Local News
Parents Urge School Board to Help Address School Traffic Safety Issues
Jenna DeRemer (above) voiced concerns during the Warren County School Board’s meeting on Wednesday about illegal parking and reckless driving practices near Skyline Middle School.
If the Warren County School Board doesn’t help solve the traffic-related problems plaguing some of the schools in the area, then the lives of children are increasingly at risk, residents told board members earlier this week.
Front Royal resident Jenna DeRemer lives with her husband and children in a home on Overlook Drive near Skyline Middle School. They live next to her parents, Mark and Catherine Bower, the latter a former School Board chair for many years.
“I’ve lived on the street since I was a child,” DeRemer told the School Board during the public comment period of its Wednesday, November 1 meeting. “However, as an adult, over the past few years, I’ve grown increasingly concerned with the safety and congested traffic issues the school faces at daily dismissal.”
DeRemer told the board members that each of the four adults in her family who live on Overlook Drive have almost been in car accidents at least once due to illegal parking and risky driving practices occurring there.
And when school ended last year, DeRemer said she very narrowly avoided hitting a student who had stepped out from between illegally parked cars in front of the crosswalk. “I had no visibility,” she said.
Deciding she wasn’t going to wait for a student to get hurt, DeRemer explained that this school year, she has contacted the school, local police, and now the School Board seeking help in addressing the traffic and dismissal issues she’s witnessed.
“The largest problem,” DeRemer told the board, “is that many parents are not opting to pick their children up in the designated pick-up line. Instead, their children are disingenuously being considered walkers and are coming to meet their parents wherever they have found space for their car that day on the street.”
Those same parents are oftentimes parked illegally and unsafely, sometimes on No Parking yellow lines next to Skyline Middle School or in the bike lane across the street from the school, she said. And when they’re parked on the yellow lines, they’re also blocking visibility to the crosswalk, in turn forcing students to step out unsafely from between parked cars.
“While the school does have a teacher that comes down as a daily crossing guard, he’s not there every day, and he occasionally comes after students have already started leaving the building,” said DeRemer.
Around the start of school in August, DeRemer said she contacted Skyline Middle School Principal Bobby Johnston to discuss this and other traffic-related concerns at the school. She said Johnston told her that the police needed to be the ones to take control of the situation.
When she contacted the Front Royal Police Department, though, DeRemer said they basically kicked the can back to the school.
DeRemer (above right) and her mother, Cathy Bower (above left), offered the School Board some suggestions, including sending a letter home to parents and guardians about the traffic problems and asking them for their help; putting out traffic cones or additional signage to prevent cars from illegally and unsafely parking; asking for more police involvement; and allowing parents to utilize the nearby, almost-empty parking lot next to the school’s track and field for parking.
“If you all do not work with the school and police to figure out a solution to these long-standing issues, I believe it is just a matter of time before a child is seriously injured, or worse,” said Bower, reading from her daughter’s statement in order to meet the community participation time limits.
“I challenge you all to spend from 3:15 to 3:45 p.m. sitting on Luray Avenue to see what I see every day,” read Bower.
“It’s a safety issue and could also be an attendance issue if it causes delays when dropping off kids,” said Alex Arestad of Front Royal (above), a parent of a student attending Ressie Jeffries Elementary School.
On Wednesday, Arestad told the School Board that similar issues occur at Ressie Jeffries during drop-off and dismissal. In fact, for years, he said, parents of students there have lined up their cars along East Criser Road directly in front of Samuels Public Library, Burrell Brooks Park, and the Culligan building down to Remount Road (Route 522) as they wait to pick up or drop off their kids.
“I noticed in the month of October that the Front Royal Police Department began preventing parents from lining up, starting at the recently painted crosswalk area, covering about four car lengths on East Criser Road in front of the library and on all the way down to Route 522,” Arestad said. “This prevents parents from continuing to line up there.”
At the same time, police officers have been on site to inform parents that rather than lining up, they must continue to circle the school area until there is room to pull in front of the cross-painted area. If they don’t, the officers have said that they would issue a citation, said Arestad.
“When calling the Front Royal Police Department to inquire about this new procedure, I was told that they are only enforcing the law as a result of this specific law enforcement project,” Arestad said, noting that by having more vehicles circling the school, there is an increased risk for accidents that could endanger the lives of students who are arriving or leaving the school.
