Lynchburg Better Together City Council candidates Christina Delzingaro, Dave Henderson, and Nat Marshall joined early childhood educators, service providers, business leaders, and community stakeholders on August 11 for a listening session focused on early childhood education in Central Virginia. The conversation highlighted several challenges facing families and providers, including the cost and availability of high-quality childcare and early learning, shortages in the early childhood workforce, limited capacity, and the need for more sustainable funding.

This Labor Day weekend, it is important to promote candidates who support the workers educating our children and laying the foundation for a successful community for generations to come. As such, the Lynchburg Education Association endorses the following candidates for the at-large seats on city council: Christina Delzingaro, Dave Henderson, and Nat Marshall.

The Community Access Network is expanding thanks to a new federal recognition. It was selected to become a Federally Qualified Health Center, which means it will now receive federal funding through the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration. With the additional funding, the organization plans to open a satellite site at the Jubilee Family Development Center in November. The award “allows us to expand a model that has always been rooted in listening to our community, meeting people where they are, and ensuring that every person has the opportunity to live a healthier life,” said Christina Delzingaro, CEO of Community Access Network.

Three Democratic candidates say the incident has prompted a larger conversation about hateful rhetoric in the community. While the candidates say the vandalism itself was upsetting, they say the community response has been a more important reflection of Lynchburg. “To me the biggest statement about Lynchburg is the community’s reaction to it,” Henderson said. “We had people immediately come out to report the sign, remove the sign, and offer their help. And again, that speaks so much more about what Lynchburg is versus a symbol of hate.” The candidates say their response is not about political parties.

The Lynchburg Police Department has paused the operation of its 15 fixed Flock Safety license plate reader cameras located on city rights-of-way in response to concerns raised by elected officials and residents, the department said Wednesday. City Council candidates responded with a variety of statements. Lynchburg Better Together candidates said they support the pause, and offered some steps the city could take.

With a month left until early voting starts in the general election, a large campaign sign for three Democrats running for city council was vandalized. Lynchburg Better Together, a group that endorsed Christina Delzingaro, Dave Henderson, and Nat Marshall for city council, said it learned on Monday morning that one of its 4-feet-by-8-feet campaign signs at Vassar Street and Langhorne Road had been vandalized with swastikas, antisemetic imagery and other graffiti.