Monday afternoon, shortly before 4 p.m., with the local temperature in Front Royal and Warren County hovering at 92 degrees Fahrenheit – with a “Feels like 98” on my phone weather app – and more of the same forecast for the next six days, Warren County Fire & Rescue/Emergency Services issued a detailed Press Release warning about potential physical consequences for people and pets. The release from the desk of Assistant Fire Chief Gerry Maiatico outlined recommended safeguards and some available local facilities where people without access to air conditioning can seek temporary relief in air-conditioned public spaces.

High-risk groups for physical consequences of extended periods of high temperatures were identified as the elderly and very young, as well as pets, particularly those kept outside for extended periods of time in such weather. My above-referenced weather app projected high temperatures beginning today, Monday, June 17, 92; Tuesday, 92; Wednesday, 90; Thursday, 93; Friday, 95; Saturday, 96; and Sunday, 95, with increasing humidity and little rain forecast.

Below is the local Emergency Services release in its entirety:

The County of Warren and Office of Emergency Management continue to monitor the National Weather Service forecast of a prolonged period of hot temperatures expected this week, with increasing humidity throughout the week. The combination of heat and humidity could result in heat indices above 100 degrees Tuesday through Sunday afternoon, mainly across the lower elevations.

These high temperatures, with high humidity, could be dangerous for those spending too much time outdoors. At-risk populations include the elderly and the very young. Also, do not forget about your pets; they should have plenty of water and shade.

Cooling Center relief:

Due to the extreme heat, residents can visit the following temporary cooling center locations:

Samuels Public Library 330 East Criser Road, Front Royal VA 22630 (Hours Vary);

Warren County Community Center 538 Villa Avenue, Front Royal, VA 22630 (Hours Vary);

Warren County Public Safety Building Community Room (lobby area) 200 Skyline Vista Drive Front Royal, VA 22630 (9 a.m.-5 p.m.);

Warren County Senior Center (Adults over 60)  1217 Commonwealth Avenue, Front Royal, VA 22630 (9 a.m.-5 p.m. – Call Ahead);

Warren County Splash 200 East 8th Street, Front Royal, VA (Hours Vary – Weather Permitting).

Cooling Centers are a place where individuals can go for a temporary escape from the extreme temperatures, they are not shelters where there are cots and food available, but simply a place to rest in an air-conditioned room with access to water to help prevent heat related injuries or illness.

There is hot, and then there is hot! Extreme heat is a period of high heat and humidity with temperatures above 90 degrees for at least two to three days. In extreme heat, your body works extra hard to maintain a normal temperature, which can lead to death. Extreme heat is responsible for the highest annual deaths among all weather-related hazards. By following these simple safety tips, you can better protect yourself, your family, and your pets from the effects of high heat:

Never leave people or pets in a closed car on a warm day.

If air conditioning is unavailable, go to a cooling center.

Take cool showers or baths.

Wear loose, lightweight, light-colored clothing.

Use your oven less to help reduce the temperature in your home.

If you’re outside, find shade. Wear a hat wide enough to protect your face.

Drink plenty of fluids to stay hydrated.

Avoid high-energy activities or work outdoors during midday heat, if possible.

Check on family members, older adults, and neighbors.

Watch for heat cramps, heat exhaustion, and heat stroke.

Consider pet safety. If they are outside, ensure they have plenty of cool water and access to comfortable shade. Asphalt and dark pavement can be very hot to your pet’s feet.

If you have an emergency, please dial 911.

Be aware of heat-related symptoms, which can lead to death.

(From a release by WC Fire & Rescue)

In 2018, Tom Baker, an artist and the inspiration behind Camp Fantastic, passed away. “That was when we began talking about how we needed to do something to honor the man and his impact on this community and so many people,” remarked David Smith, senior director of Special Love, at the memorial unveiling on Saturday. Smith clearly remembers forty-one years ago when Tom and Shiela approached the 4-H Center about possibly developing a camp for young people battling cancer. “It’s not a mystery why we chose this spot,” Smith added. Tom was very fond of the view overlooking Harmony Hollow. 4-H Educational and Conference Center executive director Katie Tennant marveled at the blessing of seeing so many people who benefited from Camp Fantastic working at the 4-H Center today. She said that keeping that dream and vision going is an awesome experience.

