Two dozen injured veterans took to the ice for a clinic at Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Ballston yesterday, part of an event that also featured a donation of hockey equipment to the USA Warriors Ice Hockey Program.
Hall of Fame goalie Grant Fuhr and Capitals assistant coach Bob Woods were among the team representatives on hand. The donation was sponsored by the Caps, the NHL and Verizon Wireless.
Screen capture via Washington Capitals.
On August 28, a 6 to 10 foot steel beam from the World Trade Center will arrive in Arlington to serve as a memorial to those who lost their lives on 9/11.
The steel is a gift from the the Fire Family Transport Foundation, an NYC-based firefighters’ charity, and members of the New York Fire Department. Two years ago a similar donation was made to Shanksville, Pa., the crash site of United Flight 93.
Police cars, 500 motorcyclists and NYFD’s ceremonial Engine 343 (named in honor of the 343 firefighters who died when the twin towers collapsed) will escort the beam from Brooklyn to Arlington. A brief arrival ceremony is expected to be held at the Pentagon Memorial, to be followed by a more elaborate ceremony the next day.
The Arlington Fire Department is still planning the August 29 event, but it will likely take place at Fire Station 5 in Pentagon City, which was the first to respond to the Pentagon after it was hit by American Airlines Flight 77.
At a county board meeting on Tuesday, Arlington fire chief James Schwartz says a final resting place for the beam has not been decided, but said it may be placed next to a piece of limestone from the Pentagon.
Board member Barbara Favola asked if the beam could be converted into a piece of public art and displayed “in a visually attractive way.”
“It really is more like a memorial, and public art and memorials are two different things, I’m told,” Schwartz said.
Virginia Republicans got a major boost last month from those vying to build toll lanes on Interstates 95 and 395.
The Texas-based engineering firm Fluor and Australian toll road developer Transurban collectively donated $20,000 to Virginia’s GOP in May, according to the Virginia Public Access Project. Neither company donated to Democrats in the most recent reporting period, according to VPAP records.
The money comes as Governor Robert McDonnell and state transportation officials are pushing to resurrect a plan to replace HOV lanes with High Occupancy Toll lanes on both highways. The lanes on I-95 would then be extended from Dumfries to Spotsylvania County to make a 56-mile toll road, which would compliment HOT lanes now being built on the Capital Beltway, between Springfield and Dulles Toll Road, by the same two companies.
Virginia Transportation Secretary Sean T. Connaughton did not immediately return a request for comment on Monday.
Fluor was also a major contributor to Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell’s 2009 campaign. The company’s $25,000 in donations made Fluor one of McDonnell’s largest contributors, according to VPAP records.
VPAP also shows Fluor donated $15,000 to McDonnell’s inaugural committee in January, making for a total of $307, 235 in donations to Virginia Republicans since the introduction of the I-95/395 HOT lanes project in 2002. During the same period, Fluor donated $146,200 to state Democrats.
The I-95/395 HOT lanes project stalled last August when the companies said they didn’t have enough private investors to back the project and after Arlington County filed a lawsuit against the state and federal government over the project. It claimed the necessary environmental impact studies that needed to be completed before the lanes could be built were never done. Officials also said the lanes would have an adverse affect on Arlington residents who live along the I-395 corridor.
The suit could now end up in federal court.
If the I-95/395 HOT lanes are finally approved, it’s not clear how much drivers would have to pay to use the lanes or how long the two companies would lease the lanes from the state.
When the Beltway HOT lanes open in late 2012, Fluor-Transubran will lease the lanes for 75 years.
Give to the World, an Arlington-based organization that helps the U.S. military conduct humanitarian relief efforts, is seeking volunteers to help box up supplies destined for Afghanistan.
Volunteers will meet at an area thrift shop to pack up clothes, shoes, blankets, stuffed animals and other donated items. The goods will then be sent to villagers in Afghanistan.
Adults and teens are welcome to volunteer for the effort, which will take place between 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. on June 13, June 27 and July 25.
Those interested in helping out should go to the organization’s web site or call Shannon Stapleton at 703-532-4734.
Arlington’s Emergency Winter Shelter has been helping homeless individuals weather this year’s brutal winter storms. Now the folks running the shelter need our help. A-SPAN, the Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network, announced on Facebook this morning that the shelter is running low on food, specifically cereal, snacks, bread and jelly.
If you have any to spare, call the shelter at 703-228-7395.
