Neighbors say Paul Warren Pardus was an aberration: a quiet, reserved guy in an otherwise open and friendly neighborhood.
Outside Pardus’ home on South Kenmore Street in Nauck tonight, a steady stream of reporters and television news crews stopped by to interview neighbors about the man who just hours earlier was the biggest story on the national news.
Pardus had allegedly shot a doctor in the abdomen at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore after becoming “emotionally distressed” about the prognosis for his ailing, elderly mother. Then, as police surrounded the hospital room he had holed up in, Pardus fatally shot his mother, then himself.
“It’s just unbelievable, it really is,” said Pardus’ next-door neighbor, Theresa Green. “He was a really nice guy.”
Neighbor Ronald Day said Pardus lived with his mother, was unmarried, had no kids, and was an only child. He said Day and his mother had lived in the small house on Kenmore Street for at least three years.
“He really loved his mother, he really did,” Day said. “He cared a whole lot about her… the only thing he was his mother.”
Day said the mother had become ill recently, prompting Pardus, a MetroAccess driver, to check on her often.
“He always came back to see if she was okay,” Day said.
But others weren’t as charitable in their assessment of the 50-year-old man who was only seen when coming or going from work or when doing yard work.
“He was just weird,” said Elaine Green. “We kept our distance.”
“It’s very surprising, but I wouldn’t put it past him… you never know what someone’s capable of,” she said.
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The Arlington-Aachen High School exchange is returning this summer and currently accepting applicants.
The sister-city partnership started in 1993 by the Arlington Sister Cities Association, which seeks to promote Arlington’s international profile through a variety of exchanges in education, commerce, culture and the arts. The exchange, scheduled June 17th to July 4th, includes a two-week homestay in Aachen plus three days in Berlin. Knowledge of the German language is not required for the trip.
Former participants have this to say:
_”The Aachen exchange was an eye-opening experience where I was fully immersed in the life of a German student. I loved biking through the countryside to Belgium, having gelato and picnics in the town square, and hanging out with my German host student’s friends. My first time out of the country, the Aachen exchange taught me to keep an open mind, because you never know what could be a life changing experience.” – Kelly M._

Learn about the new assessment of Arlington’s urban tree canopy and the many ecological and social benefits trees provide. Staff from the Green Infrastructure Center (GIC) will share study results and compare canopy cover for different areas of Arlington.The webinar will include assessments of ecosystem services such as stormwater mitigation, air quality, carbon uptake, and urban heat islands. For background on Arlington trees see the “Tree Benefits: Growing Arlington’s Urban Forest” presentation at http://www.gicinc.org/PDFs/Presentation_TreeBenefits_Arlington.pdf.
Please register in advance to assure your place at the webinar, https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/29543206508863839.
About the Arlington County Civic Federation: The Arlington County Civic Federation (“ACCF”) is a not-for-profit corporation which provides a forum for civic groups to discuss, debate, inform, advocate and provide oversight on important community issues, on a non-partisan basis. Its members include over ninety civic groups representing a broad cross-section of the community. Communications, resolutions and feedback are regularly provided to the Arlington County Government.
The next meeting is on Tuesday, February 21,2023 at 7 pm. This meeting is open to the public and will be hybrid, in-person and virtually through Zoom. Part of the agenda will be a discussion and vote on a resolution “To Restore Public Confidence in Arlington County’s Governance”. For more information on ACCF and this meeting, go to https://www.civfed.org/.
Valentine Pop-Up at George Mason University
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