Feature

Military communications app to roll out new feature to help increase retainment

By Mavis Chan

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn. 

The Arlington-based mobile app Sandboxx plans to roll out a new chatroom feature for military recruits and their families, in an attempt to increase communication and minimize dropouts.

Sandboxx plans to introduce “Muster” within a month.

The chatroom, which aims to mimic Slack, is for individual military recruiting stations for recruiters and new recruits in the delayed entry program, Sam Meek, app founder and veteran, told ARLnow.

The goal of Muster is to make sure that its users would be “getting that comradery experience in our military journey before basic training,” Meek said. Moreover, this new feature aims to help military recruiters measure the engagement of recruits in those programs.

Sandboxx “Muster” mobile app (courtesy Sandboxx)

The mobile app, profiled by ARLnow in 2016, is a communications app that lets family and friends write and send letters to their loved ones in basic training, as well as allowing military members to connect with other units.

Other recently added features include the digital wallet. That addition allows military members to receive gift cards from relatives and friends for purchases at the military exchange stores during basic training and beyond.

The new feature is an attempt to bring back the fellowship among new recruits that diminished during the pandemic.

Prior to Covid hitting, “a lot of our folks in the recruiting stations would get together once a week or once a month, and they work out and they talk about the ethos of the military journey,” Meek said.

However, once the pandemic arrived, those meetings disappeared. “Sandboxx is bringing back this kind of digital comradery,” he said. The new feature would also allow families and friends of each recruit to form a chat group in the app, where Sandboxx would upload information about the military.

“Not only can [users] read that, but they can communicate it and talk about it directly in their Muster chat,” Meek added.

Keeping new recruits engaged and reducing dropout rates are major goals for Sandboxx.

“One of the things we’re doing is making sure that we can keep really high engagement and we can help those recruiters keep those young 18-year-old and 19-year-old men and women in the delayed entry program and make sure they shift to basic training,” Meek said.

He added that preventing recruits from dropping out is “the biggest uphill battle” military recruiters are facing currently. Recruitment is also another challenge due to the pandemic and high employment rates.

Currently, the U.S. military is not recruiting enough people into most of its service branches. The Department of Defense has only attracted a total rate of 85% recruits across the Army, Navy, the Marine Corps, Air Force and Space Force in fiscal year 2022.

Sandboxx is expected to keep up the new service member’s interest in the military by communicating with each recruit’s family and friends about benefits of joining the military.

“When that individual, if they do get cold feet and they start to get a little nervous about the military journey, the friends and family around them can assure them that this was a fabulous decision,” Meek said.

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Rosslyn-based startup puts interior design at homeowners’ fingertips

By Brandi Bottalico

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn.

A Rosslyn-based online interior design startup is celebrating one year and more than 100 projects.

Deazly, launched in July 2021, brings professional design to homeowners in an online design studio. The company matches homeowners looking to renovate their kitchen or bathrooms with professional designers, who work with them to create 3D concepts of the space for a flat fee.

Homeowners can then see how their room will look before committing to a project.

“For most homeowners, hiring an interior designer can feel intimidating,” CEO and Founder Ketan Doiphode, a licensed architect, said in a news release. “It is a difficult process to navigate.”

So, he said he built Deazly to bridge the knowledge gap on the homeowner side and technological gap on the design side. His goal is to provide affordable, hassle-free design services. And for designers, it’s an opportunity to work 100% remotely.

Deazly clients tend to be 30 to 45 years old, tech-savvy and want good design completed at a fast pace, Doiphode said. And 60% of the company’s work comes directly from contractor partners and remodeling companies, the release said.

Contractors have a competitive advantage by having a design partner.

“The Deazly process provides the consultation needed to work through style preferences and functional requirements,” Doiphode said. “Highly realistic 3D designs and a product list ensure the homeowner and contractor can work together to make the design of these high-use spaces a reality.”

Ketan Doiphode, founder of Deazly (courtesy of Deazly)

While there are other e-design businesses, Deazly specializes in kitchens and bathrooms — both generally complex renovation projects that greatly contribute to resale value of homes. When the startup first launched, it offered just bathroom design but in January, the company added kitchen design services, as well.

