This coming Saturday, Oct. 16, you are invited to join me and other county and community leaders to honor former Hunter Mill District Supervisor Cathy Hudgins at a renaming ceremony beginning at 2 p.m. at Southgate Community Center, 12125 Pinecrest Rd. in Reston. The center is being renamed the Cathy Hudgins Community Center at Southgate, per my May 4 Board Matter, which was unanimously approved by the Board.

Cathy was the first African American woman to be elected to the Board of Supervisors, an office she held from 2000 until her retirement in 2019.

The community center is one of Cathy's biggest accomplishments and a lasting legacy to Southgate and surrounding communities. She is a community builder with a passion for improving the quality of life in our neighborhoods that are often overlooked. On Saturday, we are recognizing one of her biggest accomplishments, which was the re-creation of the Southgate Community Center as a county-owned facility in Reston in 2006. She worked tirelessly to negotiate the land lease with the Reston Association, secure the financing, review the building design, monitor its construction, and support the center’s program activities.

The ceremony is taking place during the annual (and very popular) Southgate Community Day, which runs from 1 to 5 p.m. Parking for the ceremony will be available close by at Dogwood Elementary School, with a shuttle to the community center beginning at 1:30 p.m. More information on parking and shuttle service, as well as to RSVP is here. In the event of rain, the ceremony will be held inside the community center. Please remember to bring a mask, as it is required in county facilities.

I am looking forward to the ceremony and hope to see you there!

What you need to know.

Our nonprofit partners are requesting donations of toddler and youth-size masks for school-aged kids. You can help by donating either homemade face coverings or store-bought masks. All masks must be new and unused. There are marked bins located at all county police stations to drop off your donations. Learn more. 

The Fairfax County Office of Elections is mailing a sample ballot beginning this week to each of the county’s 727,000 registered voters.

Learn more.

Early voting on Saturdays will be available on Oct. 23 and 30, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., as well as Sunday, Oct. 24, 1 to 5 p.m. Before you head out to vote, please check locations, dates and hours here.

The county's annual Drug Take Back Day is Saturday, Oct. 23, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. In Hunter Mill District, a drive-through drop off location will be at Reston Hospital, 1850 Town Center Parkway in Reston at Pavilion 1, rear entrance. Drug take back programs are a safe method for disposing of prescription drugs and are organized and closely monitored by the Fairfax County Police Department. Safe disposal of unused or expired medications prevents drug abuse and misuse, accidental poisoning and protects the environment.

The Arc of Northern Virginia is partnering with the Fairfax County Police Department and our Office of Emergency Management to offer an opportunity for people with disabilities and family or friends to practice emergency situations with officers. The multi-location event is Saturday, Oct. 23. The Hunter Mill District event will be 3 to 5 p.m. at Dogwood Elementary School, 12300 Glade Dr. in Reston. This event is open to anyone with any disability or general anxiety about police interactions, regardless of where they live. The event is free, but preregistration is required. Learn more, including additional locations.

COT is a group of residents focused on strengthening and building positive relationships between public safety agencies and the communities they serve. Thank you to the families, COT representatives and our county police officers who participated! Learn more.

We need two volunteers from Hunter Mill District to be involved in a work group on the future of parking in Fairfax County. At Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors Joint meeting with the Planning Commission, county staff presented information on the upcoming amendment to parking regulations. The county will be establishing a work group to provide feedback to staff on outreach efforts, community perspectives and specific proposals to revise current requirements. It is expected that the work group will start in November and meet up to twice a month.

If you would like to participate or have any questions please email Jose Delcid no later than Sunday, Oct. 31 at jose.delcid@fairfaxcounty.gov. 

The Fairfax County Police Department, along with local businesses and community organizations, is hosting a socially distanced Trunk-Or-Treat event on Monday, Oct.18, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Bull Run Regional Park, Special Events Center, 7700 Bull Run Dr., Centreville. The event is free but registration is required to participate. Learn more.

Town of Vienna Halloween Parade Oct. 27

The 75th annual Halloween Parade will take place on Oct. 27 at 7 p.m.. The theme for this year’s parade is "The Roaring Twenties." The 2021 Vienna Halloween Parade Grand Marshals are Rustic Love Vienna and the Vienna VA Foodies. 

On Saturday, Oct. 30, meet people of the past and discover their secrets to uncover the mysteries along the Potomac as you walk through the woods at Riverbend Park, 8700 Potomac Hills St. in Great Falls. A sweet treat will reward your success. The cost is $10 per person. Learn more.

The Reston Comprehensive Plan Study Task Force has weekly meetings scheduled through the fall. Information on watching upcoming meetings is below. To learn more about the Reston Comprehensive Plan Study and the task force, visit the Reston Comprehensive Plan Study webpage. Meeting details and agendas will be found here. You can watch live streams of the meetings on YouTube Live, as well as the video archive of all past task force meetings.

The Reston P&Z virtual meeting is Monday, Oct. 18 at 7:30 p.m. The meeting will be hosted on the Webex platform. Details and the agenda will be found here. Use this link to attend and participate in the meeting. You will be prompted to register with your email address and ZIP code before logging into meeting. If you prefer to listen to the meeting on your phone, you may call 1-844-621-3956 and use access code: 2347 691 1634. This is also the number to use if accessing TTY 711.

The next TAC meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 28, 8 to 10 a.m. The meeting will be hosted on the Webex platform. Use this link to attend and participate in the meeting. You will be prompted to register with your email address and ZIP code before logging into meeting. If you prefer to listen to the meeting on your phone, you may call 1-844-621-3956 and use access code: 2333 344 5162. This is also the number to use if accessing TTY 711. Watch recent TAC meetings here. The Hunter Mill District Transportation Advisory Commission (TAC) meets quarterly on community transportation issues. For additional information or to be added to the HMD TAC email list contact:Shyamali.Hauth@fairfaxcounty.gov

Vienna Farmers Market Open Through October

Join your neighbors for Town Clean Up Day on Saturday, Nov. 6, 9 a.m. to noon at the Vienna Town Green. It's a great family activity or perfect for students who need service hours. To sign up, email bharrington@viennava.gov or call 703-255-6336.

The Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) is accepting applications for the rehabilitation and long-term maintenance of Ash Grove, located at 8881 Ashgrove House Lane in Vienna. Ash Grove is one of the few standing 18th-century Virginia houses. The original portion of the house was constructed in 1790 and sits on approximately one acre of land between the densely wooded Old Courthouse Spring Branch stream valley and the Westwood Village townhouse subdivision. Learn more.

You and your family are invited to Frying Pan Farm Park to celebrate its 60th anniversary on Saturday, Oct. 16, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free. The park is located at 2709 West Ox Road in Herndon. Frying Pan Farm became a Fairfax County Park Authority site in 1961 and is one of the most popular parks in the county. Learn more.

NASCOW Returns! Frying Pan Farm Cows ‘Race’ for Good Cause on Oct. 22

Nine of the cows who live at Frying Pan Farm Park are slated to participate in the NASCOW FundRacer on Friday, Oct. 22. Fans are invited to look over the cows’ photos and bios and sponsor the cow they hope will win the race. Proceeds will support the farm and help provide food and medical care to the almost 100 farm animals that live at this unique park. Learn more.