Bennie Scarton, Jr.: Moving on after accident

I’m back.

It’s been a long jour­ney, recovering from my horrific accident Nov. 21, when a driver came across my side of the road and smacked into me head-on while I was on my way to vacation.

I’ve progressed pretty well since the ambulance ride to Culpeper Memo­rial Hospital, where they patched me up for a broken ankle, knee and right hand.

I went from a wheel­chair, to a platform walker, to a regular walker, to a cane, and now I’ve shed them all.

Excellent doctors and a good therapy staff cer­tainly helped a lot, as well as assistance from family, friends and employees.

I do appreciate all the well-wishes, cards and phone calls. It made being away from work a little bit better.

Some of the events I’m looking forward in the upcoming weeks include: 

» The Bull Run Trouba­dours Barbershop Quar­tets are again delivering surprise “Singing Valen­tines” throughout Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park on Valentine’ Day. 

» The historic Lucasville School, 10516 Godwin Drive, Manassas, is open for tours noon to 4 p.m. today and Feb. 11, 12, 18, 19, 25 and 26. It is the only remaining one-room school in the county that was solely for the educa­tion of blacks. 

» “Jump Start into Spring-Basics of Garden­ing” will be taught by Prince William Virginia Cooperative Extension Master Gardener volun­teers from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. March 10 at the Manassas Park Commu­nity Center, 99 Adams St., Manassas. 

» Vpstart Crow has released its show selection of the 2012-13 season. The final dates have yet to be determined in conjunc­tion with the Hylton Per­forming Arts Center. The shows are: fall 2012, “Arse­nic and Old Lace”; holiday 2012, “A Christmas Carol”; winter 2013, “Doubt”; and spring 2013, “Much Ado About Nothing.” The holiday show will have 10 performances, and other shows will have seven. 

» In observance of Black History Month, Saturday’s tours of historic Liberia Plantation will include discussion on the lives of its slave population. On the eve of the Civil War, Liberia was one of the largest and most success­ful plantations in western Prince William County with more than 80 slaves.

The tours will be offered at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., and tickets are $15. 

» The Rotary Club of Manassas is hosting its 8th annual Speech Con­test at 1 p.m. Saturday at Manassas City Hall. The theme is “Reaching Within to Embrace Humanity.”

The contest is open to any high school student in the Manassas area, including western Prince William County and Manassas Park. There are cash prizes for the top three contes­tants, and the winner will represent the club at the district contest in Fred­ericksburg on March 10.

Interested students can all 703-331-1284. 

» All Saints Theatre Winter Cabaret will host performances Feb. 17 and 18 and will include a Broadway Musical Review, Fools Improvisational Comedy, a one-act play about the trial of the Big Bad Wolf and a pre-show featuring acclaimed Irish tenor Patrick Mulhern.

Tickets are $7 and can be purchased at the door of the gym at All Saints, 9300 Stonewall Road, Manas­sas. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with pre-show at 7 p.m. and regular show at 7:30 p.m. 

» The outcome of the Civil War was anything but certain during those first tense months of battle here in Northern Virginia.

Robert Alton, author the new book “Stratagem 1861” will discuss those early months during a free book talk at the Manassas Museum at 2 p.m. Feb. 26. 

» Time is running out to see the current exhibit at the Manassas Museum.

“Let There Be Peace,” the museum’s exhibit high­lighting the 1911 National Jubilee of Peace and the 2011 Peace Jubilee will close Feb. 22. A new ex­hibit, “What’s In Our Attic?” will run March 17 to June 17. The exhibits are included with admission. 

Staff writer Bennie Scarton Jr. can be reached at 703-369-6707.