A good cause is around the corner to satisfy your taste buds and conscience.
On August 28, Carpenter’s Shelter will host their biggest summer event — their Cook-off Pop-up at ALX Community (201 N. Union Street). The event will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. and showcases offerings from about 20 area restaurants with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit, which provides temporary housing and support for more than 600 families and individuals every year.
Carpenter’s Shelter opened its winter shelters yesterday as a warm refuge for locals experiencing homelessness.
According to a press release from the city, the Winter Shelters are open from 7 p.m.-7 a.m. regardless of the weather. The shelter opened yesterday (Wednesday) through March 31.
Alexandria Police Participate in Honoring Fallen Capitol Police Officer — “APD participated in the memorial service for fallen U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick. Our officers rendered honors for Ofc. Sicknick, and joined the escort from the U.S. Capitol to Arlington National Cemetery. Our prayers are with his family and friends.” [Twitter]
Free COVID-19 Self-Testing Kiosks Available Around City— “Visit a Curative COVID-19 self-testing kiosk in Alexandria for a free test. Tests do not require government ID; service available in English and Spanish. Make an appointment at Curative.com. Walk up testing also available. For more info: alexandriava.gov/114730.” [Twitter]
Alexandria Restaurant Preps 15,000 Meals for National Guard — “We will be closed today, Saturday January 16th through Thursday, January 21st. Last week, we were honored to be selected to provide meals to the National Guard during inauguration week. Our kitchen will be used to prepare 15,000 meals per day this upcoming week. We will re-open on Friday, January 22nd. We appreciate your continued support!” [Alexandria Living]
City to Host COVID-19 Vaccine Panel Discussion — “The City of Alexandria will co-host a recorded panel of local medical experts, civic leaders and community leaders to answer questions about COVID-19 vaccines. A premiere of the panel discussion will be available online in English, Spanish, Amharic and Arabic at 5 p.m. on January 27.” [City of Alexandria]
Big things are in the works in the city. The proposed police review panel is coming back to the City Council in January, but discussions still rage in the community over what authority it should have. New plans are also moving forward for Potomac Yard, while the question of whether or not the Virginia Tech initials will be added to the name remains up in the air.
What stories impacted you this week? Let us know in the comments.
Carpenter’s Shelter has invited the community to a ribbon-cutting on Thursday (Dec. 10) for the new shelter for people experiencing homelessness.
“This ribbon-cutting will be held in conjunction with with the Alexandria Housing Development Corporation, who will be celebrating the opening of 97 affordable apartment units named The Bloom at Braddock,” the nonprofit said in a press release.
As anyone going to vote in-person today can attest, winter’s bitter chill has started to set in. Temperatures are expected to hit a low of 41 degrees tomorrow. For the city’s most vulnerable populations, however, shelter has opened to help locals experiencing homelessness get through the winter.
“A shelter at Lee Center (1108 Jefferson) is serving single adults and another at Carpenter’s Shelter (5701 Duke St., Suite D) is serving families,” the city said on its website. “The Winter Shelter program, also called hypothermia shelters, is operated by Carpenter’s Shelter to ensure that guests have a warm, clean and safe environment to retreat from the elements of winter at night.”
Alexandria Man Has Washington Football Team Name Trademarks — “Phillip Martin McCaulay, 61, has made dozens of submissions to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for almost a dozen potential names and other iterations of them.” [WTOP]
Police Department Celebrates 150th Birthday — “150 years of exemplary service to the citizens of Alexandria! Happy anniversary to the Alexandria Police Department founded on this day, July 15, 1870.” [Facebook]
City Releases Annual Homeless Data — “The 2020 Annual Point-in-Time (PIT) Count revealed 207 persons experiencing homelessness (i.e., unsheltered and in temporary shelter made available by homeless services providers) in the City of Alexandria.” [City of Alexandria]
Alexandria Police Release 2019 Traffic Stop Data — “The vast majority of traffic stops — 80 percent — occur on weekdays, with Tuesday and Wednesday being the most common days.” [Alexandria Living]
Carpenter’s Shelter reopened its David Place facility at Landmark Mall last week and moved back all of its residents from the temporary shelter at Charles Houston Recreation Center.
Meanwhile, a number of homeless residents and families are still being housed in hotel rooms in the city — a measure that was put in place to protect them from the coronavirus.
Assisting pregnant mothers, raising money for unemployed workers and buying meals for hungry residents are just a few of the causes Alexandrians are tackling through a number of GoFundMe campaigns.
The coronavirus pandemic has created a lot of need throughout the city, and a number of individuals, businesses and nonprofits have raised tens of thousands of dollars with local fundraisers.