Deazly’s flat fee structure, listed on its website as a range between $700 to $2,300 based on the extent of services, is something the company says sets it apart from traditional designers’ fees.

The Deazly team has seven U.S.-based interior designers and eight support team members in India, the release said.

“I see Deazly as an example of the modern workforce,” says Doiphode. “Designers often work long hours at firms and the conceptual, more creative part of the design process is led by directors and principals. At Deazly, the designers are involved in the visual and creative aspects. The 100% virtual team structure allows designers to create a flexible schedule. I can match homeowners with the right designer based on the designer’s availability.”

Doiphode was inspired to start the company from his 18 years of architecture and project management experience. He worked for the brand design team at Marriott International, where he worked on lifestyle brands that included Delta Hotels, Sheraton, Marriott Hotels, Aloft, and AC hotels. He has also worked as an interior architect for the firms SOM and Forrest Perkins.

Doiphode hopes to grow the Deazly design team and is working on a new version of the website that will add detailed project milestones and a two-way communication platform for homeowners’ remodeling and renovation process.

Arlington ‘newbie’ discovers life’s simple pleasures through popular Facebook group

By Pia Kramer
Marc and Gary Shulman (staff photo by Pia Kramer)

Gary Shulman has only lived in Arlington for about three months but has created a popular Facebook group all about the warm and wonderful feelings the county evokes.

Shulman, a retired early education specialist and published poet, was already using his outreach and advocacy skills to connect with Arlington residents in the Facebook group, Arlington Neighbors Helping Each Other Through COVID-19 after he moved to Rosslyn in April.

Without even realizing it, that page became the “Gary Shulman Show,” he said, where he would post all of his and his partner Marc’s adventures. The intention of the page was not for it to become the “blog” of one user. So, others encouraged Shulman to begin a new Facebook page — a page that could remind Arlingtonians what makes the county special.

He started Arlington Through the Eyes of a Newbie on May 13 and gained more than 600 followers within the first day. Now, he has over 700 members that follow his and Marc’s day-to-day life, as well as share helpful tips and suggestions. Shulman and Marc have been able to discover nitty-gritty information — where the best dermatologist is, allergist, dentist, even barbershop.

As he’s explored Arlington, members of the group have recognized him, as if he’s a local celebrity. Some stop and take photos with him to share on Facebook.

“There is a wonderful and caring network [in Arlington] and in many ways, reminds me of my early days in East NY and Canarsie Brooklyn where a sense of community was in every fiber of every neighbor. They all cared,” Shulman posted on his personal Facebook account.

Arlington Neighborhood (courtesy of Gary Shulman/Facebook)

Shulman always fantasized about living in Mayberry, the setting of “The Andy Griffith Show,” where people care about each other, garden, have beautiful homes, and enjoy the simple pleasures of life, he told ARLnow. His Facebook page reminds Arlingtonians to look on the ground and take in their (and others’) neighborhoods, places they pass daily.

He and Marc enjoy trying new restaurants, like Brass Rabbit, and Guajillo, where a post shows them trying out one of its “sangritas.” They also like finding beautiful parks and neighborhoods like Bon Air Memorial Rose Garden and Lyon Village and meeting new friends (especially dogs). Shulman sometimes shares some of his published poems.

Marc enjoying a Sangrita at Guajillo (courtesy of Gary Shulman/Facebook)

Shulman and Marc had only moved to Arlington a month before he started his Facebook group. They spent two years and eight months in Palm Springs, where they had originally thought they’d spend retirement.

However sitting in their Palm Springs home, outside temperatures reaching 120 degrees with 0% precipitation, the COVID-19 pandemic trapped Shulman and Marc inside.

“When it’s 120 degrees, you can’t go any place — you’re a prisoner,” said Shulman. “Something was happening to my mental health. Covid happened, and then everything closed down.”

Since moving to Arlington, they’ve been able to get out and about.

It’s no doubt that Shulman’s “fans” know him and Marc to be walkers. Most of his posts begin with some form of “a stroll through…,” “our goal was to walk…,” or “just a short 3 miler today… .” Shulman explained that walking is good for his health and redirects his brain.