A picture of Tom Baker, founder of Special Love and Camp Fantastic, is displayed on Saturday, June 15, at a memorial dedication of a new terrace at the Northern Virginia 4-H Center in his honor. Royal Examiner Photo Credits: Brenden McHugh.

A poem that was very near and dear to Tom and is read every year, at the end of every Special Love staff orientation, at the start of camp, “Risk” by William Henry Ward, was read aloud by Kathy Russell, also affiliated with Special Love, for the benefit of those in attendance at the memorial unveiling. “To laugh is to risk appearing a fool, to weep is to risk appearing sentimental, to reach out to another is to risk involvement, to expose feelings is to risk exposing your true self, to place your ideas and dreams before a crowd is to risk their loss, to love is to risk not being loved in return, to live is to risk dying, to hope is to risk despair, to try is to risk failure. However, risks must be taken because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing. The person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, is nothing. He may avoid suffering and sorrow, but he can’t learn, feel, change, grow, or live. Only a person who takes risks is free. The pessimist complains about the wind, the optimist expects it to change, and the realist adjusts the sails.”

David Smith (L) is affiliated with Special Love and Katie Tennant (R), the Northern Virginia 4-H Educational and Conference Center executive director.

Several young people who have benefited from Camp Fantastic unveil a dedicatory plaque to Special Love founder Tom Baker at the opening of a memorial terrace in his memory.

“Because we have a full medical team, we can have the sickest children here,” executive director of Special Love, Jan Bresch, told the Royal Examiner. After the program, the guests at the memorial terrace unveiling were welcomed to a reception with food.

At 5 p.m. on Thursday, June 13, at the revitalized Raymond E. Santmyers Student Union and Activity Center at 200 East 8^th Street, an open house was held for businesses in Front Royal and the larger Warren County area to come and see and get a feel for what the youth center is going to be and why it is worthy of their investment, not only financial, but of time, talent, and resources. President of the non-profit Reaching Out Now (RON), Samantha Barber, shared at length RON’s vision for the much beloved building, explaining in detail all the progress that has been made and still needs to be made to make the youth center operative again.

Karen Peer of Sysco (behind the table) facilitates the business open house for the Raymond E. Santmyers Student Union and Activity Center. Royal Examiner Photo Credits: Brenden McHugh.

The presence of so many people who play key roles in this community testified to the enduring Santmyers legacy and a good gauge of how eager the community is to see the youth center reopen. In attendance was Councilman Glenn Wood, who had a very positive experience at the youth center when he was young and credits the Santmyers for their legacy of keeping kids out of trouble and giving them a safe place to be productively engaged and thinking about their futures. He also said that he believes the Town can continue making financial contributions to RON like the one made earlier this year for $25,000, and he emphatically hopes they will. Also in attendance was Justin Proctor of the Advisory Committee for Environmental Sustainability (ACES), who spoke with Animation about his talks with Barber regarding what ACES can do to reimagine the space outside the youth center. Matthew Welch of Quiet Mind Psychotherapeutic Services, Inc., spoke of his appreciation for what RON plans to do. Robert Adanitsch, CEO of ACOM, pointed to the cameras his people have installed at key points in the building and mentioned the vape sensors installed in the bathrooms.

Justin Proctor (L) and Chris Rademacher (R), both affiliated with the Advisory Committee for Environmental Sustainability (ACES), are excited about the role they will play in reimagining the space outside the youth center.

President of Reaching Out Now Samantha Barber stands with her good friend, culinary artist Devin Smith, before the meal he created for Thursday evening’s open house at the youth center.

