of the Earthon a school bus during their high school careers if they are notincluded in the new, closer school.)

Classes at the new south county school, on the site of the formerD.C. prison in Lorton, will begin in September, making it the first county secondary school to open since 2000. As many as 4,100 childrenwant to attend, school officials say, but it can accommodate only2,500.

Many families say it would mean the end of their children's longcommutes, sometimes 45 or 50 minutes each way on congested roads.Families in South Hunt Valley recently gave board members a colornewsletter billing the south county school as their 'Last Chance fora Community School' that will allow their children to study with thefriends who attend their churches and play in their neighborhoodsports leagues.

Theresa Walker of Lorton Station said that when her family movedto the area about a year ago, she assumed that her son, Devin, 12,would attend the south county schools less than three miles fromtheir home. When she learned that wasn't a done deal, she turned froma self-described 'booster club mom' to neighborhood activist.

'We got fired up,' Walker said. 'We're a very tight family, andeverything is about our son.'

Walker, an operations manager at a Wells Fargo bank in theDistrict, and her husband have gone door-to-door distributing fliersto rally support and sold red 'Lorton Station' T-shirts. She keepsdetailed notes on boundary plans and enrollment data and has takentime off work to share them with other parents.

Because she and her husband both have jobs, Walker said, familytime is especially precious. A closer school would mean more time forvolunteering and easier trips shuttling Devin to sports events ormusic practices. Walker said she also wants the 'comfort' of knowingthat her son is close to home and the camaraderie of running into hisclassmates' parents at the grocery store.

Neil K. Makstein, a Falls Church psychologist, said much of theemotion involved in the boundary hearings stems from busy families'desire to feel like part of a group, whether it's a neighborhood or areligious organization. He said many patients tell him that theyyearn for the kind of close-knit neighborhoods in which they grew up.

'I hear clients say they don't have that for their kids,' Maksteinsaid. 'We're looking for a place to get connected, and a school is aplace to do that.'

Gary Chevalier, director of the school district's Office ofFacilities Planning Services, said his staff crafted recommendedboundaries that include the neighborhoods closest to the new schoolwhile attempting to create an economically diverse student body andrelieving crowding at other high schools.

The district tries to send all students from one middle school tothe same high school so classmates can stay together. When schoolofficials split elementary or middle school attendance areas,Chevalier said, boundary lines are drawn around subdivisions, notthrough them.

Chevalier's office offered four proposals during a series ofpublic workshops in the fall and made changes after hundreds ofparents reacted. Ultimately, the staff proposed a plan that theSchool Board can amend before its vote, scheduled for Jan. 27.

Under the staff plan, Devin Walker would attend the new school.But the Morrisses' three children, and others from their South HuntValley neighborhood, would be sent to Lake Braddock Secondary School,even farther from their home than Lee High School, which teenagers intheir neighborhood now attend. If that happens, Morriss and his wife,Mary Elizabeth, said they will consider moving. They worry that a 45-or 50-minute one-way commute for their children will mean less timefor studies, family time and even sleep -- a difference the couplebelieve could make their children less competitive when it is time togo to college.

'It's been hanging over our heads all fall,' said Mary ElizabethMorriss, who works part time as a nurse, adding that she's hopefulthat the School Board will sympathize with them. 'We just have tokeep banging on the door. I have to maintain hope that they will seethe light and common sense and logic will win.'

Other high schools that could lose some students and gain othersare Hayfield and Edison.

Board member Daniel G. Storck (Mount Vernon), whose districtincludes areas affected by the boundary change, said he has been inclose contact with several neighborhood groups and has been struck bytheir high-level lobbying, which proves that they're paying attentionto details.

'It's just incredible. We have the most incredibly highlyeducated, thorough citizens,' Storck said. 'They know how to makesure their message is heard. They know you have to do more than senda note that says, 'I want my kid to go there.' '

Greg Schuckman, a Lorton Station parent and a lobbyist for theUniversity of Central Florida, has boundary maps on his office wallsand figures that he has spent more than 500 hours trying to getLorton Station students into the south county school. If the SchoolBoard sticks with the recommendation, he said, his efforts will havebeen worthwhile.

