ANNOUNCEMENTS
Bailey Bridge Middle School teachers win national award

Four educators from Bailey Bridge Middle School have won a "Teams That Make A Difference Award" from publisher Pearson Prentice Hall and the National Middle School Association. Teacher team members were Thomas Chappell, Lindsay Driscoll, Matthew Fuquay and Nita Saunders.

Under the teachers' oversight, the Panda Team of approximately 100 sixth graders raised money for the Red Cross to assist in Katrina relief efforts and collected books for a middle school in Mississippi. Bailey Bridge was one of four teams nationwide to win a cash award of $3,000 and other benefits.

Four Chesterfield firms made the list of "Companies to Watch" as chosen by venture capitalists, investors and business consultants. They include Adaptive, a software firm that monitors and reports on corporations; AdvanceTEC, a biotech firm; Velocity Micro, a developer of high-speed video-game computers; and Xymid LLC, a maker of fibers and composites.

Bermuda Hundred in Chesterfield has been designated as a historic district in the Virginia Landmarks Register and recommended to be included in the National Register of Historic Places. The Virginia Landmarks Register includes historic landmarks, buildings, structures, districts, objects and sites that are recognized as having historical, architectural or archaeological significance at a local, state or national level.

Harrowgate Elementary School has been named a national Title I Distinguished School, and is one of 40 schools nationwide to achieve recognition from the National Association of State Title I Directors. Those schools rose above obstacles of poverty with the help of the Title I program, and Harrowgate Elementary was declared to be "unusually successful in closing [academic] achievement gaps."

Meredith Snyder, an art teacher at Clover Hill High School, has been named the Virginia Secondary Art Teacher of the Year by the Virginia Art Education Association. During her 10 years at Clover Hill, Snyder has taught Art 1, Art Explorations, Art 2 and Crafts. It is the third year in a row that her work has won a national award for the state.

Kelsey Stuckey of Chesterfield has been selected to participate in Nationals' 2006 Miss Jr. Teen Richmond pageant competition on Dec. 3 where she will compete with other young ladies ages 10-19. The competition includes personality and interviewing skills and modeling casual wear and formal wear. A national competition will follow in Orlando, Fla.

Lawrence A. Walker of Chesterfield has published "My New Life!: A Survivor's Story!" about his two heart attacks, quadruple bypass surgery and diabetes diagnosis. It is a firsthand account of the shock, fear, support, post-surgery education and the road back, and is being released by PublishAmerica.