12-07-07 WEBSITEONLY.qxd - The Metro Herald

HOLIDAY HAPPENINGS 2007
December 7, 2007
ALEXANDRIA
ALEXANDRIA SYMPHONY
HOLIDAY CONCERT
The Alexandria Symphony Orchestra,
led by Maestro Kim
Allen Kluge, is pleased to perform
its annual Holiday Concert on
Sunday, December 9, 2007 at
3:00pm. Presented at the Trinity
United Methodist Church located at
2911 Cameron Mills Road, Alexandria,
VA, concert goers can sing-along
to their favorite carols and seasonal
songs. Tickets are $25 and can be
found online at www.alexsym.org or
via telephone at 703-548-0885.
The ASO will be joined by Trinity
United Methodist Choir, Emmanuel
Choirs, and Alexandria Choral Society’s
Children’s Choir to make this a
truly unique holiday experience. Following
the concert, a reception will be
held in Parish Hall at 4:00pm.
Concert goers are asked to bring a
pair of gloves or mittens for donation
to the Campagna Center, an organization
which draws together the resources
of the Alexandria community
to strengthen families and provide programs
that help children become caring,
productive adults.
While the Holiday Concert rounds
out ASO performances for 2007, the
New Year brings new performances,
collaborations, and additions to the
Symphony’s programming. The ASO
is pleased to announce new Sunday
matinees for each of its spring performances,
allowing patrons more
flexibility in choosing performance
times to match their lifestyles. Moreover,
youth tickets (ages 8-18) for
these performances will be only $5.
The spring season will consist of four
more performances: Euphoria featuring
BosmaDance and The Alexandria
Performing Arts Association in February,
Rapture with Bowen McCauley
Dance and The Alexandria Choral Society
in March, and Bliss featuring cellist
Lynn Harrell, The Metropolitan
Chorus, and Signature Heritage
Chorale in April. Finally, the ASO sails
into summer with its annual Children’s
Festival in June featuring music from
“The Pirates of the Caribbean.”
Founded in 1954, the Alexandria
Symphony Orchestra is Northern Virginia’s
premiere fully professional orchestra.
Its mission is to provide quality,
affordable and accessible music in
the greater Metropolitan area of Northern
Virginia through its highly respected,
innovative, professional performances
and programming. To foster
a life-long appreciation of symphonic
music, the Alexandria Symphony Orchestra
is dedicated to strengthening
arts education in schools.
ALEXANDRIA JAYCEES’
CHRISTMAS TREE SALES
BENEFIT COMMUNITY
Make your Christmas tree
more meaningful by purchasing
it for a good cause!
The Alexandria Jaycees will again sell
Christmas trees this season, with proceeds
to benefit the chapter’s projects.
Each year, the Alexandria Jaycees sell
top-quality trees to the community
which helps to support the Holiday
Shopping Tour for underprivileged
kids. The Holiday Shopping Tour
gives area kids a fun shopping day—
funds provided and pizza party to follow
so they may purchase gifts for
their families. This year’s event is
Dec. 8 at Target of Potomac Yards.
This year’s lot will remain open
until all the trees are sold. The location
is 5001 Eisenhower Avenue in the Victory
Center parking lot, and will run
Monday-Friday, 6:00–8:00PM and
Saturday/Sunday, 9:00AM–5:00PM.
The tree lot features a nice variety of
trees, including Canaan Firs, Douglas
Firs, Fraser Firs, and Scotch Pines in
heights from 4-10 feet with prices from
$35-$70. There is also a selection of
wreaths, garland, and tree stands.
For more details or for membership
information, call the Jaycees’ 24-hour
recorded event line: (703) 866-7171
or go to www.alexjaycees.org.
ANNAPOLIS
BALLET THEATRE OF
MARYLAND PRESENTS
THE CASE OF THE
MISSING NUTCRACKER
The Ballet Theatre of Maryland
takes their original Nutcracker
tale and turns it into a funfilled,
family “mystery theatre whodunit’
adventure. The story picks up
after the special holiday party at the
Stahlbaum home.
