January 28, 2007

Dear Friends:

Three weeks down, four to go in the Short Session. The pace is picking up as we move toward three milestones: presentation of House and Senate transportation plans, the unveiling of the two houses’ budgets, and, on February 7, Crossover. By midnight on that date, all legislation that is going to make it to the finish line has to have been reported out of its House of Origin. That means long days, figuring out how to be three places at the same time, and probably a weekend session to celebrate Super Bowl Sunday.

One of my regrets is not being able to spend more time with visitors from Area Code 703. My staff and I were pleased to see familiar faces – Sue Zajak, Terri Lynch, Wendy Rahm, David Briggs, Erica Wood, Frank O’Leary, Mike Staples, among many others – as they toured the halls in support of their groups and causes: Arlington schools, retirees, firefighters, the arts, the medical professions community colleges . . . the list goes on and on. While all of the Members would like to be able to give each of these visitors the time they merit after having driven hundreds of miles to present their case, often the most we can squeeze in is a few minutes of hallway time or a hurried conversation waiting for the elevators.

Deck the Walls
The areas outside our offices, where visitors gather, feature bland carpeting and expanses of putty-grey colored walls. The only decoration is the occasional map of a Member’s district, and, on our doors, the seals of the jurisdictions we represent. (Mine has only the Arlington seal; some of the Members who represent sparsely populated areas downstate, containing many counties and small towns, have as many as eight.)

To brighten up the surroundings, we seek artwork from groups back home. This year I asked Denise Phalan, Arlington’s lead secondary art teacher, to provide some works done by Yorktown students. The results are terrific.

Taryn Riley of the Class of 2006 painted “Hanging Objects” (charcoal on paper) during her senior year. It was the Gold Key Portfolio winner in the Scholastic Art Awards last year. Taryn is in her freshman year at Washington University in St. Louis.

Two renderings of the Stars and Stripes, both oils on pastel, make a great backdrop for photographs with visiting constituents.

“American Flag,” by the Class of 2007’s Paul Bohannon, was a regional Gold Key winner in the Scholastic Art Awards.

“Americana,” by Claire Furbush of the Class of 2008, was produced in her sophomore year. Both Paul and Claire are planning on pursuing art in college.

“Boy Chief Exemplar, after George Catlin,” is an acrylic paint on stretched canvas by Alexa Leister-Frazier of the Class of 2006. It was a regional Honorable Mention winner in the 2005 Scholastic Art Awards and a regional Gold Key Portfolio winner in the 2006 Scholastic awards. Alexa is a first year art major at VCU.

Finally, Ting Ting Qian, a Yorktown graduate who now is in her second year at Central St. Martins College of Art and Design in London, produced two works of acrylic paint on stretched canvas: “Yakity-Yak” and “Gabby.”

Thanks to all of these Yorktowners for brightening our halls!

The Library of Virginia
In 1823, the General Assembly created the Library of Virginia to organize, care for, and manage the state’s growing collection of books and official records dating back to the early colonial period. They located the Library on the third floor of the Capitol. In 1895, a new library was erected on the eastern side of Capitol Square and again in 1940, the library moved into a new art-deco structure where it remained until 1996.That building was renovated and renamed the Patrick Henry Building, and is now home to the Governor’s working offices and, during the Capitol renovations, the House and the Senate.

In 1997, the Library of Virginia moved into a new six-story building across from our offices in the GAB. The new Library houses a comprehensive collection of material on
Virginia government, history, and culture, and is wired and equipped to accommodate the most sophisticated technology. In addition to managing and preserving its collection, the Library supplies research and reference assistance to all state officials and agencies, as well as all of the Commonwealth’s public libraries.

During the Legislative Session, members frequently cross Broad Street to attend receptions held in the spacious foyer of the Library, to shop at the gift store that offers a variety of Virginia-related items, and to view the exhibits on display. This month and until February 3rd, the Library is featuring an exhibit of The Dottie Schick Collection of Political Memorabilia. Dottie, a native Arlingtonian and graduate of Washington-Lee High School, was Chair of the Fairfax County Democratic Committee for many years and went on to serve on the Democratic National Committee. For nearly four decades, many of us have gathered in Dottie’s back yard for the Mason District Crab Feast.What started as a small fundraiser grew to a nationally famous campaign event that drew not only all local elected Northern Virginia Democrats, but presidents, governors, candidates and party hopefuls.

Artwork and the Library of Virginia: that’s your Culture Moment for the week. Now, back to more mundane things like transportation and the budget.