If the police department plans to continue this law enforcement project, Arestad suggested that the School Board request that the Town of Front Royal or Warren County widen Criser Road down to Route 522 in order to safely accommodate parents waiting in cars to drop off or pick up students.
“Meanwhile, perhaps students of different grades could be released at half-hour intervals or something like that,” he also suggested.
Click here to watch the School Board’s meeting of November 1, 2023.
Local News
School Board Bids Rinaldi Farewell; Votes to Lengthen Contract for Truancy Prevention Officer
The Warren County School Board on Wednesday, December 6, unanimously voted to extend the contract length for a secondary truancy prevention officer from 10 months to 12 months and said goodbye to one of its own members, who is leaving at the end of the year.
School Board Chair Kristen Pence, Vice Chair Ralph Rinaldi, and board members Antoinette Funk, Andrea Lo, and Melanie Salins were present during the board’s final meeting of 2023.
Warren County School Board Vice Chair Ralph Rinaldi (above) says goodbye to his teammates.
The meeting was Rinaldi’s last as a School Board member as his term expires at the end of the year, and he decided against running for re-election.
“It’s been a great four years,” Pence told him. “I don’t think either of us could have known when we sat in our training in December of 2019 exactly what the four years were going to look like.”
Pence acknowledged Rinaldi’s passion for WCPS, the students, and the teachers. She also highlighted his work on the board’s Facilities Committee and his input on the renovation project at Leslie Fox Keyser (LFK) Elementary School.
“We’re all very appreciative of all of the work and dedication that you’ve done here,” said Pence, who presented him with a wall clock made by students at the Blue Ridge Technical Center and a brick of dedication from the LFK project.
Warren County Public Schools (WCPS) Superintendent Christopher Ballenger thanked Rinaldi for his efforts.
“I want to say thank you for your leadership,” the superintendent told Rinaldi. “I appreciate the wisdom you’ve been able to share and your dedication to students and to the schools of Warren County.”
Rinaldi told his colleagues he appreciated being part of a “good team.”
“It’s great to work with people who are on the same page,” he said. “And this board has been on the same page.”
While he admitted the board has faced some “rough spots,” Rinaldi said the School Board has achieved many goals and it’s been his pleasure to serve on it.
“Dr. Pence and I came on, and then COVID hit, and then we had to hire a superintendent,” he said. “I mean, we were really kind of slammed. So, I appreciate her leadership more than you know.”
Incoming replacement
Tom McFadden, Jr., elected to replace Rinaldi as the School Board member representing the Shenandoah District, spoke during the community participation portion of Wednesday’s meeting to introduce himself to the community and thank residents for their votes.
McFadden (above), the vice president of enrollment at Christendom College since 2014, has lived in Warren County for 23 years with his wife and 11 children. He noted that prior to his election in November, “there was a lot of chatter on social media about me — continues to this day — and what agenda I may hope to bring to the schools here in Warren County.”
McFadden said that while people didn’t ask him what his agenda was, they assumed certain things about him “due to my affiliation with the Catholic Church.”
“The fact that my children are homeschooled and I did not have any children enrolled in the school system, they wondered what agenda I might be trying to impose,” McFadden said. “I’m here to tell you that my only agenda is to provide a quality education opportunity for every student to achieve their highest academic learning potential, develop positive core values, reflective of our community, and enter higher education or the workforce, their choice, being well-prepared.”
The incoming board member said he also wants to help further the mission of WCPS by enhancing the community’s support of sports, increasing active parental involvement, and providing “clear, concise, and frequent communication.”
During the last few weeks, McFadden said he has met with WCPS principals and learned what they think the School Board can do to assist them with policies or what topics the board should be focused on.
“I’ve told each of them the same thing: my only agenda is to help them,” McFadden said. “I look forward to our working relationship over the next four years.”
The School Board also took several actions during its meeting, including unanimously approving the Secondary Truancy Prevention Officer position from a 10-months to a 12-month contract effective January 1, 2024, and scheduling its 2024 organizational meeting on Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at 5:30 p.m., in the Board Room of the Warren County Government Center.
