
An Old Town cafe is celebrating Bastille Day with — in perfectly apocryphal fashion — free pastries for the masses.
Bastille Day commemorates the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789. The people of Paris fought with the soldiers guarding the Bastille and seized the fortress, liberating the small number of prisoners left inside. It’s considered one of the igniting events of the French Revolution.
Fontaine Caffe and Creperie (119 S. Royal Street) is offering a free pastry to the first 50 people to visit the shop today. Kids also eat crepes for free with the purchase of an adult meal.
The shop is open from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. according to Facebook, then from 5:30-10 p.m.
Kids will also receive free balloons, coloring challenges and complimentary crayons. Adults, meanwhile, will receive 20% off all bottles of wine.
Also, TIL, there’s some fun Bastille Day history not far from Alexandria…
Happy Bastille Day! The key to the Bastille prison, a memento of the famous day, is located not in France but at Mount Vernon (!). Lafayette gave it as a gift to George Washington in a sign of appreciation for how America’s Revolution inspired France’s.
— Robert McCartney (@McCartneyWP) July 14, 2023
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If you had a chance to enhance a child’s future with a time commitment of less than 2 hours a week, how would you respond? You have that opportunity right now to join over 200 Alexandrians as a reading tutor volunteer with the Alexandria Tutoring Consortium (ATC).
ATC tutors work with one child in kindergarten, first, or second grade in Alexandria public schools who need extra help with reading. Tutors meet with their Book Buddy 1-2 times each week for 30 minutes October-May at school, during school hours. Many struggling readers only receive one-on-one instruction through this program, and it makes all the difference. Last year, ATC served 195 children, of whom 82% ended the year reading on grade level and 96% made substantial reading gains. But the need is great, and we are still seeing learning lags from the pandemic.
This year, ATC plans to significantly increase the size of the program to reach over 250 students and to serve every elementary school in Alexandria. This is very exciting news, but we will only succeed if we can recruit more tutors. ATC trains you, matches you with a child, and provides ongoing lesson materials and support.

If you have been thinking about buying your first home or haven’t owned one in the last three years, THIS IS FOR YOU!
In the DMV area, it can be difficult to save the downpayment necessary for you to get into your own home. We have a solution. The Funder’s Summit!
We have assembled a summit with different municipalities to tell you how to access their funds for your home purchase.
Family Fun Fall Fest
Mark your calendars and join us for the Family Fun Fall Fest on Saturday, October 7, 2023, from 11am – 2pm!
This FREE in-person event will be held at the Shoppes at Foxchase, located at 4641 Duke St, Alexandria, VA
2023 Alexandria Fall Festival
Food trucks, bounce houses, pony rides, magic shows and more at the 2023 Alexandria Fall Festival, an Alexandria Living event presented by The Patterson Group. Join us at River Farm on Sunday, Nov. 5 from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.