Healthy Kids Day, Bug Incubator, Robotic Food Delivery: NoVA Good News

VIRGINIA — This week's good news stories in Northern Virginia include a Madison High School graduate becomes the nation's first specialist for neurodiverse public school students, restaurants in the Mosaic District begin delivering food by autonomous robots, and STEM program students at Edison High School turn an old file cabinet into a bug incubator.

Plus, the Town of Herndon honors more than 200 volunteers, Old Dominion Pizza opens a new restaurant in Fairfax City, and YMCAs prepare to host family-friendly activities as part of Healthy Kids Day.

Here are some of this week's good news headlines:

Kristen Haynor, a Madison High School graduate, is believed to be the first neurodiversity specialist in U.S. K-12 schools in her new role with Fairfax County Public Schools. The school division is trying to make new strides with historically overlooked neurodiverse students.

Residents of the Mosaic District in Merrifield are now able to have food delivered to them by autonomous robots, according to a release from Uber Technologies, Inc. and Cartken, an AI-powered robotics company. Uber and Cartken partnered with select merchants in the Mosaic Distict, such as Our Mom Eugenia, Pupatella and RASA.

The Woman's Club of McLean is holding a Kitchen and Garden Tour on Thursday, April 27 to benefit the McLean Volunteer Fire Department. Proceeds from the benefit will be used to help the fire department, which celebrated 100 years of service to McLean in 2021, buy a new ambulance.

More than 200 volunteers were recognized for the contributions over the last year to the Town of Herndon as part of the 37th Annual Mayor's Volunteer Reception, according to a release. Mayor Sheila Olem and Town Council members Naila Alam and Keven LeBlanc were joined by State Del. Irene Shin at the ceremony, which took place Sunday at the Herndon Community Center.

The Global STEM Challenges Program lets students at Edison High School in Franconia study sustainability year-round, not just in the spring around Earth Day. The current group of freshman students in the program are exploring the benefits of growing vertical gardens in urban areas and whether insects can become a more sustainable source of protein.