As he walks, he appreciates the beauty of people’s gardens and neighborhood homes. He stops and smells the roses. Talking with ARLnow, Shulman emphasized, “the small things are the important things.”

Bon Air Memorial Rose Garden (courtesy of Gary Shulman/Facebook)

Now, after making a move from Rosslyn to their Ballston apartment in June, Shulman sees his Facebook page as a way to showcase how wonderful Arlington is and bring Arlingtonians together. It is a mix of Brooklyn, New York, and Palm Springs, California, with a close community and liveable climate.

Shulman and Marc hope “people will get off their behinds to start walking,” Shulman says. “Just learn and appreciate what Arlington has to offer.”

‘Red Hot’ local startups spotlighted during event in Rosslyn

By Mavis Chan

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn. 

Dozens of tech startups in the D.C. region were named “Red Hot Companies” at an event in Rosslyn last week.

During the two-hour DCA Live event, representatives from 41 startups nominated by the tech community as companies on the rise mingled with potential investors from banks, venture capital firms, nonprofits and others while enjoying drinks and various refreshments. The event was held at the Sands Capital office at 1000 Wilson Blvd.

DCA Live founder Doug Anderson gave each of the companies honored a framed certificate during a short award ceremony.

“This region has incredible talent, entrepreneurship and innovation, and I love how Doug is starting to galvanize it post-Covid,” said Scott Frederick, the managing partner of Sands Capital, in a speech. “It’s enormously important what he’s doing.”

Companies on the “Red Hot Companies” list in a group photo at the DCA Live event (staff photo by Mavis Chan)

Participants at the event said they enjoyed the networking opportunities it offered. Jeannie Plew, of SemaConnect, said she hoped to rub elbows with industry and technology leaders to learn best practices.

SemaConnect is a Maryland-based electric vehicle charging company that was recently acquired by Blink Charging for $200 million in February. This is the startup’s first time being on the Red Hot Companies list.

“I think it’s exciting because we are a red hot company, we’ve experienced high growth in the past 13 months,” Plew said.

Jennifer O’Daniel, a senior director at the nonprofit seed and early-stage investment fund Virginia Venture Partners of the Commonwealth’s Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation, believed the event was “a great place to meet entrepreneurs.” She was a member of the host committee for the event.

Meanwhile, her organization has also invested in three of this year’s Red Hot Companies — the Ballston-based food catering service HUNGRY, the Ballston-based restaurant management software company MarginEdge and Crystal City-based customer service management software ChurnZero. Her organization specializes in investing in technology, life science and cleantech companies.

O’Daniel characterized the three startups as “tentpole companies,” which she described as companies that could “create wealth amongst its employees” and “start additional startups.”

People who went to work for startups at an early stage might later have the means, desire and managerial know-how to start their own venture, O’Daniel noted, thus helping to spur on “the next generation of startup companies.”

The event also attracted non-technology startups. Michael Gavin, co-founder of a new D.C.-based advertisement agency Uniic Marketing Solutions, said he was there for the networking opportunities.

Gavin said his company works with startups that, despite being technology-forward, often find out about the agency through decidedly old-fashioned (but effective) means: personal connections.

“Most of our clients so far — we have five within the year — they’ve all come from word of mouth,” he said. “If we can just carry that on, then we’re pretty much set.”

Arlington’s top prosecutor sticks to reforms despite crime concerns

By Mavis Chan
Scene of attempted bank robbery at 4075 Wilson Blvd (staff photo)

From Philadelphia to Los Angeles to nearby Fairfax County, and here in Arlington, prosecutors running on criminal justice reform platforms were elected in a wave.

But since they’ve taken office, some have questioned whether their approach to crime is too soft. A recall election in San Francisco ousted its chief prosecutor, and last year, Arlington’s Commonwealth’s Attorney Parisa Dehghani-Tafti also faced a recall campaign, though it never seriously threatened her tenure in office.

