By staff reports
Published: March 16, 2008

County agencies offer Internet safety program

The Prevention Alliance of Greater Prince William, the Gang Response Intervention Team and the Prince William County Police Crime Prevention Unit are presenting “Internet Safety — What you don’t know might hurt your children.”

Join these agencies for dinner and information on how you can keep your kids safe on the Internet. A Prince William County police officer will share what kids are doing on the Internet, what we as parents or caregivers should do about it, and how surfing the Internet and social Web sites can endanger your children. At the conclusion of the program there will be a hands-on demonstration on how to block dangerous sites and identify suspicious activity on your computer.

The program will be held on Wednesday, March 26, and begins at 6 p.m. A free dinner is being served during the program. This program is being held at the Carteret Mortgage Boys & Girls Club at 9676 Wellington Road, Manassas.

To register for this workshop, or for more information, contact the Prince William County Office On Youth at 703-792-6095 or e-mail your information to . Registration is required for all participants. The deadline to sign up is Monday, March 24.

Public works holds Potomac cleanup events

The Department of Public Works invites and encourages residents to participate in an upcoming stream cleanup. This local cleanup effort is part of a regional campaign to clean up the Potomac River Watershed with the ultimate goal of having the Potomac Trash Free by 2013.

Volunteers are needed at several events:
• April 5, Friends of the Occoquan, Occoquan River cleanup
To learn more about the event or sign up to volunteer, call 703-624-7124 or visit friendsoftheoccquan.org.
• April 5, Prince William County Public Works, Neabsco Creek cleanup
Call 703-792-7070 for more details or to volunteer.
• April 29, 9 a.m., Leesylvania State Park, Stewardship Day cleanup along the Potomac River
After the cleanup, participants are invited to learn more about the environment. Contact Leesylvania at 703-730-8205.
• May 10, Public Works cleanup and workshop for Scouts and ecology clubs
Youth will learn about wetlands and keeping our streams clean and be able to take part in the cleanup.

The Prince William Soil and Water Conservation District coordinates the community’s Adopt-A-Stream program. If you would like to adopt a stream and take part in this regional campaign, contact Joan Patterson at 703-594-3621. Existing Adopt-A-Stream volunteers are encouraged to clean up their streams in April and share their results with Public Works to be included in the regional effort.

The Trash Free Potomac Watershed Initiative is sponsored by the Alice Ferguson Foundation. The goal is to “provide experiences that encourage connections between people, the natural environment, farming and the cultural heritage of the Potomac River Watershed, leading to personal environmental responsibility.”

For more information or to volunteer, contact Deb Oliver, Department of Public Works, at 703-792-6819 or .

Youth Advisory Council applications due April 25

The Prince William County Office on Youth is accepting applications for membership on the 2008-2009 Youth Advisory Council. The applicant must be a freshman, sophomore or junior in the coming school year, and must reside in Prince William County, City of Manassas or Manassas Park. The deadline for submitting applications is Friday, April 25, at 5 p.m.

The Youth Advisory Council meets monthly during the school year at the James J. McCoart Administration Building in Woodbridge. The Council plans, staffs and promotes programs for young people as well as advocates on youth issues and concerns. Members also participate in activities of the Youth Services Board and the Office on Youth, including the Red Ribbon Campaign, the Annual Teen Summit and the Turn Off the Violence Campaign.

Application forms and information is available on the Web site at pwcgov.org/youth or from the Office on Youth at 703-792-6095.

Foreclosure prevention clinic a success

On Tuesday, March 4, two sessions on Homeownership and Foreclosure Prevention were held at Ebenezer Baptist Church. The Clinic was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), the Prince William Department of Housing and Community Development, the Hope Now Alliance and Neighborworks America.

More than 400 Prince William County families attended the clinic and learned about what they can do to prevent foreclosure. Many participants were able to complete paperwork onsite to improve their current financial challenges. Housing Counseling Agencies at the clinic provided viable options for referring the participants to the appropriate lender or workshop.

At the end of the clinics, each of the 12 servicing lenders were interviewed to determine the outcome of their interaction with participants. Feedback from the Prince William Clinic shows great success with payment modifications, payment plans and refinancing. All participating agencies should be commended for their part in helping families facing possible foreclosure to keep their homes.

Volunteers practice preparedness plan

On Tuesday, March 18, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. the Voluntary Action Center of Prince William County (VAC) will take part in a regional exercise to practice mobilizing volunteers in case of a large-scale emergency or disaster. The VAC is an integral member of the county government’s local emergency planning.

During the Tuesday exercise, the VAC will practice setting up and running Volunteer Reception Centers, which process and deploy volunteers to support recovery efforts in the aftermath of a disaster. They will also practice coordination and communication around the region to ensure an efficient and comprehensive response to mobilizing volunteers across multiple jurisdictions.

The National Capital Region’s volunteer agencies have established mutual aid agreements, as well as a regional case management model to work together in managing and deploying volunteers. This exercise tests these mutual aid agreements and how well volunteer agencies can mobilize volunteers within their own jurisdictions as well as come to the aid of other jurisdictions.

BMX track set to open April 1 in county

When the Prince William County Park Authority’s BMX facility opens for the season on Tuesday, April 1, it will have something in common with the 2008 Olympic BMX track in Beijing — the track. Tom Ritzenthaler, a world-renowned BMX track designer and builder, designed both tracks.

In October 2006, the Park Authority BMX track underwent a rebuild with the expertise of Ritzenthaler and the help of Park Authority grounds crews. The rebuild involved adding new jumps and flattening, raising, lowering, shortening and lengthening some of the existing jumps. Turns on the track were also altered. Since the track has been rebuilt, the BMX facility has been closed for the winter season.

“This is the first major rebuild we’ve done on the track,” said Paul Kincheloe, a volunteer who serves as Northern Virginia BMX’s Track Director. “The changes being made to the track will offer new challenges to BMX riders who have been coming to this track week after week, year after year,” said Kincheloe. The planning process of rebuilding the track started a few months ago, but the rebuild took about a week.

Admission fees to the Prince William County Park Authority BMX facility are $3 for residents and $4 for non-residents, ages 11 and younger and $4 for residents and $5 for non-residents, ages 12 and older. Pass plans are available for $20 for 10 visits for residents and $30 for 10 visits for non-residents, ages 11 and younger and $25 for 10 visits for residents and $35 for 10 visits for non-residents, ages 12 and older. A parent or guardian must accompany all riders under 18 years of age.

The Prince William County Park Authority BMX facility is located behind the G. Richard Pfitzner Stadium (where the Potomac Nationals play) at 7 County Complex Court in Woodbridge. For more information about the Prince William County Park Authority BMX facility, call the BMX track at 703-792-3298, visit pwcparks.org or contact Paul Kincheloe, Track Director, at 703-987-3544.