To watch the December 6 School Board meeting in its entirety, go to: https://wcps.new.swagit.com/videos/283684#
Local News
Wildlife Center’s ‘Patient of the Week’ highlights importance of protecting region’s wild animals
It’s been a few years since Royal Examiner representatives visited the Blue Ridge Wildlife Center (BRWC) in Boyce, and most of that time our online newspaper has been pleased, and honored, to publish each week the photo and story behind injured animals that are delivered, now by the thousand each year, for treatment and, unfortunately for some, the benefits of euthanasia.
Many of these animals, however, are treated by not one, but now two, on-site veterinarians and their helpers, some volunteers among them, as the center has developed from its original old, old house, to a modern hospital enabling staff to admit and provide urgent medical care for hundreds more animals, birds and reptiles annually. Staff has increased exponentially over the past decade also, including the doubling up of veterinary care, as earlier mentioned.
A new X-ray machine in a modern medical facility room at BRWC. Courtesy Photos BRWC
Many of these unfortunate wild animals, indigenous to our region, are struck by vehicles or by victimized by garden tending materials accidents, others are poisoned by the effect of hunters’ lead bullets left in abandoned portions of carcasses left in the wild. Readily available unleaded ammunition is recommended regularly by BRWC. The injured may be operated on for the most serious and painful of injuries, and hopefully recover enough to be released back into the wild.
Some that are left with tended injuries that nevertheless make them unable to return to their habitats, are carefully housed in outside viewing areas, in airy cages, are labelled “ambassadors” and are used as educational tools in schools, service and other organizations, taking to the road almost weekly to spread the word about what the center, which is not subsidized by government entities but operates only on donated funds, does and how it does it. The weekly publication of the “Patient of the Week” and its photograph, has steadily shown the public the how and the why protection of our local wildlife is so important to ours and neighboring counties, and perhaps why we should give consideration to donating to the cause.
We’ve noticed over the months how owls appear to be one of the more common intakes among all animals, birds and reptiles, including the handsome old boy featured in the following “Patient of the Week” report from the center. We take the opportunity to wish him well, and welcome his eventual release to his home environment. Important to his recovery was the center’s new X-ray machine that a spokesperson said “could never have been purchased without the amazing donations made at this past fall’s fundraising gala!”
This Barred Owl, this week’s Patient of the Week, was brought in with injured metacarpals (“fingers”) and is expected to recover and be released into its natural habitat.
This owl, with broken metacarpals (“fingers”), is expected to recover well enough not to join others of his kind as a permanent resident “ambassador”. As with all the wildlife that arrives at the center, the vets and the center staff rejoice upon their patient recoveries that allow them to be released back to their natural habitat to begin life anew. So, off he will fly in the New Year.
We hope you will read through and study the photographs of this wise old owl, and follow our weekly series with interest and feeling for our native animal friends.
To contact BRWC, at 106 Island Farm Lane, Boyce, VA 22620, call (540) 837-9000 or email info@blueridgewildlifectr.org.
(Malcolm Barr Sr., contributing writer for the Royal Examiner, is a lifelong friend of all animals, wild, domestic, great and small!)
Local News
Blue Ridge Wildlife Center Patient of the Week: Barred Owl
This Barred owl was brought in to us after being found down along a roadside with broken metacarpals (“fingers”) on the left wing.
This is the “before” radiograph, showing that both the major AND minor metacarpal bones are fractured and badly displaced.
Due to the owl’s critical condition at intake, surgery was not possible until the following day.
After 24 hours of pain medications and fluids, this patient was in far more stable condition and our veterinary staff was able to perform surgery to place an external fixator to stabilize the metacarpal bones.
This year we were able to purchase a much-needed brand-new X-ray machine to replace our older unit that had recently broken down.
Not only is this new machine more reliable, it is also mobile, which allows us to take radiographs mid-surgery in our operating room without having to move the patient back and forth between radiology and surgery.
This was our pre-op setup. The x-ray detector plate is placed directly on the surgery table, then a heat pad and towel laid on top.
Because x-rays can penetrate easily through fabric, this does not create any issues with the images.
