NEWS NEAR YOU

Richmond Larry Donnell Frye, 49, of Richmond, was sentenced this week in U.S. District Court to 20 years and 10 months in prison for the Feb. 21, 2006, robbery of Wachovia Bank in Carytown. Frye vaulted the teller counter and made off with $3,900 from tellers' drawers. Officers recovered clothing, stained from exploding dye packs taken by the robber, a few blocks from the bank.

Chesterfield Kirsten Horger has been named a distinguished finalist in the 2008 Prudential Spirit of Community Awards program. The program, which honors outstanding youth volunteers, named 102 state honorees and 234 distinguished finalists nationwide. Horger, 18, a senior at James River High School, wrote a storybook, "My New Home," which is given to children upon their arrival at local homeless shelters. She is working on a second book for children who are entering transitional housing.

Caroline The 2008 Adopt a Pet-a-Thon will be held tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. a the Caroline County Animal Shelter in Milford, 14080 Devil's Three Jump Road. To adopt an animal, you must reside in Caroline or a county that borders it. If the animal is spayed or neutered, this does not apply. Adoption fees apply. For details, call (804) 633-9041.

Dinwiddie The 12th annual Civil War Weekend will be held this weekend at Pamplin Historical Park, at 6125 Boydton Plank Road. Performers, demonstrations, crafts, games and music will bring the Civil War era to life. For details, call (804) 861-2408 or visit www.pamplinpark.org.

Richmond Fulton-area youth who participate in the Neighborhood Resource Center's "Studio Time" program have completed their first CD. Using the NRC's recording studio, they performed a range of songs and writings touching on everything from the joys of eating a perfect burger to a recollection of someone who had been shot in the head.

AROUND THE STATE

Williamsburg Three Virginia tribal council members will discuss the past 100 years of Indian experience in the commonwealth at a seminar in Williamsburg next week. The June 26 talk is part of the "Family Portraits: Virginian Indians at the Turn of the 20th Century" exhibit at the College of William and Mary. Karenne Wood and Sharon Bryant, both of the Monacan tribe, will join Powhatan Red Cloud-Owen of the Chickahominy tribe to talk about the history of their groups. The talk is sponsored by the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities.

Roanoke A 90-year-old feed and flour mill here is slated for demolition in the fall. The Roanoke Redevelopment and Housing Authority's board of commissioners agreed this week to sell the Roanoke City Mills complex to Carilion Clinic for $560,000. The authority also plans to buy a defunct scrap yard beside the mill for $125,000 and sell it to Carilion for the same price. The mill complex includes several buildings and 19 grain silos. It closed last year.

Fairfax More than 370 Fairfax County police vehicles go home every day with their drivers -- many to as far away locales as Annapolis and West Virginia. Taxpayers foot the bill for maintenance, insurance, tolls and, of course, gas. The county has no policy governing how far take-home cars can go and how they can be used. Now Police Chief David Rohrer is creating rules about the location and use of take-home cars. But he has no plans to take them away. Critics of the county's policy say it would make more sense to give take-home cars only to officers who live in Fairfax. Some 70 percent of all Fairfax police officers live outside the county. -- From Staff and Wire Reports