Falls Church Forward Hosts 2-Hour Civics Bootcamp
On a sunny spring Sunday March 23, close to 100 eager participants wishing to boost their involvement in the City of Falls Church gathered in the conference spaces of Viget at 105 W. Broad St. to take part in a two-hour local Civics Bootcamp hosted by Falls Church Forward (FCF), and attended by the mayor, multiple current and former City Council members, and notable community organizers.
Enthusiastic participation by attendees, impressive organization by FCF's leaders, and stimulating activities at the bootcamp helped showcase why the City of Falls Church is – on a civics level – one of the "healthiest communities in the United States."
“Local government matters now more than ever,” FCF – a volunteer civic improvements group founded in 2023 – said in its bootcamp invitation. And, “now is a great time to get involved and shape the city around you! Maybe YOU could even be our next Mayor! Learn about how the city works, how to run for office or join a board, and navigate city information. Even if you don't have any experience, this is a great place to start.”
At the event, The Falls Church Independent interviewed the mayor and multiple participants. We were curious about the leadership group’s organizational strategies for the bootcamp, what drew attendees out, and how the day might have inspired participants to get more involved in the community.
With dynamic, humorous and graphics-enhanced opening presentations from FCF’s leadership committee – including Mayor Letty Hardi, Council member Justine Underhill, former Council member Ross Linkenhous, neighborhood leaders Pat Conley and Naudy Martinez, and City Planning Commission member Andrea Caumont – the attendees were guided through a series of instructional primers about the City of Falls Church and FCF.
Various factual “pop quizzes” relating to FCF’s “5 Pillars” of “Housing for All, Community Businesses, People-First Places, Climate Resilience, and Welcoming Culture” were sprung cheerfully on attendees.
Mayor Hardi presented “Falls Church 101,” a primer on the City of Falls Church with touchpoints to FCF’s Five Pillars. Naudy Martinez on the leadership team then led participants through a bonding exercise of “Comunity Bingo,” where participants were encouraged to circulate and meet their neighbors and the first who met enough who matched the Bingo square categories (such as “I can fix a bicycle,” or, “I own a small business,” or "I have lived in Falls Church for less than a year”) could shout “Bingo!” and be awarded with an FCF tote bag.
Then the participants attended three 10-minute rotating breakout table discussions (with questions encouraged) on the following topics:
Rotating Table Discussions
- Joining a board or commission (Phil Duncan and Andrea Caumont)
- Running for office (John Murphy and Justine Underhill)
- Day in the life of the Council (Ross Linkenhous)
- Supporting a non-profit/civic group (Hal Lippman and Christine Buccholz)
To close out the afternoon, all the participants then re-convened to chat about what they would take away from the bootcamp.
Interviews with Organizers and Attendees
We asked Amanda Smithson – winner of the Community Bingo FCF tote bag, and a resident of Modera at Founders Row – what drew her to attend the afternoon bootcamp.
“I’ve been looking to get more involved with local community activities for a while,” Smithson said. “I did volunteer work with some of the people who do the cleanup and weeding of invasive species about a year ago. But, I want to do more. And so the sign was posted in an apartment building and we got an email so I decided I would come and show my face.”
We asked Smithson, who’s lived in the City of Falls Church for around three years how she likes The Little City.
“I love it,” she said. “I went to school at George Mason [University], so I came up here for college and really liked northern Virginia. I love all the variety of cuisine…. I’m from Fredericksburg, Virginia. And I’m a big foodie and I got lucky that the Modera was doing a really good rent promotion when I came here and I just really liked it – the walkability, the coffee shops, I love the public parks, the trails for biking and walking, I feel like that’s what I’ve been looking for in a place to live. And so, if I can support it continuing to be like that, that’s why I’ve come here.”
Smithson said she was inspired to “get more involved in the civics and the government” of the City now. “I’m interested in joining Falls Church Forward specifically and then looking for more opportunities where I can volunteer.”
After I congratulated Smithson on her handsome FCF tote bag, she responded, “Thank you. It’s beautiful. I’ll take it to the Farmers Market.”
In the table discussion on “A day in the life of Council,” I noticed City of Falls Church resident Robin Ramey focusing intently on responses from Council member Marybeth Connelly and former Council member Ross Linkenhous. Ramey's an archeologist for Fairfax County and a first-time homebuyer in the Little City. I asked what drew Ramey to the day’s bootcamp. “Oh, just looking for ways to get more involved in the City and different ways to engage, both with the government here and the community as well,” Ramey said. “And I think Falls Church Forward is a great organization. And it kind of gets you plugged into both of those things.”