BTM’s Clara, Rat Queen, Nutcracker,
courtesy of BTM
Show takes place on Saturday, December
15 at 7PM in the Maryland
Hall for the Creative Arts located at
801 Chase Street, Annapolis, MD.
Ticket Information: Maryland Hall
Box Office at 410-280-5640 or go to
www.marylandhall.org. Prices (including
$3 processing fee): Adults
$43, Seniors (65 and older) $36, Students
(11 and older with valid ID) $23,
Children (10 and under) $18
ARLINGTON
HOLIDAY EVENT AT
ARLINGTON HOUSE
The National Park Service will
host a special program entitled
“December 1860: The Last
Christmas” at Arlington House, The
Robert E. Lee Memorial, on Sunday,
December 9, 2007, from 2:00-4:00
p.m. The public is invited to attend
this free event with no reservations
necessary.
Awide variety of activities will be
available at the event. Ranger-led talks
will be held at 2:00p.m. and 3:00p.m.
about the Lee family’s last Christmas
at Arlington in December 1860. After
each talk, the Madrigal Singers of
Yorktown High School will perform
period Christmas songs. Visitors will
be able to admire decorations in the
Center Hall.
In addition, a special postmark,
“Lee’s Last Christmas,” will be available
at the event through a temporary
United States Post Office Station inside
the mansion. This postmark was
created as part of the year-long commemoration
of the bicentennial of
Lee’s birth. Visitors are invited to receive
this special cancellation on any
document with a valid postage stamp
including cachets (pre-stamped/
franked postcards or envelopes) or on
holiday mail. Cachets will be available
for sale at the event.
Arlington House is located within
Arlington National Cemetery. Open
every day from 9:30a.m. to 4:30p.m.,
Arlington House, The Robert E. Lee
Memorial is accessible by Metro on
the Blue Line at the Arlington National
Cemetery stop. A 15-minute, vigorous
uphill walk through the Cemetery’s
North Gate brings you to Arlington
House. Arlington House is also accessible
from the George Washington
Memorial Parkway. Park at the Arlington
National Cemetery, and walk or
take the Tourmobile shuttle bus. Admission
to Arlington House is free.
However, there is a charge for parking
and the Tourmobile.
For general information about Arlington
House, The Robert E. Lee
Memorial, call 703-235-1530 or visit
www.nps.gov/arho.
CASA
NO HOME FOR THE
HOLIDAYS
AFORMER FOSTER
YOUTH’S EXPERIENCE
By Amanda D. Johnson
Amanda D. Johnson
The holiday season is quickly approaching
and the feeling of joy
and celebration that accompany
it is in the air. This is the time of year
when many people look forward to
spending time with family and friends.
Schools across the country are closing
their doors and children are excited
about having time off from school to
enjoy the season. I remember being one
of those excited children growing up
and looking forward to the “joyful”
holidays and not having to go to school.
I knew that it meant it was closer to
Thanksgiving and the time when
“Santa Claus was coming to town.” I
could not wait until we were finally
“free” for a couple of weeks to enjoy
our special times with loved ones. That
however, was before I entered the foster
care system at the age of 14.
Now, as a sophomore in college,
you would think that I, like many other
students, would have that same excitement
as I did when I was younger. One
of the perks of being in college is that
you have even longer breaks for the
holidays—often times an entire month
off from school. Colleges and universities
across the country lock their dorms
and require that all students vacate the
buildings and head home for Thanksgiving
and winter break. But what happens
to students like me who have recently
transitioned out of the foster
care system and the dorm that we currently
reside in for school is actually
our only home What if you have “no
home for the holidays” Where and
with whom are you going to spend the
time when you have no real family
who is waiting for you to come home
Where will you put all of your belongings
Unfortunately, these are questions
I had to ask myself during last
year’s holiday season and the same
questions I wonder about today.
When I started college, I began to
live my life as an emancipated or agedout
foster youth as we are sometimes
called. I was so excited about overcoming
the odds and continuing my
education to show myself and others
who felt I would never make it, how
far I had come over the last few years
in spite of my circumstances. I settled
into my dorm room on campus and finally
felt that I had a “place of my
own.” As the school year progressed
and the holiday season approached,
one thing I did not consider was that I
would have to leave my “home” for a
few weeks during winter break and
find a place to live in the interim. Prior
to going to college, I would spend the
holidays in the various foster homes I
lived in throughout my years in the
system, but now that I was on my own,
where was I to go What was I to do
Every time I thought about those questions
it brought up the reality that I’ve
been trying to hide for so long—I don’t
have a family, it’s only me! And this is
how it’s going to be for the rest of my
time in college.