Since she took office in January 2020, some types of crime have increased. At the same time, the pandemic pushed her, defense attorneys and the sheriff’s office to reduce the number of people jailed, and staffing shortages led to a cut in some police department services, such as follow-up investigations on property crimes it deemed unsolvable.

Dehghani-Tafti tells ARLnow that when crime is up, the “tough-on-crime crowd” says to “be tougher” and when it’s down, they say to keep jailing people because “it’s working.” But she believes progressive policies and expanding diversion programs for nonviolent offenders can better help them stay on the right side of the law.

She emphasized that her office takes violent crime seriously. The violent crime rate in Arlington was below the state and national averages in 2021. Meanwhile, police officers working with Dehghani-Tafti generally approve of the way her office pursues violent crime charges, Arlington Police Beneficiary Association President Rich Conigliaro tells ARLnow.

Fewer prosecutions of nonviolent crimes 

Although the police don’t believe Arlington has a major crime issue, the department has seen more crime sprees in the last few years, Conigliaro said. There was an overall 8.5% increase in property crime in 2021 compared to 2019, according to ACPD’s annual report.

“Group A” rates of property crime (via ACPD)

Police have dealt with cases where the defendant had committed multiple property crimes, such as burglaries, in jurisdictions across Virginia. In one such case, a Maryland man, who was out on bail for charges in Fairfax County, was arrested in Arlington on similar charges, including stealing and spitting on an officer after his arrest.

After that incident, Dehghani-Tafti’s office dropped two charges and downgraded a felony charge into a misdemeanor as a plea agreement. His 180-day jail sentence in Arlington was suspended and he was extradited to Maryland to face prior charges there, according to court documents.

Dehghani-Tafti’s office has downgraded felony charges into misdemeanors for cases that “normally would not have seen that level of a plea bargain being agreed upon” on multiple occasions, Conigliaro said. Detectives are concerned with this trend, he added.

Brad Haywood, the chief public defender in the county, also said Dehghani-Tafti’s office seemed less likely to press felony charges where a misdemeanor charge may apply, such as with nonviolent or minor property and drug cases, he said.

Haywood said her office seems more willing to give people with behavioral issues a second chance by ensuring they receive treatments instead of jail time, unlike her predecessor Theo Stamos. Stamos, who is now working in the office of Attorney General Jason Miyares, declined to comment for this article.

Generally, there have been fewer felony indictments under Dehghani-Tafti compared to Stamos, according to performance data gathered in the latest proposed budget from the Commonwealth’s Attorney office. The number of indictments issued by the Circuit Court decreased 37% from 713 in fiscal year 2019 to 449 in fiscal year 2021. The number of sentencing events dropped by almost 57% from 354 in fiscal year 2019 to 153 in fiscal year 2021.

The number of criminal misdemeanor cases that appeared before the General District Court also decreased by 23.4% from 3,476 in fiscal year 2019 to 2,662 in fiscal year 2021.

A table shows the performance data since fiscal year 2018 (via Arlington County)

In Dehghani-Tafti’s view, prisons cannot effectively rehabilitate an offender. She cited a meta study published by the University of Chicago Press last year that showed incarcerations are less effective in reducing recidivism.

Dehghani-Tafti believes the biggest change she brought to Arlington was creating new diversion programs for adults. Her office is taking part in the Motion for Justice Project, which connects participants to social services and treatments, as well as partnering with the nonprofit Offender Aid and Restoration to provide diversion programs.

“I came in guided by the idea that safety and justice are not opposite values, they are rather complementary values,” Dehghani-Tafti said. “And that we can treat people like people and crime like crime.”

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Event this week in Rosslyn to recognize ‘red hot’ startups in the D.C. area

By Mavis Chan

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn. 

Dozens of technology startups from the D.C. region are set to participate in a networking event for “Red Hot Companies” on Wednesday (July 20).

This is the seventh year that DCA Live, an events company, is holding “Red Hot Companies,” recognizing fast-growing startups. It is set to be held at the rooftop of Sands Capital Management, at 1000 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn.

Among the 41 participating startups, a number of them are based in Arlington, such as the fitness software company SweatWorks from Ballston, the marketing company for Amazon businesses Amify and the wireless communications company Federated Wireless, according to the event’s webpage.

