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Lee Raynes says she’s got this one. There’s no dampening of her spirits, because the new owner of Bellies & Babies is on a spiritual journey and the pandemic is just a bus stop.

Raynes bought the Del Ray consignment shop from owner Dawn Luepke last fall and took over at the beginning of the year. She had two months of a mild winter’s worth of business before COVID-19 effectively shut down foot traffic along Mount Vernon Avenue and limited the number of customers she could let into the shop.


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Alexandria is putting many of the city’s homeless in hotel rooms for the foreseeable future.

“While many of our hotels are suffering significant losses of their own, they have been willing to partner with the City to assist in the response,” Mayor Justin Wilson told ALXnow. “To ensure that our homeless populations can maintain safe social distancing, these hotel partnerships have been critical.”


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More than 100 law enforcement officials and first responders showed their appreciation Inova Alexandria Hospital staff on Tuesday. Hospital doctors and nurses were applauded by Virginia State Police, Alexandria Police and Fire department officials holding signs, which thanked them and called them heroes.

“This is amazing, because there’s a war zone that we face every day,” nurse Keylin Mejia told ALXnow.


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Another person has died and there are now 700 Cases of COVID-19 in Alexandria, an increase of 47 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

That is the largest jump in new or probable cases since the first case was announced in the city on March 11, and the city is asking residents to continue to stay home except for essential trips to the pharmacy, doctor or grocery store.


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Tenants and Workers United Organizes Rent Protest in Arlandria Friday — “Join our Caravan. THIS FRIDAY at 4:30 P.M.” ️[Facebook]

Here’s an Updated List of Alexandria’s Nonprofit Needs — “This list is updated on a regular basis, so check back regularly to see the latest items needed to support our most vulnerable populations during this critical time. Thank you for caring for our community!” [Volunteer Alexandria]


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A couple weeks ago, Jesse Mazur stopped his car outside George Washington Middle School and thought about how quickly things changed.

It’s a disorienting feeling for the 44-year-old principal who has — one way or another — been in schools most of his life, and inside the hallways are completely empty. Since March 13, Mazur and his staff have had to adapt to a new normal of remotely teaching more than 1,500 students for the remainder of the year.


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Together We Bake, the local nonprofit dedicated to providing comprehensive workforce training and personal development for women in need, just reopened its kitchen just in time for Mother’s Day.

“We figured that we could resume operations in our kitchen and maintain six feet of distance,” Together We Bake Co-Director Elizabeth Bennett-Parker told ALXnow. “The deadline for Mother’s Day orders is this Sunday.”


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Another person has died and there are now 653 cases of COVID-19 in Alexandria, an increase of 26 cases since yesterday, according to the Virginia Department of Health.

There are now 20 COVID-19-related fatalities in Alexandria, and the most recent death was a male in his 80s. Additionally, the VDH and city incorrectly reported that a nineteenth person died in Alexandria, and amended their figures to show that there were 18 deaths as of yesterday. That means that there are, in fact, two additional deaths — if the 20 fatalities listed by VDH are accurate.


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Teacher Runs 20 Miles to See Students — “My daughter really misses school and interacting with her friends and teachers, so when Ms. Shannon surprised her Ellie was overwhelmed with excitement. She couldn’t believe that it was actually Ms. Shannon in person.” [Zebra]

T.C. Williams Class of 2020 Making Documentary — “The class of 2020 is making Titan history. Across the city of Alexandria, Titan seniors will be recording their stories all on the same day, May 1. Here’s how it will work: On May 1, anytime between 12:00AM-11:59PM, seniors will answer these questions in 3 short videos of up to 60 seconds each: What do you love? What do you fear? What do you hope for?” [ACPS]


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The little boy in the blue hooded jacket cried out as a long cotton swap poked deep into his nostril.

It only took a second on a recent afternoon, as his masked mother held him inside a Neighborhood Health COVID-19 testing facility outside Casa Chirilagua on Mount Vernon Avenue in Arlandria. The boy and his mother made an appointment for him online and walked to the site, checked in with staff wearing protective gear and walked over to the tent with a plexiglass shield separating them from the health official.


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ALIVE! gave out 13,000 pounds of food to more than 1,300 Alexandria households on Saturday morning, and the nonprofit is now collecting financial donations for the next distribution.

The food cost about $65,000 and amounted to 4,300 grocery bags, which were distributed within two hours at the Leonard “Chick” Armstrong Recreation Center (23 W. Reed Ave.) and John Adams Elementary School (5651 Rayburn Avenue).


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