John J. Houser - InnovationIn the category of Innovation, John Houser has raised the profile of both Occoquan
Regional Park and the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority though innovative and strategic partnerships. John brought new life to the park by organizing the Occoquan River Community to hold its first annual River Festival in July 2008. By partnering with the Fairfax League of Women Voters, John raised the historic profile of the park by creating Turning Point Plaza and highlighting the role of this area in the quest for women’s voting rights. John also has forged a partnership with the Lorton Arts Foundation, which has resulted in new contract services for the park. John has become a regional model for how to build and cultivate meaningful partnerships.
Azeana N. Roehn – InnovationIn the category of Innovation, Azeana Roehn has won recognition for her key role in creating accounting procedures that provide both accountability and flexibility in suppor
ting NVRPA’s catering services. When the current accounting procedures were not working well for the new catering service, Azeana took on the task of understanding the operational issues and building new procedures that allowed for both seamless catering operations and adequate tracking and controls of accounts. Her innovations have allowed NVRPA to be highly accountable and also highly enterprising at the same time.
William T. Tracey – Safety & Cost SavingsIn the categories of both Safety and Cost Savings, William (Bill) Tracey has made gre
at contributions over the last year. In addition to being a maintenance staff member at Algonkian Regional Park, Bill is an expert in tree health and tree removal. He has used this knowledge and some of his own specialized tree equipment to safely take down a number of dead trees at Algonkian Golf Course. In doing so, he has demonstrated the highest degree of safety focus and has saved the Authority a considerable amount of money.
Vivian M. Roski – Customer ServiceIn the category of Customer Service, Vivian Roski has won recognition for her great service to Pohick Bay Golf Course. Vivian has played a key role in creating an atmosphere of warmth and community at the golf course. She has a sincere interest in the well being of every customer she interacts with. Her positive attitude and helpfulness carry through in her interactions with all her co-workers, contributing to the welcoming environment of the whole facility.
Edna C. Scott – Customer Service
In the category of Customer Service, Edna Scott has won recognition for her great service to all the parks in the NVRPA system. Edna’s “can do” attitude, ability to organize projects and work quickly, have been of great value to all NVRPA park employees. She is a team player who has helped parks with a wide range of human resource issues.
David R. Longhorne – Customer ServiceIn the category of Customer Service, David Longhorne has won recognition for his great service to all NVRPA parks. As the small engine mechanic, David interacts with all our parks. In addition to being very timely, David is always looking for ways to keep equipment running and to save money. David’s friendly attitude has been described as contagious.
Roy A. Geiger – Above and BeyondIn the category of Above and Beyond, Roy Geiger has won recognition. Roy ha
s proven to be an invaluable member of the Algonkian team, working many more hours than appear on his timesheets, and enthusiastically helping out with whatever issue needs attention. When the Holiday Village at the Bull Run Light Show needed a Santa, Roy became the perfect “jolly old elf.” He came in early and left late and was the best representative the North Pole has ever had. NVRPA is extremely fortunate to have a person of Roy’s dedication, skill and outlook as part of the team.
Budget & Finance Team – Above and Beyond
In 2008, the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority won the highest honors from the Government Finance Officer’s Association for both the CAFR (audit) and the Budget. Winning these two awards in the same year represents a tremendous amount of work by everyone in Finance and Budget and demonstrates the highest level of professionalism in these fields. For this achievement, the entire Finance and Budget team earns an award in the category of Above and Beyond.
Central Maintenance – Cost Savings
In the category of Cost Savings, the Central Maintenance team has won recognition. In 2008, the team rebuilt a dilapidated storage building at Central Maintenance, adding concrete floors, siding and interior walls. The end result has been a dedicated electrician’s shop, more usable storage and improved appearance of the shop area. This job was done in-house at a fraction of the cost of outsourcing this renovation.
Cindy Hudson – Cost SavingsIn the category of Cost Savings, Cindy Hudson has won recognition. She led the e
ffort to create an automated timekeeping solution that works with NVRPA payroll system. This process required months of meetings and extensive problem solving to finally develop a system that works. After working through all the technology issues, she worked closely with the management of each park and department to make sure that implementation was successful. The end result is a system that will save us tens of thousands of dollars every year.
Chris Liebermann – VersatilityIn the category of Versatility, Chris Liebermann has won recognition. Chis worke
d with numerous Eagle Scout candidates to implement projects that have benefited Meadowlark Gardens. He has mapped over 2 miles of irrigation systems on GPS to help maintain the system. His considerable IT skills are regularly used to help with computer issues at the Visitor Center and Atrium, and his customer service skills are world class. Chris is able to carry out his many diverse skills and tasks with an extremely positive attitude.