DCA Live has planned a short program to congratulate the startups in attendance and to thank the co-hosts of the event, then participants are set to network among themselves.

“I have found that almost nobody really wants a program at all, people just want to talk to each other,” Doug Anderson, DCA Live founder, said.

Other organizations and companies co-hosting the event include Arlington Economic Development, Marymount University, the accounting firm KPMG and various venture capital firms. ARLnow is the event’s media partner.

DCA Live chose to host the event in Arlington because Rosslyn is convenient to the “main centers of business life in the region,” including downtown D.C., Tysons and Bethesda. Moreover, the tall buildings in Rosslyn provide a “great setting” for events, Anderson said.

“You just get a great view of D.C. and all the iconic monuments,” he said.

A previous DCA Live ‘Red Hot Companies’ event (courtesy of Doug Anderson)

DCA Live chose the companies based on nominations from the technology community. Some of the companies selected this year are older, like the energy management company GridPoint which was founded in 2003, while others have only a few years under their belts, such as ShiftMed, an app developed in 2019.

Although DCA Live did not give out specific guidelines to nominate companies for the event, it hoped to look for startups that have shown “significant growth, momentum, energy, innovation, new products, new capital, new employees,” Anderson said.

“We really also try to collectively promote the region and celebrate the tech ecosystem here,” he added.

The local startup community as a whole generally caters to other businesses or the government and only a few of them target individual consumers, Anderson noted.

“The one common thing around D.C. high growth companies is they’re solving big problems, whether it’s cybersecurity, whether it’s education, energy, healthcare, health IT,” he said. “They’re not doing [consumer] apps, they’re not doing consumer websites. We’re just not known for that around here.”

Is River Place’s time coming to an end in Rosslyn?

By Matt Blitz
1/4

The following deep dive was funded by and first sent to members of the ARLnow Press Club. Join today to support local journalism and to get the exclusive Early Morning Notes email with previews of the day’s stories.

River Place in Rosslyn is perhaps one of the most well-known multifamily complexes in the county.

The series of four buildings containing about 1,720 units between Route 50 and Wilson Blvd make up the cooperative complex that was built seven decades ago. Despite its age, River Place remains valued by residents, owners and real estate agents.

In conversations, phrases like “oasis of affordability,” “jewel of Rosslyn,” “prime location,” and “views that… can’t be beat in the market” get tossed around with regularity.

But what makes River Place truly unique is that it very well could be on borrowed time.

It’s a fact that has been known for awhile, as detailed in this 1982 Washington Post article. The complex was built in the early 1950s on top of 13 acres of land owned by a developer. That land is, essentially, rented from the developer through an agreement that’s known as a “ground lease.”

In 1953, a 99-year lease was agreed to, meaning River Place’s lease runs out in 2052 — 30 years from now. That timeframe, of course, holds a good deal of significance for those looking to take on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage in order to buy a property inside of the complex.

Today, the underlying land is owned by local real estate development firm Monday Properties.

When the lease expires in 2052, Monday Properties will be able to do whatever it wants with the well-located land in Rosslyn. Theoretically, Monday Properties — or a new developer, if Monday ends up selling the land — could demolish the by-then century-old River Place.

This potential would leave unit owners out in the cold and their investment, essentially, a pile of bricks.

Monday Properties hasn’t disclosed its plans just yet.

James Marandi, president of the River Places Owners Association, tells ARLnow that neither he, the association, nor the committee assembled to deal with the ground lease situation has had any “recent” conversations with the company.

Monday Properties wouldn’t discuss the situation with ARLnow, either. When reached for comment, a company spokesperson said in an email that Monday Properties does “not have a comment on this story.”

An Arlington County spokesperson tells ARLnow that there isn’t much the county can do.

“​​This is a private property matter, which limits what the County can do,” the spokesperson said. “This is a matter between the building occupants and the landowner.”

This uncertainty has left some unit owners and residents thinking, perhaps even anxious, about an uncertain future that’s now not as far off as it once was.