Unfortunately, I am not the only
former foster youth who has had to ask
these questions. Each year, more than
20,000 young Americans “age-out” of
foster care, most at the age of 18 and
without the appropriate resources,
skills or options they need to live on
their own. Not all of these youth will
have to wonder where they will spend
the holidays, but there are many other
questions they have to ask and challenges
they face as they enter the “real
world.”
While you may not be able to open
your home during the holidays to an
aged-out foster youth like me, there are
many ways that you can get involved
to make a difference in the lives of
children and youth in care. One way is
to become a Court Appointed Special
Advocate or CASA volunteer. They are
called volunteer guardians ad litem in
some states. These volunteers are
everyday heroes who stand up and advocate
for children and youth who are
in the child welfare system as a result
of alleged abuse and or neglect. They
are trained and appointed by a judge to
serve as the eyes and ears of the court
during a child’s or family or sibling
group’s case to provide counsel as to
what is in the best interest of the
child/children. The ultimate goal for a
CASA volunteer is to find a safe, permanent
and loving home for a child. I
unfortunately did not have a CASA
volunteer when I was in foster care, but
I have known other youth who have
and they have truly made a difference.
Had I had someone to speak up and advocate
for me in court, perhaps I may
not be asking some of the questions I
am today.
I still have not determined where I
will spend this holiday season, but
more than likely I will house-hop just
as I did last year with friends and other
people I know. Again, it is just one of
the realities that I face as an emancipated
foster youth. So often we don’t
think about issues unless they are ones
that hit homefor us. Aging out of foster
care can be filled with many challenges
people never even consider.
While I am not “making a list and
checking it twice” this holiday season,
one holiday wish is being granted by
knowing that I helped raise awareness
on this issue of children and youth in
foster care that currently impacts more
than 500,000 children in the United
States. Not only have I raised awareness,
but I have also provided information
on a great way for YOU to help
make a life-long impact in the life of a
child—by becoming a CASA volunteer.
Your involvement could help find
a home for a child who is currently in
the system so that when they do attend
college in the future, they will have a
safe and permanent home with a loving
family with whom to spend the holidays.
For that reason alone, it truly is
“the season to be jolly.”
To learn more about CASA and
volunteer guardians ad litem and how
you can make a difference in a child’s
life, contact a CASA or guardian ad
litem program in your community. Call
1-888-805-8457 for more information
or visit the National CASAAssociation
online at www.nationalcasa.org.
Amanda D. Johnson is currently a
sophomore at Savannah State University
in Savannah, GA. She is majoring
in criminal justice and plans to become
a prosecuting attorney and ultimately a
judge in the future.
FAIRFAX
HUNTER MILL DISTRICT
WINTER COAT CLOSET
The sixth annual Hunter Mill
District Coat Closet for adults
and children in need of winter
coats is now open. The Coat Closet,
co-sponsored with Reston Interfaith,
opened on Nov. 13, for its sixth year of
helping area residents stay warm. The
Coat Closet will be accepting coat donations
for adults and children at the
North County Governmental Center,
12000 Bowman Towne Drive, Reston,
on the following days through March
15, 2008:
• Tuesdays from 10a.m. to noon.
• Thursdays from 5 to 8p.m.
• Saturdays from 10a.m. to 1p.m.
Donations of winter coats are tax
deductible and receipts are available.
It is asked that donations be new or
gently used (in good condition and dry
cleaned). Both child and adult sizes are
needed ‰ extra large sizes are especially
appreciated. Volunteers are
needed to assist clients in selecting
coats, greet donors and sort donations.
Last year approximately 5,000
coats were given away. “The Coat
Closet reflects two important things
about the community: first, the willingness
to recognize a need and second,
the generosity in responding to
that need,” said Hunter Mill District
Supervisor Catherine Hudgins. “They
both are a reflection of being part of a
great community.”
For more information, contact Martin
Taylor in the Hunter Mill District
Supervisor’s Office, 703-478-0283,
TTY 711.
MCC DECEMBER CALENDAR
No Frills New York Day Trip—
Saturday, Dec. 8, 2007—$91 per person/$86
McLean district residents
Continued on page 11
10 THE METRO HERALD