Neighborhood and Community Services

703-324-4600 TTY 711
12011 Government Center Parkway
Fairfax, VA 22035
Lloyd Tucker
Director

What We Do

Neighborhood and Community Services (NCS) promotes the well-being of individuals, families and communities by providing a variety of recreation, educational and developmental programs and services; by facilitating community engagement to identify areas of need and enhance countywide capacity for serving those needs; and by connecting residents with a continuum of county- and community-based resources that promote equity and create positive outcomes for people of all ages and abilities.

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News and Information

VRPS Awards

September 20, 2024
Barrett Stork (Cox Communications Regional Director) joins NCS employees Chelsi Conaway, Anita Chinyavong, Spencer Collier, Satoriea Warren and Bekah Stone to accept awards at the 2024 VRPS Conference.  Fairfax County's Department of Neighborhood and Community Services' work with community partners was recognized with a pair of awards at the 2024 Virginia Recreation and Park Society's annual conference in Norfolk, Va.  Cox Communications was honored in the Distinguished Private Sector Service category for its support of digital equity at NCS community centers. The Fairfax County Community Services Room at Tysons was also honored for best Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Initiative. The annual awards presentation honors exemplary members, volunteers, and agencies of the parks and recreation community for achievements during the previous calendar year. “NCS is committed to working with partners to build a community where all individuals and families are supported and empowered to thrive,” said NCS Director Lloyd Tucker. “I am proud that both of these awards recognize the importance of partnerships and collaboration in building a more equitable community."     More than 400 delegates, exhibitors, speakers, and volunteers from around the state gathered for the 71st Annual Conference of the Virginia Recreation and Park Society held in Norfolk, Va., on Sept. 14-17, 2024. The conference is a learning exchange and provides an opportunity for recreation and park professionals to discuss areas of common interest. Highlighting each year’s conference is a formal presentation of awards. This statewide program honors individuals, departments and organizations throughout Virginia who have demonstrated excellence in any of several areas during the previous year. 140 applications were received vying for awards in 16 different categories.    NCS' awards recognized the following work:  Distinguished Private Sector Service: Cox Communications  Annandale Community Center Innovation Lab opening (August 2023) Cox Communications, the largest broadband company in the United States, is dedicated to empowering others to build a better future. That can be seen at the neighborhood level in Northern Virginia, where Cox and the non-profit James M. Cox Foundation have partnered with the Fairfax County Department of Neighborhood and Community Services (NCS) and the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington (BGCGW) to open Cox Innovation Labs, giving youth in underserved neighborhoods improved access to technology. Their continued support has been instrumental in improving digital equity within our community centers. In August of 2023, the Cox Innovation Lab opened at NCS’ Annandale Community Center. Cox provided a grant of $20,000 for NCS and BGCGW to furnish the lab with 11 laptops, 20 iPads and three video consoles. Two months later, an identical lab opened in our facility in the Culmore neighborhood – introducing the digital lab to the participants in our Boys and Girls Club program. Background Best Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Initiative: Fairfax County Community Services Room at Tysons Tysons Community Services Room opening (July 2023) On July 29, 2023, Fairfax County Neighborhood and Community Services opened a new Community Services Room. This space, in which NCS partners with other Fairfax County agencies as well as non-profit partners, is unique in that it is located in Tysons Corner Center, the largest shopping mall in the Washington, DC area with 20 million annual visitors. NCS and partners opened the room as a “hub of opportunity,” removing barriers to access and meet the community where they are to help connect underserved populations with critical programs, services and opportunities. NCS offers the multi-use space in partnership with Edu-Futuro, the Fairfax County Public Library, Fairfax County Department of Family Services, and Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik.  About Virginia Recreation & Park Society The Virginia Recreation and Park Society is a private, nonprofit professional organization, founded in 1953 and incorporated in 1956. Its purpose is to unite all professionals, students, and interested lay persons engaged in the field of recreation, parks and other leisure services in the Commonwealth of Virginia, into one body. Members work together to promote and improve the profession in all its diversity. VRPS is state affiliate of the National Recreation and Park Association. About Fairfax County Neighborhood & Community Services Fairfax County’s Department of Neighborhood and Community Services partners with communities, families and individuals to provide opportunities to access a continuum of resources that promote equity and create positive outcomes for people of all ages and abilities. More than 25 community, senior and teen centers offer community spaces, technology, inclusive support services, camps and programs for all ages and abilities. In addition, School Age Child Care (SACC) provides care for children in kindergarten-sixth grade before school, after school, during spring/winter break and during summer break (Camp Fairfax). For more information, visit www.fairfaxcounty.gov/ncs. 
A crowd smiles in front of the new signage for the newly unveiled Minnie H. Peyton Community Center.
September 16, 2024
On Saturday, Sep. 14, 2024, county leaders joined community members to celebrate renaming Bailey’s Community Center as the Minnie H. Peyton Community Center at Bailey’s. The new name honors Minnie Peyton (1889-1985), a pillar of Springdale, a historically Black community in Bailey’s Crossroads that originated as a home to freedmen since the Civil War. In 1935, Minnie Peyton and her sister, Florence, purchased five acres of land in Bailey’s Crossroads. They sold the land to the Fairfax County School Board in 1954. In 1956, Lillian Carey Elementary School, which served Black students, opened on the sisters’ former land. The former school site is now a part of the community center. In September 2023, former Mason Supervisor Penny Gross introduced a Board Matter to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors to explore the name change. That was followed by a community engagement meeting in June 2024 and online public feedback survey from June 26 – July 11, 2024. At the request of current Mason Supervisor Andres Jimenez, the Board approved the renaming at its meeting on July 16, 2024. For more information on the engagement process, visit Bailey's Community Center Renaming. The Minnie H. Peyton Community Center at Bailey’s is located at 5920 Summers Lane in Falls Church, VA. It is a multipurpose facility for all ages and abilities. The center’s features include a senior program, gymnasium, computer clubhouse, weight and exercise rooms, outdoor tennis and basketball courts, a baseball diamond, playground and more. Click on photo for hi-res version. Left to Right:  Descendants of Minnie H. Peyton are joined by community leaders and event speakers including U.S. Congressman Don Beyer (VA-8); Willie Coleman, President, Springdale Civic Association; Elder David Sheppard, Redeemed Church of Christ; Ricardy Anderson, Mason District Representative, Fairfax County School Board; Supervisor Andres Jimenez, Mason District Representative, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors; Alyce Pope, Great-Granddaughter of Minnie H. Peyton; Chairman Jeffrey McKay, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors; Charniele Herring, Virginia House of Delegates Majority Leader (VA-4); Margaret Coleman, Mason District Representative, Fairfax County History Commission; Denise Mackey Smith, Falls Church Co-Chair, National Council of Negro Women; and Lloyd Tucker, Director of Fairfax County’s Department of Neighborhood and Community Services. view & download EVENT PHOTOS IN THE flickr album  
Stuff the Bus logo
August 30, 2024
Help feed Fairfax County families in need by participating in the Virtual Stuff the Bus campaign in September. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors proclaimed September 2024 as Hunger Action Month in Fairfax County. From Sept. 1-30, 2024, individuals and community groups can make monetary donations directly to local non-profit organizations that provide food assistance in Fairfax County. Since 2011, the Fairfax County Government has partnered with local non-profits for physical donations to fill Fastran buses with shelf-stable food and hygiene items. The program was developed in response to a critical need to help restock the shelves of local food pantries after the holidays. The county added the virtual Stuff the Bus program in November 2023. The physical Stuff the Bus program will return in early 2025; the virtual food drive will help prepare Fairfax County’s non-profit food access partners for the busy holiday season. Information on the community partners and the virtual drive is available at Stuff the Bus Virtual Food Drive. The Capital Area Food Bank’s 2023 Hunger Report reveals multiple and compounding factors that have driven food insecurity to remain at staggeringly high levels. Inequitable economic recovery from the pandemic, inflation, and the end of many federal benefit programs make it difficult for families to put food on the table. According to the Capital Area Food Bank Survey, it’s estimated that 24% of Fairfax County residents are food insecure. “We saw in 2023 how adding the virtual food drive was able to increase our impact in collecting items for families in need,” said Alisa Brooks, Food Access Program Manager for the Fairfax County Department of Neighborhood and Community Services. "We are excited to offer this option again in September 2024. It is convenient for donors, and non-profits receiving the contributions use the funds to purchase fresh and culturally-appropriate foods for the neighborhoods they serve.” The virtual Stuff the Bus campaign runs through Sept. 30. Learn more about ways to fight hunger and homelessness on this Fairfax County resource page. For more information, visit the Stuff the Bus page.  

Upcoming Events

Sep
21

11:00AM, We are honored to invite you to Gunnell’s Chapel Historical Marker…
Sep
23

5:00PM, Apply and interview on the spot for different positions. Qualified…
Oct
03

9:00AM, The Fairfax County Department of Neighborhood and Community Services…
Oct
09

5:00PM, Apply and interview on the spot for different positions. Qualified…
Oct
12

10:00AM, Apply and interview on the spot for different positions. Qualified…
Oct
21

6:00PM, The Stephen A. McLaughlin Champion of Character Awards honor Fairfax…

About Health & Human Services

This agency is a part of Fairfax County Health & Human Services (HHS). HHS is a network of county agencies and community partners that support the well-being of all who live, work, and play in Fairfax County.


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