With a history dating back to 2008 and not only surviving but actively meeting needs during the onset of the pandemic, Reaching Out Now already has a legacy of instilling leadership qualities in the community’s young people, working in close partnership with the school system and developing programs like Safe at Home with softball and baseball games to give our young people the support they need and raise money for scholarships. This revitalized youth center is where children between eighth and twelfth grades will feel seen, heard, and loved. Barber shared that when surveyed, the youth have reported that they want tutoring opportunities above all other things, including food. Here, she emphasized that financial contributions are vital considering the amount of money that still needs to be raised before the center can open, but more important than anything else is the investment of time, talent, and resources through programs designed to convey skill sets to the youth of this community, which will hopefully guide them on a path to a bright future. We cannot do this without you, she told the group.

Matthew Welch (R) stands with two other representatives of Quiet Mind Psychotherapeutic Services, Inc., as they attended the open house supporting the youth center whose values align with their own.

You may be a minority in your home community but in statewide and national elections every vote is very important. — That was one of the messages conveyed by Virginia’s U.S. Senator Tim Kaine during a luncheon gathering on the outdoor deck patio of Vibrissa Beer and Kitchen in Front Royal’s Historic Downtown Business District Tuesday, June 11. Also appearing, and responding to questions along with Senator Kaine, was Democratic candidate Ken Mitchell, who will challenge Republican incumbent Ben Cline in Virginia’s Sixth District Congressional race this year.

The WC Democratic Committee promotional for Senator Tim Kaine and 6th State Congressional District challenger Ken Mitchell’s visit to Historic Downtown Front Royal. And we were informed the promised coffee was provided by Doppio Bunny Coffee – a little more caffeine on the side, please. Graphic courtesy WC Democratic Committee

And while every vote is important, it appears that for local Democrats that vote won’t come until the November general election. For as Warren County Democratic Committee Vice-Chair Jessica Reynolds explained to us, neither Mitchell or Kaine faces primary challenges from within the Democratic Party on June 18. However, five Republicans are vying to challenge Kaine for his U.S. Senate seat. They are: C.L. “Chuck” Smith Jr., Edward “Eddie” C. Garcia Jr., Hung Cao, Jonathan Emord, and Scott Thomas Parkinson.

Kaine stressed the importance of the coming national Presidential and Congressional elections as the very concept of our democratically based Constitutional Republic form of government seems to increasingly be at issue. That appears to be based on acceptance by some Republicans of Donald Trump’s claim that his recent Stormy Daniels hush-money payment, election-interference criminal jury trial and conviction in New York City was a politically manipulated fraud, as opposed to a trial based on legitimate evidence that would have brought any American citizen to trial before a jury of their peers, including an ex-president of the United States.

Describing his experience as a young man in Honduras when there was a non-elective dictatorship in place, Kaine said, “I was naive but at the end of the year I wasn’t naive. I was like, wow, dictators are real, authoritarians are real. You can’t just take for granted that you can vote because in Honduras when I lived there, you couldn’t vote. And people I lived with prayed for the day when they might be able to choose their leader. So, I came back in 1981 feeling like, okay now I’m not naive. I understand what’s out there in the world.

‘But I was still naive’

“But I was still naive, because I never would have thought that I’d see that same authoritarian impulse here in this country. And yet we’re seeing it all around the world, we’re seeing it in Hungary, in El Salvador, in the United States. The battle between democracy and authoritarianism is not like a settled issue. No, it is a live issue. And we are on the verge of celebrating 250 years as a nation in 2026. And the burden and responsiblility and opportunity has been placed on our shoulders to be a generation that revitalizes and then puts the functioning democracy we have at the time in the hands of our kids and grandkids.

Tim Kaine and Ken Mitchell, the latter speaking below, on the primary stump, but pointing for November with no primary challenges for either Democratic candidate on June 18. – Royal Examiner Photos Roger Bianchini

“And I believe we’re up to it, Virginians are up to it, I think Americans are up to it, and I think that’s why we’re going to be successful come November,” Kaine told his audience of Democrats and independent voters, drawing applause.

