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Shirley Ruhe

Stories by Shirley

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Northern Virginia Senior Olympics Celebrates 35th Year

Participants can compete in 70 different events.

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Teens Tackle Poverty Close To Home

Catholic Diocese of Arlington sends 820 teen volunteers.

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Helping Immigrants in Arlington

Advice about DACA, green cards, work permits and more.

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From the Beginning to the End

982 participants signed up for 2016 Northern Virginia Senior Olympics.

The Northern Virginia Senior Olympics (NVSO) opened Sept. 10 and ran through Sept. 21 with another record registration of 918 participants.

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Senior Living: Life at Vinson Hall — Living the Difference

Mary DeMaris is headed down on the elevator at Vinson Hall with her black case of art supplies, an artist headed to a still life class out of the building. “There is a club here for everything — poetry, art, choral group, photography, book, gardening,” she said.

Community Works Together To Alleviate Hunger

Food for Others assemble backpacks of non-perishable food.

Food for Others started its Power Pack Program -P3- in Fairfax County four years ago "after we noticed the need and heard from school counselors. We started with eight schools and are now up to 28," according to Jessica Cogen, director of development and outreach of Food for Others. Cogen also emphasized that "we are seeking to expand the number of schools served this year to help meet the need."

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Responding to Teen Sex Trafficking

Comprehensive approach seeks to educate teens.

In 2012 Fairfax County Detective William Woolf discovered a 16-year-old girl being prostituted by the M-16 gang. At the time there was little recognition that the problem existed locally. The girl was recovered and since then Woolf has interviewed 300 recovered victims, some as young as 12-years old. After the initial shock, Northern Virginia businesses, faith communities and educational groups sought to understand the extent of the problem.

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Becoming Aware of Child Sex Trafficking

The problem extends throughout northern Virginia.

She stands on the sidewalk outside the mall with her backpack full of 7th grade science and math books. An older man pulls up and she gets in the backseat of his car.

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