ALIVE! Hands Out 20,000 Meals — “More than 500 cars lined up until supplies ran out. Volunteers say they’ll be back at it again, in the same place and time- next week.” [WUSA9]
Fire Department Saves Dog — “With help from Alexandria Animal Control, some of our first responders rescued a Border Collie from a vault in a pond on Seminary Rd. today after the dog decided to have a little fun with some geese. The pup sustained minor injuries & was transported to a vet by the owner.” [Facebook]
Several local religious institutions are changing the way they host their services to try to combat the spread of COVID-19.
Coronavirus’ spread in the D.C. region has been closely associated with religious gatherings, from Georgetown church where a pastor was infected to the Virginia Theological Seminary where Alexandria had its first identified case. As large social gathering places, churches nationwide are emptying as quarantine orders are ramping up.
The COVID-19 pandemic has put thousands out of work around the city, but it’s also meant a surge in business for pizza delivery businesses that now need drivers.
Toppers Pizza is currently looking for 10 new delivery drivers to work $4.25 an hour plus $2 per delivery and tips. Like their competitors, Toppers is also offering contact-less service.
Del Ray Psych and Wellness is offering three half-hour $30 therapy sessions to anybody during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Co-owner Dr. Lauren Fisher has some simple advice during these stressful days: stay present and focus on what you know and what you can control at this time.
If Alexandria residents are feeling symptomatic during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Inova hospital system is encouraging them to skip trips to the emergency room by making virtual medical appointments from the comfort of their homes.
Inova, in this period of social distancing, says telemedicine is a convenient way for residents to determine if they should receive additional medical care.
Alexandria Mayor Justin Wilson is full of praise for the city’s COVID-19 response efforts, but the hard times are just beginning, he told ALXnow in a recent interview.
“Everyone is trying to find so many different ways to give back,” Wilson said. “It’s been very gratifying and we’re gonna need it because the need is only going to be exacerbated over the next couple of weeks and months, if not longer.”
Alexandria COVID-19 Count Now At 20 — “AHD is identifying and contacting individuals who came in close contact with the confirmed cases. The close contacts will be asked to self-quarantine and actively monitor for fever and respiratory symptoms. If they start experiencing symptoms, they will immediately undergo testing. As a result of the AHD’s case investigations and expanded testing through private providers, the number of positive cases is expected to continue to increase.” [City of Alexandria]
City’s COVID-19 Fund Reaches $470K — “Thanks to your generous support, ACT for Alexandria and the City of Alexandria have begun to provide grants to the nonprofit organizations on the front lines of this crisis. As of this week, we have made $245,010 in grants.” [Zebra]
Even though Becky Tiffany has two kids, runs her own company and is sequestered at home like much of the country, the Alexandrian felt like she needed to help people.
In her spare time, the mother of a T.C. Williams high schooler and a seventh-grader at George Washington Middle School, started a number of Facebook groups, including a group for parents and the Alexandria City Public School community, T.C. Williams High School parents, GW Middle School parents and moms in Old Town.
Even as Alexandria businesses struggle through the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of them are providing Inova Alexandria Hospital with respirator masks, meals and cupcakes.
“Alexandria Hospital needs these things desperately. If you have them, donate them,” said Mike Dameron, a co-owner of The Garden, which along with Live Oak Restaurant is donating more than 50 meals to Alexandria Hospital on Friday afternoon. “We had to close down The Garden, and we had all of this food left over.”
For many women at Friends of Guest House, self-quarantining bears an uncomfortable familiarity to the jails and prisons they just left.
The Alexandria shelter helps women emerging from incarceration reenter their communities. But coronavirus has put a new wrench into those plans and spokesperson Marisa Tordella says there’s some extra frustrations and tensions for women who once again feel like they are in lockdown.
Alexandria’s goal of reshaping the Del Ray and Arlandria plans is still moving forward, but the once town hall-driven process is going entirely digital to combat the spread of coronavirus.
The long term plans for the neighborhoods shape policies on things like retail, residential and public spaces in Del Ray and Arlandria. These plans were last updated in 2003 for Arlandria and 2005 for Del Ray. With Amazon moving in next door, the new plans aimed to help these neighborhoods hold onto their sense of community.