“We are not necessarily nervous yet. Thirty years is a long way away,” Marandi tells ARLnow. “But we do realize that the lease expires and something has to be done.” 

The unresolved ground lease situation also could have a direct impact on the accessibility of lower-priced housing stock in Arlington, a long-running concern that the county is now trying to grapple with.

As of Friday afternoon, there appeared to be 15 River Place condos for sale on Zillow. All of the units were listed for sale under $300,000, with most under $200,000.

The average price for a home in Arlington, as of earlier this year and including townhomes and condos, is more than $800,000.

In theory, this could make River Place one of the best buys in the Arlington market. But the expiring land lease makes it potentially inaccessible for some.

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Ballston-based SweatWorks brings tech solutions to fitness brands

By Brandi Bottalico

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn. 

During the pandemic, people relied on technology for everything from food delivery to working from home. And now, people want that kind of convenience for fitness, says a Ballston-based startup.

The past couple of years have put a spotlight on what SweatWorks has been working toward, company spokeswoman Claire Evans says.

“It kind of highlighted how much everyone needed to do more outside of the gym, how connected fitness, how that whole ecosystem came together and we’ve been working with brands on that whole omnichannel approach to connected fitness,” she said. “So everything from how do you keep your members engaged when they’re at home but also at the gym, what are those touch points and what does that look like for a business.”

SweatWorks CEO Mohammed Iqbal often says that a workout lasts for an hour a day but there are 23 other hours to consider how to improve fitness and wellness, Evans said.

SweatWorks CEO Mohammed Iqbal (courtesy of SweatWorks)

Working with brands like SoulCycle, Equinox, CityRow and others, SweatWorks tailors tech for fitness companies, providing everything from membership insights to connected fitness software.

“We don’t want to be a one box solution,” Evans said. “We don’t just want to say ‘this is the answer’… That is what really makes us really unique.”

SweatWorks has built everything from software to analyze membership data, like how often someone is using a fitness program and how to improve those numbers, to providing technology that gives users real-time workout data, like heart rate and recovery information. It builds everything from hardware to software, like the tablet on Beachbody bike by Myx, where the device and all its content was created by SweatWorks, Evans said.

“We often say [clients] come to us and they think they know what they want and they’re like ‘we need this,'” Evans said, but they go through a process with the company to figure out their needs. “Then we will deliver on an output and it’s not always what they really think they need and then we can actually pick lots of other elements they might require.”

The completely remote company just celebrated its 10th anniversary, and has grown to 165 employees internationally, working with about 15 clients, Evans said. SweatWorks has seen 3% revenue growth over last year and 60% compounding growth since 2018, she said.

And it was recently named a finalist for DCA Live’s Red Hot Companies 2022, which recognizes the region’s fastest growing companies. (An event recognizing the Red Hot honorees is scheduled for next Wednesday, July 20, in Rosslyn.)

“For us being on the list is awesome, I mean it’s the recognition on a very local level,” Evans said. “It means a lot, Moh lives in Arlington, he loves living there. He’s really passionate about being in that area.”

Iqbal started the company through his passion for health and fitness and is “totally driven by how you can use data to make meaningful change in your health and wellness,” Evans said.

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An Arlington Little League team hits and pitches its way to states and into local history

By Matt Blitz
1/3

An Arlington Little League team has made the state tournament, becoming one of few teams to have done so in Arlington history.

This past Fourth of July weekend, the Arlington Little League National 5070 All-Stars won the District 4 championship tournament, besting teams from across the region including Vienna and McLean. In Sunday’s championship game, the team of 14 players, ages 12 and 13 years old, defeated the Alexandria Little League All-Star team. They won by a score of 10 to 5.

The next step is the Virginia state tournament, to be held in Henrico just outside of Richmond, with their first game scheduled for this Friday. The coaches believe this is only the third team in Arlington Little League history to advance to states.

Both players and coaches told ARLnow that what made this team special was everyone’s dedication and buy-in.

“All 14 [players] bought into the team aspect of what’s best for the team as opposed to what’s best for them as an individual,” Manager Mark Nersasian told ARLnow. “We got contributions from top to bottom [of the roster].”