The Democratic candidates also faced some tough questions about the Biden Administration’s apparent support of Israel’s ongoing counter-attack on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip where they have been relocated as a stateless people with no military defense system, only a rogue, minority terrorist organization, Hamas, which claims, questionably many Palestinian might suggest, to act in the interest of Palestinians. Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel resulted in 1200 Israelis reported killed and 250 taken hostage. The consquent Israeli military actions, which still continue, are generally being defined internationally as a genocide, with Palestinian casualties estimated at least at 38,000, now approaching 40,000 or more. A woman questioning Kaine on the Israeli/Palestinian situation, cited 14,000 children among those Palestinian casualties.

The ‘situation’ in Gaza

“What you call a ‘situation’ in Gaza is more than 14,000 children killed. I have a 5-year-old. I see my kid in every one of those children,” she began emotionally, adding, “And I’m going to tell you, yes, talking about a two-state solution where Palestinians and Israelis can live in peace would help. But I don’t know if that would be enough for me to be able to vote Democratic on the ballot,” she said of the coming November election.

“I am completely conflicted because it’s the lesser of two evils, we are still supporting genocide. And how can you support and be behind people that have not yet put an end to this but have the power to do so?” she asked, apologizing for her nervousness. “But I had to be here to tell you this in person,” she added, pointing to frustration at seeing no result from “calling the White House, sending emails, going to protests.

“It is not enough when you’re seeing children just like my child that just had the privilege to be born in this country versus being born there. There’s nothing different between her and the children of Palestine,” she concluded, drawing applause from much of the audience.

Kaine did not back away from a meaningful exchange with a mother, pictured below, critical of the Biden Administration’s stance on the Israel/Palestinian Gaza situation. It is a ‘situation’ that has resulted in what has been reported at over 14,000 children killed, she said, of approaching 40,000 Palestinian deaths over the 8-month Israeli response to the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack that killed 1200 Israelis, with another 250 kidnapped.

“And that’s true. I’ve spent time with hostage families who’ve had their loved ones kidnapped and brutalized,” Kaine began in response. “And I’ve spent time with Israelis who’ve lost families, and I’ve spent time with a lot of Palestinians. And Americans who’ve been in Palestine like doctors on medical missions who are coming back with heartbreaking accounts. It is just, it is heartbreak, it is absolute heartbreak,” Kaine said, adding the observation, “And the U.S. doesn’t have the complete ability to just change the situation in another part of the world. We have influence, we have leverage, more than most,” he admitted, adding, “And it’s taken too much leverage, frankly, for us to get Israel to up the pace of humanitarian aid …

“But Israel does have actors in the Middle East: Hamas, Iran, Hezbollah, who want to wipe it out,” Senator Kaine observed of the multi-faceted Middle Eastern political chess board. However, the senator added, “That doesn’t excuse similar violence against Palestinians on the West Bank. That doesn’t excuse throttling humanitarian aid into Gaza. That doesn’t excuse indiscriminate activity that it might get somebody in Hamas, but also wipes out lots of civilians,” Kaine observed of what a majority of the UN Security Council nations appear to define as genocide of Palestinians in Israel’s response to the October 7 Hamas attack.

“And so, it’s very hard to figure out how do we stand to defend Israel at the same time leveraging what we hope would be better behavior” by Israel’s leadership, Kaine asked rhetorically of a situation he observed has been evolving problematically since 1948 in the wake of World War II and the West’s response to the Nazi holocaust of European Jews.

Kaine cautiously noted some developments over the past few days that gave him some hope for progress toward resolution of the now one-sided conflict moving into its eighth month of Israel’s reaction to the October 7 Hamas attack. However, in response to a related question from another person, Senator Kaine observed that from his past statements and actions, current Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears not to favor the two-state solution that would establish a Palestinian nation that could coexist on equal terms with its neighbors, including Israel.

This reporter is reminded of the comment he read a number of years ago from an Israeli peace activist after the first three or four years of Netanyahu’s leadership and his treatment of Palestinians: “Israel is like the abused child who grows up to be the abuser,” she lamented.

With a world in escalating turmoil, welcome to national election year 2024 in America.

