Brittany O’Grady Profiled — “O’Grady credits her parents with shaping her ambivert personality. She says her father, who works in higher education financial aid, imbued her with compassion. Her mother, a communications professional who used to chair the Arlington County School Board, sparked her drive and ambition. These days, O’Grady lives in Atlanta, where she shot ‘Star’ from 2016 to 2019, but regularly returns to Arlington to sleep in her childhood bedroom, get her caffeine fix at Northside Social and enjoy the odd boat ride on the Potomac River.” [Washington Post]
Education Co. Moves to Arlington — “Separately, 2U relocated its headquarters last month from Lanham to Crystal City, the source confirmed. Mention of the one-time 309,000-square-foot office it occupied in Prince George’s is gone from its website. The only U.S. location is listed as 2345 Crystal Drive, Suite 1100 in Arlington. All this comes after the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy — a process it completed last month, emerging as a private company after a decade as a Nasdaq-listed public company.” [WBJ]
Flyover Planned Today — From Arlington Alert: “A United States military aircraft flyover is scheduled for Monday, October 7, at 3:10 PM at @ArlingtonNatl. While there will be an increase in air traffic noise, there is no cause for alarm.”
Crystal City Sports Pub Anniversary — “On Aug. 20, Crystal City Sports Pub celebrated its 30th anniversary. Offering new specials every day, more than 100 TVs, including an 18-foot tall video wall where guests can watch all NFL and most NCAA football games, it’s difficult to pin down what has led to the sports pub’s longevity.” [Patch]
N.Va. Unemployment Rate Rises — Northern Virginia’s jobless rate of 3.1% in August was up from 2.8% a year before, according to new state data, with 1.68 million employed and 54,500 seeking jobs. [Virginia Employment Commission]
County Democrats Phone-Bank to Florida — The Arlington County Democratic Committee plans to phone-bank into Florida on Oct. 22 in support of a ballot initiative guaranteeing abortion access. —Scott McCaffrey
MU Student at D.C. Fashion Week — “While at Marymount, [Caroline] MacDonald founded Allons•y Designs, a label that creates runway-worthy, ready-to-wear fashion. Now a fourth-year student and business owner, she took on a new challenge — DC Fashion Week. She was one of only nine local designers accepted into the DC Metropolitan Emerging Designers Showcase, alongside a former Marymount student, Annie Pacious.” [Marymount University]
Sentencing for Double Slaying — “Francis Deonte Rose was sentenced today to 58 years in prison for the 2022 shooting deaths of two construction workers in the West End… Rose was released from jail in Arlington just three months before the incident occurred. He was indicted on weapons and drug charges and was in prison from Oct. 18, 2020 until Feb. 23, 2022, but was freed when the court determined that police conducted an illegal search prior to his arrest, according to ARLnow.” [ALXnow]
Cold Case Guilty Plea — “An ex-Army soldier has pleaded guilty to killing a woman at her West Springfield home in 1994, Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano announced today (Friday). Stephan Smerk, 52, could face up to 70 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to first-degree murder for stabbing and killing Robin Lawrence, a stranger, while he was stationed at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall in Arlington.” [FFXnow]
It’s Monday — Expect sunny weather with temperatures reaching up to 70°F. Northwest winds will be blowing at 8-13 mph, gusting up to 20 mph. As for Monday night, the sky will be mostly clear, and the temperature will drop to around 50°F, accompanied by a northwest wind of 6-8 mph. [NWS]
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