Thirteen-year-old Nate Moseley, who pitches and plays first base for the team and attends Dorothy Hamm Middle School, said that Nersasian and the other coaches often reiterate this concept.

“[The coaches] always tells us that we need players who play for the team name on the front, not the [last name] on the back,” he said.

That task was even more complicated by the fact the team has only been together for a few weeks. This is an all-star team, picked from more than 100 players across nine Arlington Little League teams. The team was selected, in large part, by their teammates and fellow Arlington Little Leaguers, with players voting on who they think should make up the squad. Coaches also contributed to the selection of the roster.

As expected, the players proved themselves to be some of the best ball players in Arlington. Assistant coach Keith Stone says the blended roster can sometimes be a challenge when dividing up playing time, but that wasn’t the case for this group of middle-school-aged athletes.

“Most of them were the best players on their regular team. They got brought to this [team] and they may only get to bat one time or barely get to play in the field. They all bought into the collective good for the team,” Stone said. “For 12 and 13-year-olds, that’s not always the easiest thing to do.”

This Arlington Little League team isn’t in the same age group as those that are on ESPN every year. This team is a little bit older, mostly comprised of 13-year-olds, as opposed to 10, 11, and 12-year-olds. Therefore, the Arlington Little League team plays on fields that are larger, have longer base paths, and pitch further away.

Dylan Stone, a shortstop and pitcher, has been playing baseball in Arlington since he was four years old. He’s now 13 and attends Williamsburg Middle School. What he loves most about playing in Arlington Little League is being able to “play with friends and the competition.”

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Arlington boutique owner organizes baby formula drive to help moms

By Mavis Chan
Current Boutique owner Carmen Lopez stands next to the donation drop off box (courtesy of Carmen Lopez)

Arlington resident Carmen Lopez has heard stories about panicked moms scrambling to find baby formula.

Lopez, owner of local fashion chain Current Boutique, said one mom couldn’t find the formula she needed and ordered it online. But she was afraid it wouldn’t come in time.

“She’s called family members in Florida, in California, in New York, just to send her formula because it’s a specific formula that she needs for her baby,” Lopez said.

Many mothers in the D.C. area face similar situations as there’s a shortage of formula across the country. The out-of-stock rate for baby formula in Virginia was 64.3% as of May 28, which was lower than the national average of 74%, according to Bloomberg.

As a mom, Lopez wanted to help other moms.

So, she partnered with The Napkin Network, a D.C. nonprofit focused on giving moms in need baby formula, diapers and wipes. She and The Napkin Network founder Lindsay Gill organized a donation drive at Current Boutique stores.

“A friend actually told me about what [The Napkin Network was] doing and I thought, ‘How could I help?’ Because I have heard from moms, from people that I know that are struggling to get formula,” Lopez said.

Through Tuesday, July 19, there will be drop boxes at each of the three Current Boutique locations in Clarendon (2601 Wilson Blvd.), Old Town Alexandria (1009 King Street) and Logan Circle (1318 14th Street NW, D.C.).

A donation box for baby formula inside a Current Boutique store (courtesy of Carmen Lopez)

Those who donate receive a 20% discount when shopping at the boutique, and can also receive tax donations receipts at the drop-off locations. The baby formula donated needs to be unopened and unexpired.

Around 100 mothers a week receive a new can of baby formula from the donation drives organized by Gill, who is a mother using baby formula in Rockville, Md.

“The formula that’s not picked up on site, we’ve given out to partner organizations in the Washington D.C. area,” she said.

One such organization is Feed the Fridge, which places refrigerators around the D.C. area and pays local restaurants to fill them with fresh meals. The organization is now distributing baby formula at 10 locations in Maryland and D.C.

“Hopefully it’ll be an ongoing initiative,” Gill said.

Lindsay Gill, founder of The Napkin Network, poses with diapers (courtesy of Hilary Phelps)

Although The Napkin Network was founded to collect and distribute diapers and wipes, the nonprofit has put a pause to collecting those to focus on formula.

“The Napkin Network has sort of paused all other efforts in terms of collecting diapers, wipes, and we’re still doing it but it’s on the back burner because we really have to focus on formula,” Gill said.