Officer Fatally Shot Outside Police Station; Slaying Is 1st in Line of Duty in Fairfax; Gunman, 18, Is Killed After Opening Fire - The Washington Post

A Fairfax County police detective was killed and two officers werewounded yesterday afternoon after a gunman opened fire with high-powered weapons in the parking lot of a police station during a shiftchange, law enforcement officials said.

The gunman, who was awaiting trial on carjacking charges inMontgomery County, was killed during the ensuing shootout withpolice, the officials said.

Police and county officials identified the slain officer asDetective Vicky O. Armel, 40, a nine-year veteran who was assigned tothe Sully District station in Chantilly in western Fairfax where theshooting occurred. Her husband is also a Fairfax detective. Thecouple has two elementary school-aged children, neighbors said.

It was the first fatal shooting of a Fairfax officer in the lineof duty in the department's history.

One of the wounded officers was in critical condition last night,police said. The other was being treated for minor injuries and willbe fine, said Mary Ann Jennings, a police spokeswoman. A civiliansuffered a minor laceration during the gunfight.

Scores of police officers and relatives of the slain and injuredwent to Inova Fairfax Hospital, where Armel and the criticallywounded officer were taken.

'My 1,320 officers, civilian officers and volunteers aregrieving,' a shaken Police Chief David M. Rohrer said. 'We aresupporting the family of the officer who is severely injured and thefamily of the officer who was killed in the line of duty.'

Sources said the gunman was 18-year-old Michael W. Kennedy ofCentreville, who was arrested April 18 by Fairfax police serving awarrant for Montgomery. He had been released from the Montgomery jailabout two weeks ago after posting a $33,000 bond, court records show.

Police Capt. Amy Lubas said the three officers were in the parkinglot of the station when the shooting occurred about 3:30 p.m. Atleast one of the wounded officers returned fire, she said. Rohrersaid he did not know whether the gunman was killed by police or tookhis own life.

Jennings said the incident began when a man with several weaponsapproached a stranger in a pickup in a nearby subdivision. Thestranger managed to flee with his keys. The man then hijacked a vanat gunpoint. That driver also escaped uninjured. The man drove thevan to the Sully station parking lot, got out and apparently crouchedbetween two vehicles. He had one rifle, two handguns and noidentification.

'All information points to the act of a lone, troubled individual -- not a conspiracy, not an act of terrorism,' said Gerald E.Connolly (D), chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.'It would appear that the gunman specifically targeted the police.'

The shooting shut down the busy area near Route 28 in Fairfax'shigh-tech corridor. Businesses and schools were shuttered for hoursas police tried to verify that Kennedy had acted alone. Helicoptershovered overhead, schools were locked down and traffic came to ahalt.

'This is crazy,' said Laurie O'Bryan, who lives near the station.'It's just insane. Nothing like this has ever happened in Fairfax.You'd think this is a safe neighborhood because it's so close to thepolice station.'

Donald Lawson, a network engineer at a Chantilly business, wasdriving past the Sully station on his way home from work about 3:40p.m. when he heard gunshots and something hit his front passengerdoor, he said. His engine shut off. As he tried to restart it, heheard another round of shots, and his passenger side window was hit.

'I hid behind my car. . . . Cops were flying around everywhere,'he said. 'I kind of felt safe behind my truck.' After a few minutes,an officer came over to him, helped him into a police car and drovehim to a corner. He was treated for a cut on his face and called hiswife. 'The Fairfax County police were very professional; they werevery calm,' he said. Police kept his sport-utility vehicle, a FordExplorer, for tests.

Armel's neighbors in Rappahannock County, Va., described her asfun and bubbly and devoted to her family and church.

