Good morning, Alexandria! 👋 Today is Monday, Aug. 11, the 223rd day of 2025. There are 142 days left in the year.
🌤️ Today’s weather: Partly sunny, with a high near 87. Calm wind becoming southeast around six mph in the afternoon. Patchy fog tonight after 3 a.m. Otherwise, partly cloudy, with a low around 71. South wind around 6 mph, becoming calm in the evening.
Alexandria firefighters responded to a serious motor vehicle accident on the Capital Beltway near the Woodrow Wilson Bridge early Sunday morning, rescuing a driver who became trapped underneath a tractor-trailer.
The accident occurred just before 6 a.m. on the Maryland side of the bridge, according to a Facebook post from Alexandria Firefighters, Inc. IAFF Local 2141. When crews arrived, they found one vehicle pinned under the rear of the tractor-trailer with the driver trapped inside.
Game, set, Gala! On Saturday, Nov. 14, the USTA Mid-Atlantic Foundation’s annual Tennis Creates Gala, presented by QTS, comes to The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner, celebrating the transformative power of tennis.
The evening raises critical funds to make the sport accessible to all across Washington, D.C., Maryland, Virginia and eastern/southern West Virginia.
Every dollar goes back into local communities through programs like Girls Rule the Court™, which has served more than 2,000 girls, along with Junior Player Scholarships and Tennis in Schools. Gala funds also help restore public courts. Over the last three years, the Foundation has invested $505,000 across 17 public facilities.
Emceeing the evening is Emmy Award-winning ESPN journalist Malika Andrews, host of NBA Today and NBA Countdown, who joined ESPN’s tennis coverage this year for the Australian Open, Wimbledon and the US Open.
Andrews has pointed to the electric moment American tennis is having, with stars like the DMV’s own Frances Tiafoe reaching the 2026 US Open men’s semifinals, and says she’s grateful for the chance to support the sport at the local level.
Joining the celebration is new USTA CEO Craig Tiley, who took the helm of the national governing body in July after over 20 years at Tennis Australia. As he leads the USTA toward its goal of 35 million players by 2035, the USTA Mid-Atlantic Foundation drives the grassroots work to grow the sport right here in the region.
The Foundation will present its Tennis Creates Impact Award to Vice Admiral Sean S. Buck, U.S. Navy (ret.), 63rd Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy, recognizing his leadership in fostering character, community, and well-being through tennis.
The heart of the night is the 2026 Tennis Creates Awards, honoring local changemakers. Alexandria’s Leigh Ann Jackson receives the Adult Leader Award for coaching Girls Rule the Court at Groveton Elementary, where she has served 130 students over five seasons and championed the program’s expansion to Hybla Valley.
Arlington’s Gabrielle Berg earns the Youth Leader Award for founding a Northern Virginia chapter of Tennis For Fun, which runs free year-round clinics for people with special needs in partnership with the Arlington YMCA. Burke’s Khoi Truong, head coach at Lake Braddock Secondary School, is the 2026 Coach of the Year.
They’ll be joined by fellow honorees Dr. Ellen Markowitz (Community Champion), James Skinner (Provider Champion), and Janelle Nichols (Tennis in the Classroom Awardee).
Tickets and tables are now available. Can’t make it? Make a gift to USTA Mid-Atlantic Foundation or bid in the silent auction to help put a racquet in the hands of the next generation of players.
The Tennis Creates Gala takes place Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026, from 6:00 – 11:00 p.m. at The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner, 1700 Tysons Blvd., McLean, VA 22102.
For more information, visit TennisCreatesGala.com.
HOPEWELL, Va. (AP) — Against an olive drab backdrop in a barbecue joint filled with the aroma of pulled pork and the sweat of a Virginia summer, Republican Winsome Earle-Sears told voters she was running her campaign for governor like a military-style operation.
The lieutenant governor, a former Marine, said she would protect Virginia just as she did America. The way Earle-Sears tells it, not all attacks come from soldiers.
Good morning, Alexandria! 👋 Today is Sunday, Aug. 10, the 222nd day of 2025. There are 143 days left in the year.
☀️ Today’s weather: Sunny, with a high near 86 degrees. Calm wind becoming southeast around six mph in the afternoon.
It's that time again – The November 14 Del Ray Vintage & Flea Market!
Saturday, November 14
9am-2pm
A 76-year-old Alexandria woman who went missing Saturday afternoon has been found safe, police said.
Bernise Simpkin was located at 11:18 p.m. Saturday, according to the Alexandria Police Department. She had been missing for nearly nine hours after last being seen around 2:45 p.m. in the North Old Town area.
The Alexandria Choral Society has named Victoria Benson as its new executive director, effective at the beginning of the 2025-2026 season.
Benson succeeds Megan Yingst and brings experience in both arts management and commercial real estate operations to the 55-year-old organization. She previously served as board chair, producer and director at Fresh Squeezed Opera Company in New York City, where she produced dozens of musical events and increased donor engagement and revenue.
Good morning, Alexandria! 👋 Today is Saturday, Aug. 9, the 221st day of 2025. There are 144 days left in the year.
On this day in 1974, a day after his resignation as President of the United States, Richard Nixon departed from the White House for his home at San Clemente, California. According to Historic Alexandria, Vice President Gerald R. Ford, who lived on Crown View Drive in Alexandria, was sworn in as the 38th president of the United States. After taking the oath of office, President Ford spoke to the nation in a television address, declaring, “My fellow Americans, our long national nightmare is over.”
We made it to Friday, Alexandria! Here’s a look at this week’s top stories.
Our most-read post is on a proposal to open a 24-hour Mexican restaurant in the city’s Del Ray neighborhood. The effort is facing some pushback from neighbors wary of potential crime and safety issues. In July, Tortas Y Tacos La Chiquita officially announced in a special use permit application that it wants to open at 529 E. Howell Avenue, the former home to Bark Social. It would be the fourth restaurant for the local chain, and while the restaurant won’t serve alcohol, outside patio hours would be 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday to Thursday and 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, according to the application. The inside area is proposed to be open 24 hours a day.
A Maryland man who says an Alexandria K-9 officer injured him during his 2023 arrest has filed a civil lawsuit in federal court against that officer’s handler and former Alexandria Police Chief Don Hayes.
William Kyle III claims to be the victim of excessive force by police after he was pulled over on July 15, 2023, near a northbound entrance to Interstate 495. Kyle alleges the actions of Alexandria Police Department officer Matthew Wilson and K-9 officer Ares resulted in what he describes as a “severe and permanent” injury to his right shoulder. It was inflicted after Kyle was handcuffed and in police custody, according to the civil complaint filed with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
