The HIV rapid testing is available from 4:00 to 7:00 this afternoon at 800 S. Walter Reed Drive. No appointment is necessary, but residents can call 703-228-1200 for more information.
More information about the county’s HIV and STD testing services is available here.
Last night the paper published a piece by Local Opinion Editor Barbara Hollingsworth entitled “Federal judge should hear Arlington CPS case.” The article accuses Arlington’s Child Protective Services department of improperly taking away a baby girl from her birth parents and placing her into foster care. According to Hollingsworth’s account, the baby was taken from her parents in 2005 amid unfounded accusations of neglect and starvation.
The article is just one of more than a half dozen articles critical of Arlington Child Protective Services and Juvenile Relations Court judges published by the Examiner since 2008.
From 2005 to 2010 there were 102 suicide deaths in Arlington, according to the county’s Department of Human Services. During those six years, 71 percent of the deaths were among males, and most of those males were in their 30s or 40s.
Arlington’s average yearly suicide rate is 8.21 deaths per 100,000 residents. Though that rate is lower than the comparative national rate of 11.1 suicide deaths per 100,000 people (36,000 deaths in the U.S. per year), Arlington County is reminding residents that they can help prevent a tragedy by recognizing the following early warning signs of suicidal behavior.
Arlington County leases a 3,119 square foot store, on the second floor near the entrance to Macy’s Furniture Gallery, to house the Woodmont Weavers program. The privately-run but publicly-funded program allows adults with cognitive disabilities to learn how to weave, to sell their creations (placemats, pillows, totes, scarves, hats, etc.) and to earn a wage in the process. The county subleases the space to St. Coletta of Greater Washington, which runs the program on behalf of the Department of Human Services, for a nominal $1 rent.
On Saturday the board is expected to approve a lease and sublease renewal for the mall storefront. According to the staff report, the base rent for the store from Nov. 1, 2011 to Oct. 31, 2012 will be $67,528.80 per year. Add in taxes and utilities, and the expected annual cost rises to $93,911.40.
The Walter Reed Adult Day Care Center needs a few dedicated, patient and energetic individuals to help start its clients’ day off right one morning per week.
Volunteers will work from 8:00 to 9:45 on Tuesday mornings while the Center has its weekly staff meeting. Volunteers are expected to welcome the clients and serve morning meals.
Arlington’s Emergency Winter Shelter will remain closed tonight despite gusty winds and temperatures dropping into the upper 30s.
Kathy Sibert, executive director of the Arlington Street People’s Assistance Network (A-SPAN), says that illustrates the need for a year-round shelter. A-SPAN has been lobbying the county board for funding for such a shelter.