This was taken intraoperatively, as you can see owl’s body overlying the wavy heating element of the heat pad. Because it can sometimes be difficult to correlate what is palpable to actual bone orientation, the surgical clamp seen was used as a landmark. Comparing its physical location to what is seen on the radiograph can help improve alignment.
It is simply amazing to be able to do this without having to break sterile field or otherwise disturb an anesthetized patient, which would be the case with a typical standing x-ray machine.
The “after” photo: both metacarpal bones are well-aligned!
Having access to a reliable x-ray machine is critical to treating a large portion of our patients that come in with broken bones, swallowed hooks, or gunshot wounds.
This x-ray machine, and other critical medical equipment, could never have been purchased without the amazing donations made at this past Fall’s Gala.
This owl has been recovering well and has finally begun to eat on their own.
They’ll require bandage changes and cage rest for the next few weeks while the bone continues to heal, and then will require a bit of time in our outdoor pre-release enclosures for reconditioning.
We’ll be monitoring recovery closely and we hope to have them released and back home early in the New Year!
Looking for an easy way to help native wildlife? Become a monthly BRWC donor! For as little as $5/month, you can provide year-round, sustainable support that helps us fulfill our mission.
Legal Notices
Invitation to Bid: E. Wilson Morrison Elementary School Gymnasium Conversion
You are invited to bid on a general contract for Warren County Public Schools, E. Wilson Morrison Elementary School Gymnasium Conversion for the Warren County School Board. This project generally consists of converting an existing auditorium with sloped floor to an elementary gymnasium. All bids shall be on a lump sum basis.
Bids shall be received until 2:00 P.M. local prevailing time on December 18, 2023, to the attention of Dr. Chris Ballenger, Superintendent, in the Board Room of the Warren County Public School Administration Building, 210 N. Commerce Avenue, Front Royal, VA 22630, at which time they will be opened publicly and read aloud. Bids received after this time will not be accepted. All interested parties are invited to attend.
Drawings and specifications may be examined at the Office of the Architect/Engineer, the Warren County School Board office, and at the following locations:
Valley Construction News
426 Campbell Avenue SW
Roanoke, VA 24016
Jeanette Giordano
The Blue Book Bldg. & Construction Network
800 E. Main Street
Jefferson Valley, NY 10535
Builders Exchange of Tennessee
300 Clark Street
Knoxville, TN 37921
DODGE Data & Analytics
3315 Central Avenue
Hot Springs, AR 71913
ConstructConnect
30 Technology Parkway South
Suite 100
Norcross, GA 30092-2912
Construction Journal
400 SW 7th Street
Stuart, FL 34994
Plans and specifications can be obtained via download from ShareFile at no cost. Contact ggoetz@zmm.com for ShareFile access. Upon receipt of valid email address, ZMM Architects & Engineers will provide a password with instructions on accessing and downloading plans and specifications. Hard copies of plans and specifications can be obtained from ZMM upon receipt of a nonrefundable check in the amount of $75.00. Plans and specifications can be shipped for additional charge. Contact ZMM for further details.
Bids shall be accompanied by a bid guarantee of not less than 5% of the amount of the bid, which may be a certified check or cashier’s check, or a bid bond of 5% of the amount of the bid, made payable to Warren County School Board. A performance bond, payment bond and a material and labor bond will be required and the cost shall be included in the bid price.
Bidders are required under Title 54.1, Chapter 11, Code of Virginia (1950), as amended, to be licensed as a “Class A Contractor” before submitting a bid of one hundred twenty thousand ($120,000) dollars or more; or to be licensed as a “Class B Contractor” before submitting a bid of ten thousand ($10,000) dollars or more but less than one hundred twenty thousand ($120,000) dollars; or be licensed as a “Class C Contractor” before submitting a bid of no more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000). Each Bidder will be required to give their State Registration Number on their proposal. All non-resident contractors and subcontractors bidding the work described herein shall register with the Department of Labor and Industry under the provisions of Section 40.1-30 of the Code of Virginia.
The Owner reserves the right to waive irregularities and to reject any or all bids.
A pre-bid conference will be held on December 3, 2023 beginning at 10:00 A.M. at the Warren County Public School Administration Building, 210 N. Commerce Avenue, Front Royal, VA 22630 with a tour of the school afterwards. The school is located at 40 Crescent St., Front Royal, VA 22630. This will provide an opportunity to answer questions and explain any items requiring further clarification.