Tammy Kerr, who lives across the street, said she often baby-sitsArmel's children. 'Vicky would call us and say, 'I'm on a stakeout.Can you come watch the kids?' ' Kerr said. 'Vicky wasn't afraid ofanything.'

Kerr said Armel and her husband -- when they were explainingtheir jobs to the kids -- would say, 'We're going to get the badguys.'

She described Armel as an all-around mom: 'I really admired her.She was a woman who worked hard and loved her kids. I adored her. Iwould have given her mother-of-the-year awards every day.'

Armel often would celebrate with 'French Fridays' -- taking herchildren to McDonald's and treating them to french fries. NeighborStephanie Loos said Armel painted murals in each of her children'srooms -- a safari theme for her son and mermaids for her daughter.

Kerr said Armel's husband also is involved with the children.'He'll be able to step up to the plate, if anyone can,' she said.

The Rev. Mark DeCourcey, associate pastor at Mountain ViewCommunity Church in Culpeper, Va., said Armel was 'a tirelesslaborer' at the church, where she was in a pastoral care group. Hesaid she did a great deal of the thankless behind-the-scenes andadministrative work in the church, which meets at Culpeper CountyHigh School.

The pastoral care group performed Bible study and outreach, whichmeant relationship building and inviting people to attend services.

Kennedy, the shooter, was charged with carjacking April 18 inRockville. Montgomery police said a 33-year-old Germantown man wasdriving out of a parking lot in the 9900 block of Blackwell Road whenhe stopped his vehicle to let Kennedy walk in front. Kennedyapproached the car on the driver's side and, implying he had a gun,told the man to get out.

The victim was allowed to get his belongings from his Toyota4Runner before Kennedy sped away, police said. About 10:30 thatnight, Fairfax police called their counterparts in Montgomery to tellthem that Kennedy had gone to a police station in Fairfax to turnhimself in. It was unclear whether that was the Sully Districtstation.

Kennedy was taken into custody in Fairfax and later transported toMontgomery, where he was charged with carjacking, armed carjackingand theft of more than $500. He was released April 22 after postingthe bond.

His neighbors in Centreville said Kennedy always wore black,military-style clothes and army boots, even in the summer. They saidhe never explained why.

'It's not really a big surprise,' said Katie Palmer, who graduatedlast year from Westfield High School with Kennedy. 'He brought aknife to school once.' Other neighbors said Kennedy was intopaintball.

Palmer and others described Kennedy as standoffish, 'in his ownworld.'

She said that he was 'really, really smart' and that he would helpher with math, science and biology homework. Classmates said hedidn't appear to have many friends.

Palmer said Kennedy often was hassled by security at the schoolbecause of the way he dressed.

Neighbor Sergio Gutierrez, 17, said that Kennedy often was seenwalking around in a heavy army coat and that 'he didn't say nothingto nobody.'

They didn't know what Kennedy had done in the year sincegraduation. Holly Messinger, assistant principal at Westfield High,confirmed that Kennedy had graduated from the school but declined tocomment about him as a student.

Two law enforcement sources, speaking on condition of anonymitybecause the investigation is ongoing, said detectives learned thatKennedy had warned friends that he might attack the police but thatnone of them had alerted authorities. Details of the threat were notknown.

When the $7.5 million Sully District police station opened threeyears ago, it was Fairfax's first new station in 27 years.

The offices of Michael R. Frey, the supervisor who represents theSully District, are also in the 32,300-square-foot station, which hascommunity meeting space. Frey has said Fairfax's Area Agency on Agingoccupies space in the building for computer classes and seniorfitness and nutrition programs. The county recreation department alsouses the building.

The Sully magisterial district includes Centreville, Clifton,Chantilly and Oakton, all suburban enclaves not known for violentcrime.

Yesterday morning, long before the shooting, about 100 people,including many police officers, attended a memorial service at policeheadquarters for Fairfax officers killed in traffic accidents. Someof them were from Sully.