Ramey was first inspired to join FCF after connecting with FCF leader, Council member Justine Underhill, when Underhill was running for office. “She kind of pulled me in,” Ramey said. “She was running for City Council so there were a slew of public events going on and she was making sure to get out to all of them and get people really involved and that’s where I met her…. She’s so dynamic. Just a wonderful, super person who’s knowledgeable about the City and cares so much about our community.”
Inspired by the day’s activities, Ramey said she’s thinking about getting more involved in the community and possibly City government. ”For me, I think the next step might be a board or commission,” Ramey said. “I just have to figure out which one. And it’s good there are so many people who are on boards and commissions here to help me get some insight into what the commitment is like, how long it is, what’s the experience required, do you need to have expertise, all of these things. It seems to be a very welcoming environment…. I mean it’s definitely a commitment and people care a lot. So, there’s a high bar, I think, just because we have such an engaged, educated population here."
Asked how she likes living in the City, Ramey said, "I like it here. It’s great here. And things like this [bootcamp] help de-mystify it in a way that really encourages you to get involved and to make a difference.”
Next, we spoke with Naudy Martinez during a shift in the rotating table discussions. She’s been with FCF for only a “little less than a year,” and has only lived in the City since Aug. 2023, having moved from Arlington, but she’s already joined the group’s leadership team.
“I like cities,” she had written on her name tag. When I asked if she’s particularly interested in urban planning she said, “I’m definitely interested in urban planning, but more so, I’m interested in community building. And the neighborliness and being connected to everybody and community service. And I think that’s really drawn me to the organization, being able to meet people as a new person in the City and to give back in different ways and to participate in civic engagement.”
Martinez first heard about FCF through Mayor Hardi’s weekly blog and then she “just showed up to one of Justine’s [Underhill’s] new video documentary screenings” and hasn’t “stopped coming back!” [Laughs].
We asked Martinez about how the leadership team came up with the day’s agenda and activities. “So, as a group, we kind of came together last year to think about what our priorities were going to be for this year and one of [the priorities] really is how to get people involved and to demystify local government a little bit,” she said. “I think with everything that’s been going on on the national level, people are very excited to get involved locally and have a voice and to connect. I think there’s a lot of isolation as well all across the country. So, being able to bring people together in one room and keep them connected and excited about a common goal, a common good, is kind of what came from that.”
“A big goal today was to ensure that people get to know each other,” Martinez continued. “So, how do we do that in a fun and exciting way?"
Impressed with the day’s turnout, Martinez elaborated further on the design of the bootcamp. “Yeah, that people came out on a Sunday – to take their time off – and we’re very excited to be able to have breakout sessions to allow people to take deeper dives…. And we hope it gets people to continue to get excited and engaged and to continue showing up. And to continue helping each other."
We were finally able to chat with Mayor Hardi, who was busy fielding questions and snapping her own photos of the various table discussions. She too was pleased by the day’s activities. “I am so impressed by both the turnout as well as the engagement. Actually, that the majority of people here are brand new – like not a frequent flyer that we’ve seen at lots of the City meetings already.”
“We were really deliberate in reaching out to a lot of our multifamily buildings and knowing that more than half of our housing stock is now multifamily, and getting them connected to local government has always been really important to me because I represent them too,” Hardi continued. “Seeing all these new faces is really energizing and heartening.”
Hardi described her organizational approach for the day in her role on FCF's leadership team. “So, I always start with outcomes.... At the end of the day – in light of everything that’s happening – we’re like, the community connections and community building is really so important. So, if nothing else, make a friend. Know there are other people who want to be civic geeks. [Laughs]. Now, can I teach you everything you need to know about Falls Church in two hours? Probably not. But this is really meant to be that 101 Course. And so there’s that balance between the community connections and something fun, something light, along with a little of the surface level of what Falls Church is like and how to get involved.”
Hardi is proud to see FCF’s membership growing to nearly 500 after its founding a little less than two years ago. “Because it’s a volunteer gig for all six of us on leadership, we look forward to having more members who can get involved and roll up their sleeves!,” she said.
Hardi’s message to the wider community during these turbulent times: “Local government: more important than ever!”
For our earlier story on Falls Church Forward read below:
Christopher Jones
By Christopher Jones
Member discussion