Bids shall be binding for a period of sixty (60) days from the date on which bids are opened.
Warren County School Board
Dr. Chris Ballenger
Superintendent
Local News
Pearl Harbor: The Day That Changed America Forever
An Infamous Day in American History
On December 7, 1941, a day President Franklin Roosevelt declared would “live in infamy,” the United States Naval Base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, was attacked by Japanese forces. This catastrophic event not only led to the loss of over 2,300 American lives but also marked a pivotal moment in world history, catapulting the United States into World War II.
A Nation Shaken and Mobilized
The attack on Pearl Harbor caused unprecedented destruction. The U.S.S. Arizona was obliterated, and the U.S.S. Oklahoma capsized, among other significant losses. Admiral Husband Edward Kimmel’s urgent dispatch encapsulated the shock and severity of the situation: “AIR RAID ON PEARL HARBOR X THIS IS NOT DRILL.” The following day, Congress declared war on Japan, signifying the end of America’s isolationism and the beginning of its significant role in World War II. The nation rapidly transitioned to a wartime economy, accelerating armaments production for military campaigns across multiple fronts.
The Human Response: Voices from the Aftermath
In the wake of the attack, Alan Lomax, head of the Library of Congress Archive of American Folk Song, sought to capture the public’s immediate reactions. Folklorists recorded diverse perspectives, from a Californian woman in Texas lamenting the rise of hatred to ordinary Americans grappling with the sudden thrust into a global conflict. These “man on the street” interviews offer a poignant glimpse into the national psyche at a time of great uncertainty and sorrow.
Propaganda and Patriotism
The Office of War Information (OWI), established months after the attack, utilized collective fear and outrage to bolster support for the war effort. The OWI effectively mobilized public sentiment and labor toward the war cause through propaganda that highlighted American patriotism.
Preserving History: Library of Congress’s Role
The Library of Congress plays a crucial role in preserving the memories of Pearl Harbor. It houses an annotated NBC news report script from December 7, 1941, emphasizing the news delivery’s gravity. The Library’s extensive collection includes recordings of wartime broadcasts, post-battle assessments, and even stories from World War II veterans, offering a comprehensive look into the era’s history.
NBC Program Book. Annotated typescript, December 7, 1941; Microphone, ca. 1938. In World War II, Memory Gallery. American Treasures of the Library of Congress. Motion Picture, Broadcasting & Recorded Sound Division
The attack on Pearl Harbor remains a defining moment in American history. It led to a major shift in global politics and deeply affected the American spirit. The collective memory of this event, preserved through various mediums, continues to remind us of the resilience and unity displayed in the face of adversity.
Local News
Principals Confirm Pending Sale of 53.8-Acre Portion of Expanded SVGC to Local Private School
Officials of both the Shenandoah Valley Golf Club (SVGC) and Dominion Ridge Academy confirmed the pending sale of a 53.87-acre portion of the former Bowling Green Country Club acquired recently by SVGC, to the Christian-based, non-denominational pre-K through 12th-grade school founded in 2006. The school has been seeking to expand its physical plant for about a decade and now plans to do so on the acquired property, which includes a 15,000 to 16,000 square-foot clubhouse.
The Shenandoah Valley Golf Club’s Rockland Farm Course clubhouse – could this 15,000 to 16,000 s.f. facility soon be the home-base of Dominion Ridge Academy? Stay tuned sports fans. Courtesy Photo SVGC
SVGC owner Richard Runyon described the portion of his club planned for sale as the front 9 of the Shenandoah Valley Golf Club’s Rockland Farm Course, which was the old South Course at Bowling Green.
According to its website Dominion Ridge is a Christian-based, non-denominational pre-K through 12th-grade school founded in 2006, graduating its first class in 2012 as its enrollment grew to about 100. Its current enrollment was cited at 180 by Dominion Ridge Board member and Acting Chairman Michael Graham.
Contacted about the pending sale both Graham and Runyon said they would like to defer further comment on the sale process and potential impacts on their operations until that process has been finalized. Royal Examiner agreed to accommodate those wishes.
Thank You to our Local Business Participants:
