Joint Board Matter
Chairman Connolly and Supervisor Linda Smyth
March 27, 2006

Contributions to the Oakton Community Library
and Groundbreaking Ceremony

Mr. Chairman:

As you will remember, at the last Board meeting, we submitted a Board Matter regarding the groundbreaking for the Oakton Community Library, the first library in the Providence District. Since there has been an outpouring of support for this library and the groundbreaking ceremony, I would like to recognize three additional groups for their participation and generosity.

The Fairfax Coalition of Police is a Charter Member of the "Book Em Foundation." The mission of the Book Em Foundation is to raise awareness of the link between high illiteracy rates and high crime rates, to increase literacy rates, and with Crime Stoppers to assist police in solving crimes. Currently, through this program, police officers are reading to first and second grade students in their classroom and are investigating reading at the new library when it opens. The response to this program has been extremely positive. There will be information regarding this program available at the groundbreaking ceremony. Additionally, the Fairfax Coalition of Police is making a gift of a complete set of The Bluford Series to the Oakton Library. This is a collection of ten young adult novels that focus on the lives of a group of high school students and their families. The series draws its name from the school which many of the characters attend: Buford High, named after Guion "Guy" Buford, America's first black astronaut.

The Sheriff's Community Labor Force has provided invaluable support in the effort to prepare the site and the surrounding areas for the groundbreaking ceremony. They have cleaned a large amount of construction type debris from the site itself and litter from Hunter Mill Road. As many of you know, the Sheriff's Community Labor Force is a relatively new program which provides an innovative approach to incarceration and work release. Labor crews, consisting of well-screened offenders, provide necessary services to the county.

The Facilities Management Division, which as we all know as the glue, duct tape, heating and air conditioning, plumbing and everything else that is often taken for granted but literally holds the County together, is providing the services to level and otherwise prepare the ground at the site for people to have a place to stand and view the ceremony. Without the daily support of the Facilities Management Division, the County would not be able to function.

Motion:

To recognize the positive contributions of the Fairfax Coalition of Police, the Sheriff's Community Labor Force representatives, and the Facilities Management Division, I move that the Board of Supervisors invite these individuals to come before the Board on April 3, 2006, to join the other individuals coming before the Board that day, for their participation in the Oakton Community Library and the groundbreaking ceremony and to formally commemorate these contributions.