Had the pleasure last night of meeting with the Ruritans, a group of men and women dedicated to making the Nokesville/Bristow community better.  I was impressed by their relationship with area schools in addition to their other philanthropic activities.  They’ve had a longstanding relationship with Cedar Point ES and more recently T. Clay Wood ES, which is especially fitting since Mr. T. Clay himself is a  member (with a 63 yr. perfect meeting attendance record I was told).  They are expanding this partnership to include Marsteller MS and Nokesville ES.   As I sat there last night, I realized that 3 of the best things my family loves about living here are directly because of the Ruritans’ work:  Nokesville Day, the Tree Lighting and Brunswick Stew Day.  Each of these events is a Must-Do on our family calendar.  Nokesville Day is a family oriented parade/fair that thousands come for, the Tree Lighting is in December with local schools singing,  free hot cocoa and cider and an appearance by Santa and Brunswick Stew Day is in October.   The stew is a secret recipe cooked over open fire…the aroma as it is cooking draws people from miles around.  Old timers are in line 2 hours early just to get the first bowl and those of us who plan ahead bring boxes to fill up with quarts for our freezers.  If you haven’t been to one of the Ruritans’ events, be sure to check them out in the coming year and thank them for all they do to make our community special and for all the dedication they’ve shown to our local schools and students.