Few People Are Sleeping Through Fairfax's School Schedule Debate - The Washington Post

A 9 o'clock bedtime would be helpful for Lindsey Bush, 16, asophomore at Fairfax High who rises in the dark at 5 a.m. to get toher religion class by 7:20 a.m. But with three hours of AdvancedPlacement history homework, she goes to bed a lot later.

The result: She's tired all the time.

Fairfax County students are known for striving, for loading up onhomework-heavy advanced classes and for pushing themselves in sportsand other activities. Easing the wear and tear on almost 50,000Fairfax teenagers by helping them refuel with an extra hour of sleepis the goal of a five-year effort to push back high school starttimes.

But many teenagers, even if they admit to drifting off in class,are reluctant to change their schedules, even for an extra hour ofsleep. There is only so much time in the day for cherished after-school activities -- a roster that could include swim team,English Honors Society, Science Olympiad, Science Fair, HistoryHonors Society, Model United Nations, junior varsity Math League orall of the above.

The current schedule 'is easier to live with,' said Lindsey, whobalances church activities with homework, her school newspaper andfamily time.

Almost 2,000 parents and some students turned out at sevencommunity meetings across the county last week to register theirconcerns about or support for the initiative, which would alter theschedules for all 169,000 Fairfax students, not just high-schoolers. Results from a school system survey on the proposal willbe released next week, but some teens are speaking out against theplan that is supposed to help them.

Arvin Ahmadi, the student representative on the School Board,reported that, defying all stereotypes of sleep-craving adolescents,a strong majority of the School Advisory Council opposed rearrangingstart times.

The board will take up the issue at a work session next Monday.Several board members said they are likely to delay the decision foranother year or abandon the effort entirely, given the range andcomplexity of concerns that have emerged since the transportationdepartment said in January that it could make the necessary changesin the bus schedule at no additional cost. Opponents have organizedon every side, citing problems with scheduling sports activities,day-care plans, work schedules or traffic.

Quillan Heim, 15, a ninth-grader at Fairfax High, is among theteens who support the change. He said his energy level is lowersince he switched this year from a middle school schedule thatallowed him to sleep an hour longer. He needs that energy topractice the cello and row on the crew team. 'He's way grumpier at 6a.m. than he is at 7 a.m.,' added his mother, Pam Jones, who alsosupports the plan.

Under the proposal, the first bell for most high schools wouldmove to 8:30 from 7:20 a.m. Elementary schools would start between7:50 and 9:25, instead of between 8 and 9:15, and most middleschools would start at 9:40, rather than between 7:20 and 8:05.

Proponents say that the plan needs work but that activities canbe rescheduled and students will be more alert and efficient. Theysay the health benefits outweigh the difficulties, particularlygiven signs of strain that many teens are showing. Thirty-onepercent of teens in a 2008 Fairfax County survey said they hadexperienced depression, a slightly higher rate than the nationalaverage.

'Our expectations are so high, and getting into college is socompetitive and hard,' said Phyllis Payne, co-founder of the parent-led initiative to give teens more sleep. 'If you are well-rested,the chances of you dealing with the stress or the pressure is muchbetter. One night, if you do not sleep well, you are cranky or moreeasily lose your temper or get frustrated. For them, the sleepdeprivation is chronic every single day.'

Helene Emsellem, director of the Center for Sleep and WakeDisorders in Chevy Chase, said research shows that teenagers need atleast 81/2 hours of sleep to be alert and that sleep-deprived teensare less likely to use good judgment, drive safely or succeed inschool.

'The restorative nature of sleep crosses the boundaries of mood,cognition, learning and weight control,' she said.

An Idyllic Marriage Spirals Into Death; Postpartum Despair Blamed in Fairfax - The Washington Post

Eric and Seema Rothstein had such a smooth marriage it made othercouples jealous. They didn't fight. They both enjoyed their jobs,teaching in Fairfax County schools. They were extremely close withtheir families and had plenty of friends, in part through Eric'spreeminence in the local rowing community, family and friends said.

