Meet In CommonNews

Local news in and around Fredericksburg, VA

Free Lance-Star · Spotsylvania, VA

Nearby: Spotsylvania, VA

Spotsylvania-linked goose tests positive for avian flu

A Canada Goose from Spotsylvania County has tested positive for a form of avian influenza called Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, according to the Blue Ridge Wildlife Center.“We've officially received our first positive case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) for…

Fairfax County Times · Fort Belvoir, VA

Nearby: Fort Belvoir, VA

Gone but not forgotten

Barbara Serage around the time she went to live at The Fairfax. Courtesy Photo Seventeen years ago, Barbara Serage moved into The Fairfax, a continuing care retirement community near Fort Belvoir. Serage, who will celebrate her 100th birthday the day after Christmas, was impressed by the people she met there. “They have this newsletter that comes out, I guess, every week. And they always had the bios of the people who had passed away. My mom is one who would read it. She was struck by how the lives of these people were so important,” said Barbara Langridge, Serage’s daughter. “She said, ‘I thought people at the Fairfax, people living there, had information that the people of the United States should hear.’” Serage decided to take action. Reinvention was nothing new to her.

National Catholic Register · Burke, VA

Nearby: Burke, VA

This ‘Pilgrim of Hope’ Spent His Days Battling Cancer by Making ‘Endless Plans for Eternal Life’

Facing an inoperable brain tumor, eight-year-old Francisco inspired family, classmates, and his priests by showing that joy and hope always get the final word.Francisco looks up at his mother, Laura Fredrickson while she kisses him, pregnant with twins, in the early days of his terminal diagnosis. (Photo: Fredrickson Family)Alyssa MurphyFeaturesNovember 9, 2026In the quiet, tree-lined town of Burke, Virginia, 7-year-old Francisco Fredrickson had a laugh that could light up an entire room. He was a boy of boundless energy — an avid fan of soccer, music and giant plates of tacos. And he had really big dreams: to be a priest-astronaut in heaven. But in May 2023, his mother Laura, noticed something different in her son's eye that upended the cheerful household. A Trial Met With Unshakable Faith It began with a subtle change in his vision.

The Suffolk Journal · Boston, VA

Nearby: Boston, VA

Fleurs De Villes takes over Prudential Center with floral displays

The Prudential Center hosted Fleurs De Villes from Nov. 4-8, as it returned to Boston to share a fresh floral celebration of the natural wonders of the world. The showcase presented a collection of 16 fresh flower couture mannequins designed by Boston’s local floral artists. Fleurs De Villes is a Vancouver-based company that travels the world showcasing floral storytelling. The company has produced more than 170 fresh floral events in 34 cities across five countries. In each city they connect with local artists to bring together the live shows. On a Friday evening, families, friends and tourists rolling in with suitcases, viewed the fresh blooms on display which the Prudential sprouted only a couple days earlier. Passersby took photos of and with the botanical creations or stopped to take a look after shopping at a nearby store. Others who visited the Prudential solely for the display started in numerical order, at the entrance of the Prudential from Boylston Street.

Air Force Times · Navy, VA

Nearby: Navy, VA

That time Ted Williams faced off against Babe Ruth during WWII fundraiser game

It was a fantasy come true for baseball fans in the Bronx when a team led by Ted Williams, the last of the .400 hitters, met up with a team led by all-time slugger Babe Ruth at Yankee Stadium on July 28, 1943, to benefit war-relief efforts and the American Red Cross. Then-Aviation Cadet Williams was the star left fielder for a Navy team called the “Cloudbusters” that featured other major leaguers such as Johnny Sain, Harry Craft, Johnny Pesky and Buddy Hassett who were now in Navy flight training at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. They were among the roughly 500 major league players who served in World War II. Player-manager Ruth’s team, called the “Yanklands,” was made up of former Yankee and Cleveland Indians players.

Fairfax County Times · Reston, VA

Nearby: Reston, VA

In Memoriam: Betty Kerley

Betty Kerley, 96, a retired librarian, died in Reston, VA, on October 27, 2026. All her life, Betty loved learning and connecting with others. After college, she studied law at the University of Cincinnati. Of the 65 UC students graduating with a law degree in 1952, she was the only woman.Betty met her future husband, Ernest Kerley, in law school. They married and began a family, moving to Reston in 1966 when the community was only two years old.Betty was an active member of St. Anne's Episcopal Church for over 50 years, serving in many roles.Shortly after Ernest died, Betty went back to school to become a librarian. She worked as a Fairfax County Public Librarian for many years and continued to volunteer at the library after she retired.Betty loved helping patrons at the library, taking special satisfaction in helping recent arrivals to the United States set up email accounts, complete applications for immigrant documents, and connect with Fairfax County services.

Falls Church News-Press Online · Falls Church, VA

Nearby: Falls Church, VA

Good Money Habits Can Start Young — Even at Age Six

A bank might seem like a mysterious and magical place, like Gringotts Wizarding Bank in the Harry Potter stories. Or maybe it seems like a place that only adults visit, with a team of financial advisors barking long words. But the truth is, you can have a savings or checking account and learn all about how to save money (and spend it wisely) when you’re as young as six years old. You just need to know where to look. In 2025, Chase Bank opened a new branch in Falls Church, at the West Falls development, and I dropped by recently to talk with the financial advisors who work there. Who knew there were so many banking options for young people to learn how to handle money and even earn interest? Well, as it turns out, the people who work at Chase did. “A bank is a safe place to store money you don’t need to spend right away,” Ruth Eshun, the Vice President, Branch Manager of Chase’ s West Falls location told me.

Sentinel Colorado · Arlington, VA

Nearby: Arlington, VA

Usually private, Melania Trump steps into the spotlight after the midterm election

WASHINGTON | There’s a scene in Melania Trump’s documentary in which she enters the room as Donald Trump is rehearsing his inaugural address. When he says the line about how “my proudest legacy will be that of a peacemaker,” she offers a quick, verbal edit. “Peacemaker and unifier,” she tells her husband to say instead. But Melania is the Trump who is credited with recently bringing peace, if only for six days, to one war-torn city in southern Ukraine — an unusual intervention into an active war by an American first lady. Two days after Republican losses in the midterm elections knocked the president out of the spotlight, Melania Trump hosted Russian and Ukrainian officials at the White House to celebrate the temporary ceasefire. It’s part of a burst of public activity by a first lady regarded as among the most private women to hold the role, and it comes just before the Nov. 20 release by Prime Video of “Melania: The Series,” a follow-up to the first lady’s documentary from January.

Falls Church News-Press Online · Arlington, VA

Nearby: Arlington, VA

Our Man In Arlington

This week I am following up with further impressions about the County Board Townhall session on October 26. But first, I need to express my gratitude for the remarkable work of all the Election Officers who spent countless hours safeguarding the electoral process on November 3. As a poll observer for several hours in one of Arlington’s precincts, I was grateful for the work of the thirteen election officers who were there for more than fifteen hours, getting everything ready, dealing with the crowds, and closing it all down at the end of the night, making certain that the ballots were correctly packed up and sealed. It was exhausting just to see all the coordinated activity in the hours after voting ended. And this was only one of fifty-four precincts – we are so fortunate in Arlington to be able to staff all the precincts with these civic heroes (they get paid a minimal amount for their efforts – in my mind, they all are “Volunteers of the Year” for stepping up and doing the work).