A new vegan food and beverage truck is serving up coffee with a cause on Wilson Blvd in Ballston.

Pink Star Cafe opened its truck window Sunday, Oct. 3. and plans to remain parked in the area until it raises enough money to open a brick-and-mortar storefront.

But selling treats and cafe drinks is not owner Mohamed Jalloh’s top priority. His mission is to use the profits to fund a health clinic in his family’s home country of Sierra Leone.

“We’re going to give general checkups, menstrual products and necessities for those who don’t have access to them,” said Jalloh, a first-generation American who grew up in the D.C. area.

Jalloh plans to set up the clinic in early January in Freetown, the nation’s capital and the city where his mother lived before emigrating to the U.S. The three-day clinic will be run by some Sierra Leonean medical professionals who are the first in their families to become medical professionals.

How much money he dedicates to the cause will depend on what his profit margins look like by January, he says.

“As we grow, the plan is eventually to create bigger and better health clinics yearly, build more water wells and get people access to food,” said Jalloh.

Here in Ballston, Pink Star Cafe serves up classic, creative and seasonal espresso drinks, from lattes to purple hot chocolate to caramel apple tea lattes. It also offers vegan pastries, including glazed doughnuts, confetti cupcakes and seasonal treats, such as pumpkin cookies.

Jalloh said vegan treats are an integral part of ensuring the cafe is “socially and economically conscious.” He gets the vegan baked goods from a husband-and-wife duo in Austin, Texas.

“I wanted to work with a company that’s just as small as I am,” said Jalloh. “I just love supporting other small businesses. ‘I’m small, you’re small, let’s get big together or let’s just stay small.'”

The entrepreneur says he has spent much of his life working in the food service industry, learning from his mother how to sell food in crowded areas and give back to his community. Opening a food truck was a natural next step.

“My mom didn’t have an education, so when she first came from Sierra Leone, she had a hot dog stand outside of RFK Stadium where the Redskins — now Washington Football Team — used to play,” he said. “Every summer, when I wasn’t in school, I would work with her. She’d give me a cooler and I would sell water and Gatorade. Eventually, she went from a hot dog stand to a food truck. She’d drive around and feed construction workers while they were building up D.C.”

The Howard University alumnus first set up shop in Los Angeles in mid-2020. The locale and clientele inspired the name, he says, since “everybody in LA wants to be a star, so Pink Star is the place where everyone gets to be treated like a star.”

But he soon felt the pull to move back to the D.C. area.

“Los Angeles is a cool place but I just love it here,” he said. “I’m also a fall person, fall is my favorite season of the year. Fall and winter, it don’t get no better than that.”

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Oyster and beer festival Shucktoberfest is returning to Shirlington later this month.

More than 40 food vendors will be selling craft beer, oysters and food at the Village at Shirlington (2700 S. Quincy Street). The event will be held Saturday, Oct. 23 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The fourth-annual event is put on by Copperwood Tavern (4021 Campbell Ave).

For younger attendees, there will be a kids’ zone with face painters, balloon artists and family-friendly games. Dogs are welcome, too.

Tickets are $40 and include a wristband for adults age 21 and older, a 5-ounce beer-tasting mug and 10 event tickets. Each event ticket is redeemable for one 5-ounce beer sample or two oysters.

Tickets can be purchased at the event, but organizers recommended pre-purchasing them online.

When 26-year-old Paralympic swimmer and Arlington local Alyssa Gialamas retired after 10 years as a competitive athlete, she decided to devote her newfound time to helping other people with disabilities get fit.

After competing in London and Rio for the U.S. Paralympic Team, she found inspiration for her next venture closer to home, where she saw few accessible workout opportunities.

“I started going to the gym and noticing there weren’t a lot of resources for people with disabilities,” said Gialamas, who was born with arthrogryposis, a condition that keeps some of the joints in her leg from moving easily.

The athlete drew on her expertise adapting workouts intended for able-bodied people to put together exercises and classes for people with different physical limitations. Last month, she launched a nonprofit organization called Adapt, Move & Gain Fitness to bring her exercises to people with differing abilities.

Gialamas aims to hold her first class in early November, with one class per month after that while the organization gets off the ground.

“There definitely are not adaptive classes here in Arlington, so I think it’ll be really cool to start here,” she said.

Gialamas said her organization taps into a pressing need in the local disability community, which includes more than 8,700 people under 65, according to the 2020 census.

“People with disabilities are three times more likely to have health issues like diabetes and heart disease,” said Gialamas. “There’s such a need for it. That’s why I started it.”

She developed three types of workouts: fully seated “Adapt” workouts, seated or standing “Move” workouts, and fully standing “Gain” workouts. The exercises are free to access.

“I don’t want people to not use these resources due to price,” said Gialamas. “Money will come through strategic partnerships and donations. There are some partners in the works. It’s been really cool to have so many people be excited about it.”

As for where the classes will be located, Gialamas said she hopes to one day operate her nonprofit from her own space. For now, she plans to host events at gyms around Arlington.

Folks can try her approximately 30-minute workouts at home, too.

“All of the workouts right now are on my website so you can do them anywhere, which is super cool,” said Gialamas. “There’s also a community page so if you do a workout you can post about it.”

Gialamas says it’s important for people with disabilities to have classes tailored to them and places to exercise with each other.

“I think there’s a really cool aspect of seeing other people like you, in any sense, and being able to base it [workouts] off of each other is really cool,” she said. “You don’t have to be a Paralympian to feel good in your body and about your disability.”

For the third year in a row, the Arlington Chamber of Commerce is hosting Arlington Restaurant Week. All participating restaurants, bakeries and bars will offer discounts from Monday, Oct. 18 through Monday, Oct. 25.

Discounts will vary based on the restaurant, and some may offer discounts for both dine-in and carry-out options. Restaurant Week menus will be available on the chamber’s website.

“The Chamber is excited to have more than 40 of Arlington’s best restaurants already signed up and ready to showcase the diverse cuisine of Arlington,” said chamber CEO Kate Bates.

The current list of participating restaurants includes:

• 15 & Eads
• Ambar
• Ballston Local
• Bayou Bakery
• Bell20 Restaurant
• Celtic House
• Colony Grill
• Colony House Bar + Kitchen
• Copa Kitchen & Bar
• Delhi Dhaba
• Domino’s
• Fire Works Arlington
• Freddie’s Beach Bar & Restaurant
• Good Company Doughnuts
• Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe
• La Bettola Italiano
• La Côte d’Or Café
• La Moo Creamery
• Lebanese Taverna
• Los Tios Grill
• Mah-Ze-Dahr Bakery
• Mala Tang
• Mussel Bar & Grill
• Nothing Bundt Cakes
• Olive Lebanese Eatery
• Potomac Social Tavern
• ROCKLANDS Barbeque and Grilling Company
• SER
• Sidekick Bakery
• Slapfish
• Smokecraft Modern Barbecue
• Spice Kraft Indian Bistro
• Superette
• Sushi-Zen
• Sweet Science Coffee
• Tacos and Pina
• Ted’s Bulletin
• Thai Select
• The Freshman
• Top Thai Restaurant and Sushi
• TTT Clarendon
• Union Kitchen
• WHINO

As it did last year, Amazon is sponsoring the event.

Bates says the chamber is eager to connect hungry locals to unique eateries across the county, especially as we emerge from the pandemic.

“Now, more than ever, it is important to support and highlight the local restaurant community and its importance in Arlington,” she said.

Racking up millions of views this summer, hit HBO miniseries “The White Lotus” follows a group of travelers vacationing at a Hawaiian resort. As they attempt to escape from their problems, their problems instead confront them in ways they never imagined.

This dark comedy, released on HBO Max in July, features stars such as Connie Britton, Steve Zahn and Jennifer Coolidge with screenwriting and direction from Mike White, of “School of Rock” and “Nacho Libre.” It also includes a familiar face locally, whose fame continues to grow: Arlington’s very own Brittany O’Grady.

O’Grady, 25, is a graduate of Washington-Liberty High School who acted throughout her childhood at Drew Elementary School, Thomas Jefferson Middle School and W-L. She also danced at Arlington Dance Theatre (which has since closed) and Alexandria’s Metropolitan Fine Arts Center. She later performed at regional theaters including Synetic Theater in Crystal City and Ford’s Theatre in D.C., said Monique O’Grady, Brittany’s mother and a member of the Arlington School Board.

Brittany O’Grady, a true triple threat, had her breakout role last year in “Little Voice,” singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles’s Apple TV+ show about her journey as an up-and-coming artist. O’Grady plays the show’s star, Bess, a character loosely based on Bareilles. Before that, she had a supporting role in the Fox series “Star.”

Most recently, she played a woman in love in a music video for “Love Me Now” by Kygo.

In The White Lotus, however, O’Grady’s character explores very different themes of race and privilege. She plays Paula, a college student who has joined her friend’s family on vacation. Although Paula and her friend Olivia (played by Sydney Sweeney) seem like two peas in a pod, their differences come to light as the story progresses.

Olivia comes from a privileged family, headed by the matriarch and high-powered CFO Nicole (played by Connie Britton). The affluent, white family members recognize this but seem unconcerned with the inequity on which they thrive. Paula, who is not white, feels the family needs to be knocked down a peg — though she also benefits from their status, which she doesn’t realize until later in the series.

O’Grady, who is biracial, says this dramatized environment of unchecked privilege was worlds away from her childhood and young adult life in Arlington.

“It was fairly opposite to my upbringing,” said O’Grady. “I loved growing up in Arlington. I am so grateful to the mentors I had when I worked with different companies around the area. I was always challenged. I continue to challenge myself, grow and learn from those around me.”

Being forced into uncomfortable conversations about race and privilege, however, is something she says she’s familiar with.

“I definitely feel like I have experienced circumstances that Paula faced on vacation, like sitting at a table and hearing atrocious, tone-deaf things come out of people’s mouths,” she said, while adding of her drug-using character that “I think we have different hobbies and approach issues differently.”

In the show, Olivia tells her father Mark (played by Steve Zahn) that Paula felt uncomfortable watching the hotel staff — many of whom are native Hawaiian — perform a traditional Hawaiian dance for them at dinner. Mark replies that they shouldn’t feel bad about it because things are the way they are and there’s nothing the family can do about it. Paula is visibly upset by his response.

Paula’s activist spirit is something else O’Grady says she relates to.

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Arlington County will host the latest iteration of its biannual E-CARE event this weekend, offering locals a chance to dispose of hazardous materials and other stuff from around the house.

Locals can bring approved items to the drop-off site at 1425 N. Quincy Street, across from Washington-Liberty High School, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 9.

“No E-CARE was held in 2020 for COVID-19 safety,” the county noted in a press release. “This spring, a scaled-down version still collected almost 95 thousand pounds of household hazardous materials (HHM) and 26 thousand pounds of used electronics, dropped off by 1,870 Arlington residents, a new record.”

“Returning for the first time since 2019, the group Bikes for the World will take bicycle donations for use as basic transportation overseas,” the press release added. “Also, back for Oct. 9: a special collection area dedicated to metal item recycling.”

In addition to bikes, electronics and small metal items, the following items will be accepted at drop-off:

• Automotive fluids
• Batteries
• Car care products
• Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs)
• Corrosives (acids/caustics)
• Fire extinguishers
• Flammable solvents
• Fluorescent tubes
• Fuels/petroleum products
• Household cleaners
• Lawn and garden chemicals
• Mercury
• Paint products (25-can limit)
• Photographic chemicals
• Poisons (pesticides)
• Printer ink/toner cartridges
• Propane gas cylinders (small hand-held or larger)
• Swimming pool chemicals

Also being collected: “household devices containing mercury (thermostats, thermometers, sphygmomanometers, manometers, barometers, hygrometers and liquid mercury)” as well as compact fluorescent lights.

The following will not be accepted.

• Asbestos
• Explosives and ammunition
• Freon
• Medical wastes
• Prescription medications
• Radioactive materials
• Smoke detectors

Residents are asked to place hazardous materials and electronics in separate cardboard boxes for easy handling and to prevent spills. The cardboard boxes will then be recycled.

Participants will also be required to wear masks and stay in their cars as crews unload the items.

This event is only for Arlington residents. Commercial waste is not accepted. Participants will be asked to verify their residency at the event.

The county will be offering safe disposal of unused prescription drugs later this month as opioid overdoses rise in Arlington.

On Saturday, Oct. 23, the Arlington County Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration will offer contactless, drive-thru drug disposal from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at police department headquarters (1425 N. Courthouse Road) and Fire Station No. 5 (1750 S. Hayes Street). It’s part of a nationwide effort by the DEA.

This disposal service is free and anonymous. Officers will remove items from cars as participants drive by, and there will be a separate drop-off area for cyclists and pedestrians.

Police say this is an “opportunity to prevent pill abuse and theft by ridding their homes of potentially dangerous expired, unused and unwanted prescription drugs.”

The event comes amid a historic spike in fatal overdoses. ACPD reports that there have been more overdoses in 2021 than in any year since the county started tracking cases in 2014.

“That’s why it’s more important than ever that members of the public take advantage of this potentially lifesaving program as well as other treatment resources available in Arlington County and through the Department of Human Services,” the release said.

Participants can drop off tablets, capsules, patches and other solid forms of prescription drugs. Vape pens and other kinds of e-cigarettes, with the batteries removed, will also be accepted. The locations will not accept liquids, including intravenous solutions, syringes, other sharps and illegal drugs.

For those unable to attend the event, Arlington County has four permanent drug disposal boxes available at the following locations:

• Fire Station 2 (4805 Wilson Blvd)
• Fire Station 5 (1750 S. Hayes Street)
• Fire Station 9 (1900 S. Walter Reed Drive)
• Arlington County Police Department (1425 N. Courthouse Road)

More than 7,000 pounds of prescription drugs have been safely disposed of since these sites were set up in 2018, according to police.

Long since out of college, and done with the bar and party scene, Northern Virginia resident Brittany Goetz discovered she was struggling to make friends her age.

When the pandemic struck and thriving office spaces were exchanged for living rooms, it became nearly impossible.

She realized she was not the only one. Two of her friends, Alexandra Zamalloa and Rebekkah Johnson, noticed they and other acquaintances were likewise having a hard time forming connections with women, even with the ubiquity of social media and networking events. So they decided to take action.

Goetz came up with the idea for Neighborly NOVA, a social group for women that hosts events in Arlington, back in June. She recruited Zamalloa and Johnson, who both work in marketing and communications, to help create a website, organize in-person events and develop an outreach strategy.

“It’s really heartbreaking how disconnected we can all be, so we really wanted to be that platform,” said Johnson.

Their first four events have brought dozens of women from all around the region to Arlington, which they chose for its walkability and central location for attendees and themselves. Zamalloa lives in the county while Goetz lives in Alexandria and Johnson in McLean.

They’re targeting women in their 20s and 30s who are ready for adult friendships, but not yet ensconced in domestic life with partners and kids.

“Less and less, people are getting married at 25,” said Johnson. “I got tired of going to bars years ago, so I’ll just be home now. I have a dog and he’s great, but he’s not a person.”

The three said they hope to turn the organization into a certified nonprofit that provides women with mental health counseling, legal advice and other services. But for now, they’re focused on helping socially starved adult women make friends.

“Our thing is to leave politics, religion at the door,” Goetz said. “Because, despite our difference, I feel like as women we should find commonality and come together. We hope it becomes something really beautiful.”

Neighborly NOVA has hosted a variety of events, from a “Friends” trivia night to a dance fitness event at Quincy Park. In one event, women who spoke different languages taught the basics of their native tongues to their new friends. Last weekend, the group hosted a flower arranging competition in the Virginia Square Plaza apartment building. The event was sponsored by Clarendon flower shop Full Bloom, which provided the flowers and equipment.

As for the rest of the costs, like renting out the room, providing snacks, drinks, prizes and a chocolate fountain, Goetz, Johnson and Zamalloa have taken that onus upon themselves in the name of creating a space with no barriers to entry. The women say they’re happy to do it.

“This is our passion,” said Goetz. “For the most part, our lives have been blessed that we’ve been able to provide this.”

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An event featuring food, drink and salsa dancing is scheduled to take place at Ballston Quarter’s outdoor plaza tomorrow for National Hispanic Heritage Month.

From 5-7 p.m. on Wednesday, locally-based DJ Cyd will spin salsa tracks to accompany dance lessons with instructor Ricky Ricardo outside the Quarter Market food hall, at 4238 Wilson Blvd. Salsa, Sip & Mingle will also feature sangria and food tastings from Bartaco, COPA Kitchen and Bar, Ted’s Bulletin and Ice Cream Jubilee.

Tickets can be purchased online for $20 and come with a sangria drink, salsa lessons and food. Admission is free for employees who work in most Ballston office buildings and for members of the Arlington and NOVA Hispanic chambers of commerce. Those eligible can get their free ticket by including work information and the promo code SALSA2021 at checkout.

This is the Ballston Business Improvement District’s eighth year of holding Sip & Mingle events, but its first-ever salsa-themed event to honor National Hispanic Heritage Month, said a BID representative.

The celebratory month started as a week-long holiday in 1968 under President Lyndon Johnson, to honor the anniversary of independence from Spanish rule for several Central American countries.

President Ronald Reagan extended National Hispanic Heritage Month to be 30 days long in 1988. The celebration now runs from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15.

The BID has not hosted a Sip & Mingle event since January of 2020.

“This will be our first Sip & Mingle since COVID forced events to be canceled,” said BID CEO Tina Leone. “It’s exciting to have a wonderful reason to get the community back together, sing, dance and have some fun.”