When Seema delivered a daughter Sept. 10, another chapter in theirstorybook life seemed underway. Eric Rothstein, who had never carrieda wallet before, started using one in September so he could carryphotos of his baby.

But the arrival of little Kayla Emilie in their Springfield homesparked an unexpected turn for the Rothsteins. Almost immediately,her family says, Seema began feeling anxious. She couldn't sleep. Shefelt insecure, insufficient. Her parents and in-laws tried toreassure her. Three weeks after the baby's birth, she began seeingpsychiatrists for what the family believes is postpartum depression.

Then, two days after Thanksgiving, the explosion. Fairfax policesay Seema, 5 feet 3 inches tall, picked up a large kitchen knife andplunged it directly into the heart of her husband, a vigorous, 6-foot-3-inch athlete. She next stabbed herself in the stomach, thenwent to the deck at the back of the house and lay down to die. Kaylawas upstairs, undisturbed.

Someone -- the family believes it was Eric -- called 911 but saidnothing. Officers arrived at the home on Shepherd Ridge Court to findthe horrible scene. Police say Seema told an officer she hadinflicted the wound on her husband, who was already dead, andherself. Her own wounds were not fatal. Fairfax prosecutors thencharged her with murder.

In the weeks before the stabbing, Eric's father, HaskellRothstein, had been among those who tried to counsel his daughter-in-law and steer her through the darkness. When neighbors told him therewas trouble with his son, he and his younger son, Mark, began drivingfrom Michigan to Virginia. A cell phone call from Fairfax policelater that night told him the tragic news.

Still, Haskell Rothstein and his son drove straight to Eric's in-laws' home in Fairfax Station, where they have stayed and sufferedtogether. And the Rothsteins are joining with Seema's family insaying that she does not deserve to be prosecuted for murder butinstead needs treatment.

'We have nothing but sympathy for Seema,' Haskell Rothstein saidat his son's memorial service Thursday night, at which more than 500mourners overflowed into the parking lot of a Springfield funeralhome. He said that his daughter-in-law suffered from postpartumdepression, a mood disorder that afflicts 10 percent to 15 percent ofnew mothers, and that 'the blame for [Eric's] loss lies less withSeema than with the medical professionals and institutions thatfailed to serve her.'

Haskell Rothstein even presented a letter to Fairfax prosecutors,asking that no charges be filed against the alleged killer of hisson. 'I feel that Seema was rendered unable to account for heractions,' he wrote.

'My heart goes out to them,' said Deputy Commonwealth's AttorneyRaymond F. Morrogh. 'But I think we have a duty to the victim, andthe public in general, to look at the evidence dispassionately. We'restill in the process of collecting evidence and other information,and the warrant is just the first step in the process.'

After Seema, 32, was released from Inova Fairfax Hospital onWednesday night and taken to the county jail, officials becameconcerned that she might be suicidal. On Thursday, she was taken toCentral State Hospital in Petersburg, Va., a hospital for thementally ill.

Eric Rothstein, 36, dead and cremated. Seema Rothstein in a mentalinstitution. Their family and friends still don't believe it.

The couple met in 1997, when Seema was teaching fourth grade andEric sixth grade at Anthony T. Lane Elementary School in Kingstowne.They married in July 1998 and bought their first house together twomonths later.

Eric was virtually defined by his love of rowing. He turned thecrew program at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science andTechnology, with no financing from the school district, into a localpowerhouse. Along the way, he instilled discipline and respect in hisrowers and co-coaches, for both the sport and each other. With him atevery step, and nearly every regatta, were Seema and their yellowLabrador retriever, Kudra.

'It's a tremendous loss to us,' said Barbara Nelson, an Englishteacher and crew coach at Jefferson. 'We know Seema. We love Seema.We know what a great relationship they had.'