Chris Pauley – Team PlayerIn the category of Team Player, Chris Pauley has won recognition. During the summer of 2008, Chris stepped in when he was the only superintendent and oversaw all the parks during the busiest season. He also took on additional responsibility in helping to review and prepare budgets for all the parks. He took on this doubling of responsibilities with calm, cool professionalism. Chris embodies the best of NVRPA’s team playing spirit.
Charlie Anderson – Team Player
In the category of Team Player, Charlie Anderson has won recognition. Charlie’s inherently helpful attitude has made him a model team player. From laying out the light displays at Bull Run, to volunteering, to complete plumbing jobs, to helping out with any other job that needs to be done, Charlie’s energetic good will is valued by all those who work with him.
Sarah A. Coster – ProgrammingIn the category of Programming, Sarah Coster has won recognition. Sarah dev
eloped the SOL-based school tour program Road to Revolution about the causes of the Revolutionary War; and has played a leadership role in developing a new program on 18th century weddings. Sarah recruits, trains and supervises all the volunteer docents at the Carlyle House and, under her stewardship, there has been a 100% retention of volunteers. Sarah has exhibited exceptional talents in the area of programming.
George Tabb – ProgrammingIn the category of Programming, George Tabb has won recognition. George has wo
rked closely with the volunteers at Ball’s Bluff and, in doing so, created a pod-cast of the guided tour of the battlefield that visitors can download from the NVRPA website and listen to on an MP3 player. This allows the public an alternative way to have the guided tour experience at Ball’s Bluff any time they want. This innovative approach has greatly added to the interpretive options available to our park visitors.
Mark E. Brooks & Edward J. Ambrosone – Creativity
In the category of Creativity, Mark Brooks and Edward Ambrosone have won recognition. The team of “Ed and Mark” has worked together on numerous creative projects that have benefited NVRPA. One project of particular note this year was the creation of a distinctive, cost effective and highly functional menu board for the Algonkian pro shop. The artistry and creativity that Mark and Ed provide for all the parks is enormously valuable.
Tammy L. Burke - Creativity
In the category of Creativity, Tammy Burke has won recognition. Tammy has used her considerable skills in working with stained glass, ceramics, metal and colors, to create numerous works of garden art for Meadowlark Botanical Gardens. Her various creations, from a copper and glass trellis to a mosaic tile frog to hand cast birdbaths and stepping stones, have contributed greatly to the beauty of Meadowlark.
Laurelyn L. Rawson – Creativity 
In the category of Creativity, Laurelyn Rawson has won recognition. Laurelyn took it upon herself to transform an unattractive weedy area behind the starters’ booth at Algonkian into an area of beauty and wildlife habitat. Working with the golf course maintenance staff, she planned and directed the creation of a pond, with fountain and native plants surrounding it. This project was done primarily with surplus materials and help from park staff, making it very cost effective.
Todd Hafner & Paul McCray – Project of the YearThe 2008 project of the year was Pirate’s Cove Waterpark at Pohick Bay. Th
e project transformed an underperforming pool that most people in the community had long forgotten about into an exciting water theme park. The first highly themed waterpark for the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority, Pirate’s Cove saw about a 200% increase in usage in one year. While many played critical roles in this project, a great deal of credit goes to Todd Hafner and Paul McCray for taking this project from idea to operations in just 9 months.
Photo from Left to Right: NVRPA Executive Director Paul Gilbert, Councilman Nader Barouk, Councilman David Snyder, Friends of the W&OD President Roger Neighborgall, Congressman Jim Moran, Councilman Daniel Maller, NVRPA Chairman Emeritus Walter Mess, Vice Mayer Hal Lippman, City Manager Wyatt Sheild, NVRPA Chair Su Webb, Falls Church Recreation & Parks Director Howard Herman, NVRPA Board Member Barry Buschow, Chairman Falls Church Recreation &Parks Advisory Board Gerard Mene.
n to the world as the W&OD Trail, is the first large scale rails to trails project and one of the most successful trail corridors in the country. Today, between 2-3 million users a year enjoy the recreational opportunities of this 45-mile bike, equestrian and hiking trail, through the heart of the Northern Virginia suburbs.
ailroad stopped running in 1968, the right-of-way was purchased by Virginia Electrical and Power Company (VEPCO) to be used as a power transmission corridor. In 1974, the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority and City of Falls Church leased a section of the property through Falls Church to build the first section of an “experimental trail.” The experiment was very popular, and in 1977 the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority entered into a five year purchase agreement to buy all of the 100 feet wide, 45-mile long former railroad property. VEPCO (now Dominion Power) maintained an easement on the property allowing for the electrical transmission lines to co-exist with the trail.
