Neighborhood news: Join in fun on Charter Day

Honoring the 260th year as the oldest chartered town in Virginia, this free and family-friendly celebration in Dumfries promises to be more exciting than ever, with live entertainment and performances, old-fashioned games and contests, a Weems-Botts Museum Open House, historical demonstrations, community booths and loads of food, including 25-cent hot dogs and 25-cent lemonade. Held at Merchant Park, the public is invited to share in the fun, outdoor festivities. This event is Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the corners of Cameron and Duke streets in Dumfries. There will be ample free parking.

Here is just a sample of things to see and experience: Mahone's Forge Rope-maker will help you make a rope using Colonial methods; Pete Singh, a prominent Dumfries' business owner will sponsor pony rides; musi-cian and historian Carson Hudson will play early Virginia banjo music, the Rappahanock Colonial Heritage Society will demonstrate and teaching Colonial dancing; a watermelon-eating contest will be held; and our formal program (which starts at 3 p.m.) includes Brendon Hanafin, of the Prince William County Historical Preservation Division, talking about William's Ordinary.

Chamber to hold breakfast at museum

The Prince William Chamber of Commerce's Construction & Utilities Business Council Breakfast will be held at the Marine Corps Museum next Wednesday. The topic for this breakfast meeting will be "Building Green into Your Proposals." This breakfast, sponsored by TransUrban, will be held at the museum at 18900 Jefferson Davis Highway.

Featuring the U.S. Green Builders Council and TransUrban, the panel program describes construction projects to acquaint small companies with green building skills and business opportunities. Reservations are required and the cost is $25, which includes breakfast. Call 703-590-5000, Ext. 103, for reservations or visit http://www.regionalchamber.org.

University Women to hold member luncheo

The American Association of University Women will hold its free new member luncheon May 16 at 11:30 a.m.

Membership is open to anyone with an associates or college degree. If interested, contact Tania at 703-670-3683 for further information.

NVCC campuses combine workforce development

The Workforce Development and Continuing Education offices at Northern Virginia Community College's Manassas and Woodbridge campuses are now working together under one name: Prince William Regional Work-force Development and Continuing Education. The combined office will provide easier access to information about courses and services.

Courses at either campus can be located through one Web site: http://www.nvcc.edu

/wdce/pwregional. Categories include business and professional skills, computer skills, construction trades and license preparation, English as a second language, health care, world languages and more. In addition to the wide range of classroom-based courses, more than 100 online courses with flexible starting dates are offered.

Several new courses are available during the upcoming summer session. Students who complete "Emergency Medical Technician Training" will be eligible to take the Virginia certification examination for the EMT basic level. "Managing Change in a Turbulent Economy" will explore how corporations are responding to the changing economy. New computer courses include "Windows Server 2008 Enterprise Administra-tor" and "Windows Vista." "Choosing and Qualifying for a Mortgage" will explain various types of mortgages, including the pros and cons of each.

Most certificate programs are approved for VA benefits. Register online or call 703-878-5770 for personal assis-tance.

Church invites all to participate in blood drive

Triangle Baptist Church invites you to participate in a Community Blood Drive and Health Fair on May 30, from 9 a.m. to 1p.m. While there you'll have the opportunity to browse through several information booths spon-sored by local medical and health-related businesses and services. Free screenings will be available for blood pres-sure, vision, hearing and others. For more information or directions, or to make an appointment, visit http://www.trian

glebc.com or call 703-221-7191.

Cathy Cowger reports your neighborhood news from the Dumfries area every Thursday in the News & Messenger. If you have news about birthdays, your family, your club or your HOA activities, please send it to Cathy at .