After 26 years of serving customers at Silver Diner in Arlington, Dorothy Johnson — known to regulars as “Mama D” — is hanging up her uniform.
Johnson will wait on customers for the last time this Saturday (March 7) at the Ballston restaurant, located at 750 N. Glebe Road. Silver Diner will hold a going away party at the restaurant at 1:30 p.m. so coworkers and customers can say their goodbyes, according to a press release.
After 26 years as Arlington Public Schools’ supervisor for health, physical/driver education and athletics, Debbie DeFranco has retired.
DeFranco — whose last day was Tuesday, following 34 years at APS — is being succeeded by former Wakefield High School principal Chris Willmore.
Arlington’s public art director has retired after over three decades in the role, leaving behind a range of ongoing projects in the county’s public arts pipeline.
In her role at Arlington Public Art, Angela Adams oversaw the delivery of artistic projects ranging from sculptures and outdoor light fixtures to artistic flourishes found in parks, on bus shelters and bridges under the Public Arts Master Plan.
Over a dozen officers are leaving the Arlington County Police Department under a new program incentivizing county employees to retire.
The Voluntary Retirement Incentive program, included in the newly adopted Fiscal Year 2026 budget, encourages retirement for late-career county employees. So far, 32 employees have opted into the program, which is billed as a money-saving strategy.
A history-making Black female leader retired Friday after a 30-year career at the Arlington County Fire Department.
Tiffanye Wesley — the department’s first Black female lieutenant, captain, battalion chief and deputy chief — celebrated her last day at the agency surrounded by dozens of friends and fellow firefighters.
A long-time detective in the Arlington County Police Department retired this week.
Det. Rosa Ortiz served her last day on the force yesterday (Thursday) following decades of Arlington sex crime and homicide investigations, including the 2009 murder of Carl Diener and the 1999 murder of Eva Veliz.
An explosives detection K-9 celebrated his retirement at Reagan National Airport today.
Messi, an 8-year-old yellow lab, was feted this morning in the historic Terminal 1 lobby with a surprise tennis ball drop, a cupcake and the ceremonial removal of his TSA “Do Not Pet” patch.
The owner of Arlington’s Wild Birds Unlimited is seeking to retire after 32 years in the birding business — right after he finds a successor.
Michael Zuiker wants to make it clear: the long-standing storefront in the Lee Harrison Shopping Center in Yorktown isn’t going anywhere. But after more than three decades, Zuiker is looking for someone new to fill his role of chatting with customers, keeping up with change and encouraging busy Arlingtonians to take time to enjoy the natural world.
Arlington County Board Chair Libby Garvey is retiring at the end of her term in 2024.
She announced her decision near the top of a County Board meeting today (Tuesday).
When Hon. Judith Wheat became Chief Judge of the Arlington County Circuit Court last week, she made history on two fronts.
She is the first woman Chief Judge the Circuit Court has ever had and, with her in the role, all three local courts now have a woman presiding as the lead judge.
Dispute Leads to Violence, Vehicular Mayhem — “The victim pulled the suspect out of the vehicle and he pushed her, causing her to fall to the ground. A security guard intervened and separated the parties. The suspect then reentered his vehicle, described as a white van, and fled the scene. While fleeing, the suspect allegedly struck the victim’s vehicle, a sign on the property, and drove towards the security guard, causing him to dive out of the way.” [ACPD]
Beyer Wants Quieter Airplanes — “As the representative for the area around Reagan National Airport, one of the most common concern heard by Rep. Don Beyer is airplane noise. On Friday, Beyer is reintroducing the Cleaner, Quieter Airplanes Act to seek study on reducing airplane noise and emissions.” [Patch]
It’s not just Telly Tucker who’s leaving Arlington Economic Development.
Tucker become the county’s Director of Economic Development in January 2020, just before the pandemic, after serving in the same role for Danville, Virginia. He’s now returning to Danville to head the state’s Institute for Advanced Learning and Research.