As many memorable coaches do, Eric became involved in hisathletes' lives away from the sport. He frequently had rowers over towatch a football game or play John Madden football on hisPlayStation, former crew member Ray Hohenstein said. 'I thought theywere a really loving couple,' Hohenstein said. 'Seema was so eager tomake sure everyone felt at home whenever we went over to theirhouse.'

Postpartum depression, and its more severe variation, postpartumpsychosis, can strike any new mother any time up to a year afterbirth, experts said. The depression symptoms typically include sleepdisturbances, panic attacks, frequent crying, intense irritabilityand feelings of being overwhelmed, according to Sonia Murdock,president of the Postpartum Support International network.

With the rarer postpartum psychosis, women may hallucinate, havedelusional thoughts and lose contact with reality. Episodes ofviolence, such as Seema Rothstein's or the killing of five childrenin Texas by Andrea Yates, are rarer still, Murdock said.

Medication and psychotherapy can be used to control postpartumdepression, Murdock said. Sometimes, hospitalization is needed. 'Andin this day of managed care,' Murdock said, 'women who should behospitalized aren't hospitalized or are not kept in long enough. It'sso important to find professionals where this is their area ofexpertise.'

Haskell Rothstein said at his son's memorial service that Seemasaw five psychiatrists in seven weeks and was taking a variety ofmedications. But she complained that the drugs didn't make her feelbetter, that she wasn't improving, he said. Police believe Seema washospitalized for a short time at Dominion Hospital, a mental healthfacility near Falls Church, but discharged before Thanksgiving.

Haskell Rothstein also said he could not fathom what rage couldhave driven small, shy Seema to stab big, athletic Eric.

Last month, friends of Seema tried to put her in touch withSharmine Narwani, a District woman who said she endured severepostpartum depression.

Women who have suffered from postpartum depression say many peopledon't appreciate the syndrome's crushing grip. 'I had terrible panicattacks,' Narwani said. 'Many, many times I thought how great it'd bewithout my child around. How much better it'd be if I wasn't here.'

Narwani said that after the birth of her child, she not only hadpanic attacks but also was afraid to be alone with her baby. Still,hospital officials sent her home. She said that once she found apsychiatrist with experience, who prescribed proper medication, sheimproved dramatically within a week.

Fairfax Briefs - The Washington Post

Metro's first public hearing on its proposed 15-cent fareincrease will be held March 17 in Fairfax County, transit officialssaid.

The 7 p.m. hearing is the first of nine throughout the region on aplan to raise the minimum cost of a rail or bus trip from $1.20 to$1.35. It will be at the South County Center in Conference Room 221,8350 Richmond Hwy. (Route 1), Alexandria. Parking fees could alsorise as much as $2.30 a day beginning July 1.

Riders who wish to speak are asked to furnish their name, address,telephone number and organization affiliation, if any, to: HaroldBartlett, secretary, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority,600 Fifth Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001. The fax number is 202-962-1133.

If unable to attend, riders can mail statements, which must bereceived by the close of business March 30, to Bartlett at the samestreet address, or send them by e-mail to public-hearing-testimony@wmata.com.

The Fairfax County Department of Community and Recreation Serviceswill hold a series of public meetings to get feedback on a proposalto charge youth sports leagues $3 an hour for using athletic fieldsand gymnasiums.

The plan, part of the county's proposed 2005 budget, is intendedto raise about $1.7 million a year to offset the cost of maintainingballfields and gyms. Sports league officials say the fee would bepassed on to parents.

All meetings listed below are from 7 to 9 p.m.

March 15, South County Center, 8350 Richmond Hwy. (Route 1), Room221, Alexandria.

March 16, Baileys Community Center, 5920 Summers Lane, FallsChurch.

March 22, Reston Teen Center gymnasium, 12196 Sunset Hills Rd.

March 24, county Government Center, Conference Rooms 2 and 3,12000 Government Center Pkwy.