Since the drive began, there have been a couple of donations at each of the Current Boutique stores, most of which were the Similac formula, Lopez said.

“I think what we’ve been doing since Tuesday is just spreading the word,” she said.

Several baby formulas are more in demand than others. Enfamil Gentlease, which advertises itself as “easing fussiness, gas and crying,” is a popular request. It is currently listed as out of stock on its manufacturer’s website. Another popular one is Similac, which is covered by the Virginia Women, Infants and Children assistance program, Gill said.

At a roundtable with Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Gill saw mothers crying because they could not get specific formulas for their infants with allergies, which cannot be substituted.

“The moms there were literally in tears, asking Sen. Kaine, ‘What are you doing? My baby is starving,'” Gill said.

Other nonprofits in the area collecting diapers and baby formula include the Greater DC Diaper Bank. It has over 160 donation drop locations in the Metro area, according to the group’s website, including six in Arlington. Its Baby Pantry also accepts donations of baby formula and food at the same drop locations as the diapers.

This feature story was funded by members of the ARLnow Press Club and originally ran in the club’s weekend newsletter.

Arlington accelerator aims to bring government technology to market

By Mavis Chan

Sponsored by Monday Properties and written by ARLnow, Startup Monday is a weekly column that profiles Arlington-based startups, founders, and other local technology news. Monday Properties is proudly featuring 1515 Wilson Blvd in Rosslyn. 

Ben Solomon didn’t have a STEM background when he graduated from Princeton University.

But now he runs a company that brings deep technology — such as artificial intelligence, robotics and other innovations — into the marketplace.

Solomon, the founder of FedTech, graduated with a history degree and worked as a news researcher for NBC Sports and Bloomberg News. But he wanted to work closer with the government and technology.

“I always have this motivation to be working more closely with government and partnering with technology,” Solomon said. “I ended up coming to business school down here in University of Maryland.”

That was the place where Solomon met staff that commercialized technology, which inspired him to start Ballston-based FedTech.

FedTech is an accelerator that provides programs for startups working in deep technology to found their companies and put their products into the commercial market.

“Before I started doing work in this field, I was surprised to see that the U.S. government is really the biggest research and development investor in history,” Solomon said. “A lot of times those technologies can be really breakthrough and game changing for both commercial industry and even government use.”

FedTech was founded in 2015 after being a part of the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps program, according to its website. It also has offices in Austin, Texas, and Albuquerque, New Mexico, Solomon said.

Solomon based his company in Arlington because of its proximity to many government agencies, big companies like Amazon and local universities, graduates of which the company would “love to hire” as much as possible, he said.

Moreover, Arlington has large office spaces, like the company’s new 9000-square-foot office suite at 4401 Wilson Blvd, that are close to D.C. Solomon added that Arlington also has a “really good social scene.”

“We spent a lot of time as a company going to the bars and the restaurants for kind of team building,” he said.

The company connects smaller private businesses with bigger corporations and government agencies that can use their technology through partnerships.

It hosted a three-day technology summit for the U.S. Army in 2020, which showcased novel technologies that the Army could potentially use.

Will Dickson, Lead of FedTech’s accelerator program, at the technology summit in 2020 (courtesy of FedTech)

FedTech is currently working with around 200 startups and these partnerships are “deeper than an investor or like a Shark Tank-type of investor,” Solomon said.

His company not only runs programs for startups that provide mentorship and training, but it also seeks out new technologies still being researched and brings those to entrepreneurs.

“If we find an invention in a research lab, we’ll go and recruit the founding team who can license that technology out of the research lab and create a new company around it, and we help that company be successful,” Solomon said.

FedTech also helps startups find customers and access capital. Its working relationships with startups can sometimes last for years, Solomon said.

Past winners of the Army’s TechSearch competition held at FedTech (courtesy of FedTech)

FedTech usually does not own any stakes of the startups benefiting from its programs. It instead receives contracts from government departments like the Department of Defense and NASA, as well as other corporations like consumer goods company Proctor & Gamble and defense company BAE Systems.

(more…)

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