“It saves the land.” That is what Warren County Planning Commissioner Kaylee Richardson told the Royal Examiner on the evening of Wednesday, June 12, after a work session that began at 6 p.m. and lasted until 7 p.m. and after a regular meeting that began at 7 p.m. and lasted until 9 p.m. at the Warren County Government Center at 220 North Commerce Avenue. Richardson indicated the commission’s desire to honor and protect agriculture in Warren County. Supporting the growing trend of agritourism is one of the ways that goal can be accomplished.

Warren County Planning Commission meets on Wednesday, June 12, for a work session before their regular meeting. Royal Examiner Photo Credits: Brenden McHugh

In addition to serving as one of the county’s planning commissioners, Richardson is a farmer who uses her resources to practice an agritourism business. On the US Department of Agriculture’s website, agritourism is defined as “a form of commercial enterprise that links agricultural production and/or processing with tourism to attract visitors onto a farm, ranch, or other agricultural business to entertain or educate the visitors while generating income for the farm, ranch, or business owner.” Richardson educates her guests through classes that teach them, among other things, about how beehives can enrich the soil and thereby positively impact the environment. One of Richardson’s main attractions is beekeeping.

Warren County Planning Director Matt Wendling explains relevant details to the commission during a discussion of the developing comprehensive plan at the commission’s work session.

As a generation of farmers grows older and faces extinction, Richardson underlines the importance of providing opportunities for young people to have a hands-on experience with farming, fall in love with it, and possibly see it as a viable career path for their future. This is what she calls planting seeds. These young people may come from a city where they would never have the chance to learn about farming. Talking to Richardson is itself a learning experience. Her passion for beekeeping is palpable. Bees, she shared, will travel as much as two and a half miles away from their colony. “They’re very low impact,” she said, “but they bring so much to the community.” At any given time, she ranges from forty to fifty colonies. She rescues bees and supplies them to others interested in starting their own beekeeping concern. As for soil enrichment, bees add nitrogen back into the soil by pollinating white clover, which is a net positive for the environment.

Warren County Planning Commission meets for their regular meeting on Wednesday, June 12.

As the county planning commission fine-tunes its comprehensive development plan, agritourism is a relevant concern. Although its inclusion in the plan is not required by law, the commission has it on its radar.

Click here to watch the Warren County Planning Commission Meeting of June 12, 2024.

On Wednesday, June 12, at 12:13 p.m., units were dispatched to the 400 block of Acton Street in Front Royal for a reported dwelling fire. Firefighters arrived swiftly, reaching the scene within four minutes, to find a two-story, single-family home with flames visible on one side.

Royal Examiner Photos Roger Bianchini unless otherwise noted.

Firefighters immediately started battling the blaze inside the house and quickly confirmed that the occupants were safely out. A second alarm was issued, bringing in two more fire engines to assist. The fire was declared under control by 1:05 p.m.

Two firefighters suffered heat-related illnesses and were transported to a local hospital for treatment. Fortunately, no other injuries were reported. The American Red Cross assisted two adults who lived in the home. Even though the residents were not at home when the fire broke out, smoke alarms were functioning, which was crucial in preventing injuries.

Emergency crews remained on the scene for about two and a half hours, ensuring the fire was extinguished and investigating the cause. The Warren County Fire Marshal’s Office is currently investigating the fire. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Fire Marshal’s Office at (540) 636-3830.

The following units responded to the fire: Engine 1 (Front Royal), Rescue Engine 2 (Rivermont), Engine 10 (North Warren), Truck 1 (Front Royal), Medic 8 (Fortsmouth), EM 1, FM 3, FM 4, Battalion Chief 1, Chief 101, and Chief 100. Additional units from the second alarm included Rescue Engine 3 (South Warren), Rescue Engine 9 (Chester Gap), and Medic 12 (Middletown).

Below Photo Courtesy WC Fire & Rescue

WCFR’s quick response and teamwork were vital in managing the fire efficiently and ensuring everyone’s safety.

(From a post on the WC Fire & Rescue social media page)