For more information, call 703-324-5641 or go towww.co.fairfax.va.us/rec.

Fairfax City Manager Bob Sisson is scheduled to present theproposed city budget at 7 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 10455 ArmstrongSt. The 2005 budget year starts July 1. The average residential homeassessment increased by 13 percent this year, signaling higherproperty taxes.

A public hearing on the budget proposal is set for 7 p.m. March 30at Daniels Run Elementary School, 3705 Old Lee Hwy.

Copies of the budget will be available after Tuesday. To obtain acopy or for more information, call 703-385-7870.

The county Park Authority will hold a workshop at 7 p.m. March 16at Edison High School to hear ideas from the public about futuredevelopment of Lee District Park.

Officials are considering several options, including lighting oneor more of Lee's athletic fields to extend their availability. Themeeting is the first step in the planning process and will befollowed by a public hearing to consider a draft plan that is stillbeing developed.

The 138-acre park is at 6601 Telegraph Rd. in the Alexandria area.Edison High is at 5801 Franconia Rd.; the meeting is in the lecturehall. For more information, call 703-324-8662.

The Groveton Elementary School community will hold a forum aboutthe effects of the federal No Child Left Behind Act at 3 p.m. Sundayat the school.

After being given an overview of the law, which was designed toimprove student achievement, parents will break into small groups forspeakers of English or Spanish and staff members will offer ways tohelp students in reading and math.

Free materials will be provided. Groveton is at 6900 Harrison Lanein the Alexandria section. For more information, call 703-718-8000.

A guide to more than 600 human services organizations in the areais now available on the Internet, Fairfax officials said.

The county's Human Services Resource Guide is atwww.fairfaxcounty.gov/rim. The guide is maintained by social workerswho research, classify, catalogue and update the data.

The guide contains such information as the services anorganization provides, how to access the services, eligibilitycriteria, hours and locations, languages spoken by staff members,income guidelines and how to contact the organization. Users cansearch by service type or organization name.

Staff members are available to train community groups andassociations on how to use the resource guide. To schedule trainingor for more information, call 703-533-5718.

Vienna residents concerned about traffic and pedestrianconditions in the Church Street corridor are invited to a meeting at8 p.m. March 30 at Town Hall.

The town's Transportation Safety Commission is sponsoring thesession to hear about the area from residents. Particular problemsinclude congestion around Church Street and Lawyers Road andpedestrian safety in the commercial section of Church and around thepost office.

Residents who cannot attend are asked to send their comments inwriting, via e-mail to pio@ci.vienna.va.us or by mail to theTransportation Safety Com- mission, c/o Vienna Town Hall, 127 CenterSt. S., Vienna, Va. 22180-5799.

The county School Board has scheduled three meetings next week forpublic feedback on the search for a new superintendent to replaceDaniel A. Domenech.

The 8 p.m. meetings are Monday at Lee High School, 6540 FranconiaRd., Springfield; Tuesday at Jackson Middle School, 3020 Gallows Rd.,Falls Church; and Wednesday at Chantilly High School, 4201Stringfellow Rd.

Representatives from Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates, a firmhired by the School Board to handle the superintendent search, willrecord comments at the meetings. School Board members will notattend.

The private search firm will present a report on its findings fromthe community at a March 15 School Board work session.

The draft profile for the new superintendent can be seen atwww.fcps.edu/news/suptsearch/profile.htm.

About 400 middle school-age girls are planning to attend theannual Future Professional Middle School Girls Conference on Saturdayat Jackson Middle School in Falls Church, organizers said.

The students -- from schools in Fairfax, Alexandria, Arlington andFalls Church will participate in workshops on self-defense, teambuilding, interviewing skills and preparing for college. They willhear more than 30 professional women discuss their careers.

Virginia's secretary of education, Belle S. Wheelan, will give theclosing speech, and Isis Castro, former chairman and current memberof the Fairfax County School Board, will be the keynote speaker and aworkshop participant.

Each middle school will send 10 girls chosen by their principalsand guidance counselors.

The conference is sponsored by the Northern Virginia Online Branchof the American Association of University Women, the middle schoolprincipals' associations of Fairfax County public schools, AlexandriaCity public schools, the Northern Virginia chapter of Phi Delta Kappaand the Beta Zeta and Alexandria chapters of Alpha Delta Kappa.

Jackson is at 3020 Gallows Rd., Falls Church.

The county Park Authority is scheduled to begin improvements atJefferson District Park in Falls Church in March, officials said.

Workers will replace lighting in four tennis courts and other parkareas. The project, funded by a 1998 bond sale approved by voters, isscheduled to be completed in June.

The park is at 7900 Lee Hwy., Falls Church. For more information,call 703-324-8575.

The Starbucks Foundation has awarded the county library foundationa $10,000 grant to help continue its 'Motheread/ Fatheread' literacyoutreach program.

Launched in 2001, the program helps ensure that children from low-income families and those with limited English skills develop thereading skills necessary for entrance into kindergarten.

Since the program's inception, almost 5,000 children and more than3,400 parents and guardians have been helped.

In addition, the participants have been given more than 5,400books.

The grant will allow the foundation to hire two Spanish-speakinginterns who will help expand the program's summer service sites,officials said.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Maraniss, author of 'TheyMarched Into Sunlight: War and Peace, Vietnam and America, October1967,' will kick off the Fairfax County public library system'sPerspectives series at 7:30 p.m. Monday at the Alden Theatre.

In his book, Maraniss, a Washington Post reporter, explores twoevents that happened in October 1967 -- the ambush of the Black Lionsbattalion of the Army's First Infantry Division in Vietnam and anantiwar protest that turned violent at the University of Wisconsin.

The event is free, but tickets will be available on a first-come,first-served basis beginning at 6:30 p.m. The theater is in theMcLean Community Center, 1234 Ingleside Ave. For more information,call 703-790-0123.

The series continues April 28 with syndicated columnist LindaChavez and concludes on May 17 with Pulitzer Prize-winner DavidBroder.

The Dulles Expo & Conference Center in Chantilly is hosting whatthe center calls the region's first equine exposition March 19through 21.

The event will include a variety of demonstrations and clinicsincluding loading and trailering a horse, horse nutrition, dealingwith aging horses, achieving successful fitness levels, farm andfield management, competing, tack, breeding and technology. A 'horseownership 101' course will also be offered for people thinking aboutbuying a horse.

Hours are noon to 9 p.m. March 19, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. March 20 and10 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 21.

The Expo Center is at 4368 Chantilly Center, off Route 28. Formore information, call 410-321-9559 or visit www.BlueRibbonShows.com.

The Children's Friendship Project for Northern Ireland will beholding its annual auction and St. Patrick's Day party at 6:30 p.m.March 13 at the Washington Dulles Airport Marriott.

The organization raises money to bring teenagers from NorthernIreland to the United States each summer for four weeks of team-building seminars and Capitol Hill events.

The teenagers come from Catholic and Protestant families and arepaired in a neutral environment in U.S. homes in an effort to promoteunderstanding and reduce conflict between the two groups.

The evening will include dinner, live entertainment, Irish dancingand a silent auction.

The cost is $45 a person. The hotel is at 45020 Aviation Dr. Formore information, call 703-568-0433 or visit www.cfpni.org.

The Old Firehouse Teen Center in McLean is sponsoring a tea dancefor seniors and teenagers from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday at the center.

The free dance is designed to foster intergenerationalcommunication, as high school students and senior citizens worktogether to learn classic dance steps.

The center is a satellite program of the McLean Community Center.Light refreshments will be served. Students can earn communityservice hours through this activity.

The center is at 1440 Chain Bridge Rd.

For more information, call 703-448-8336 or visitwww.mcleancenter.org.