🌱 Children's Book By Former Rescue Mission CEO + Penn Forest Chase

Good morning, everybody! It's Friday! Lets take a look at some local news while we bask in the glow of the oncoming weekend.

Now, today's weather:

Mostly sunny and less humid.

High: 84 Low: 59.

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Here are the top five stories today in Roanoke:

1. Roanoke County Police were called to the Penn Forest area shortly before dawn Thursday when residents spotted two men wearing all black and shining lights into vehicles. When police arrived a white pickup truck fled from the seen leading to a short pursuit, which ended with one suspect fleeing his vehicle on foot near Penn Forest Elementary School. The suspect was quickly caught and taken into custody, but police are still searching for the two men in black seen walking in the area. Anyone with information on their whereabouts is asked to call the Roanoke County Police Department at (540)562-3265. (WDBJ)
2. A local nonprofit organization, The Roanoke Valley Collective Response, was recently awarded a $1.4 million grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration. The organization plans to use the grant money to develop a peer recovery network for substance abusers and aims to reduce the barriers between first responders across the valley and those who struggle with substance addictions. "Quite frankly, we’re asking law enforcement and EMTs to be mental health counselors, and that’s not their jobs. This grant is really here to lower the overdose mortality rate while simultaneously providing a service to law enforcement and first responders," said Niles Comer, the director of Roanoke Valley Collective Response. (WSLS)
3. Hugh Alan Kiser has been identified as the man who lit him self on fire at a Salem park over the weekend. According to the state medical examiner's office, he died later that day and his cause of death was listed as a suicide with complications from thermal injury. Kiser was a 56-year-old man whose last known address was a few streets a way from the park where he chose to end his life. Court records show he was recently charged in Salem with public intoxication and his hearing for that offense was scheduled for September 13. Officials did not say whether or not the matter was still under investigation. (Roanoke Times)
4. The Roanoke County Board of Zoning appeals unanimously voted to approve a controversial project in the former Crystal Spring Avenue location of Famous Anthony's. After at least two previous meetings where zoning was denied or tabled based on resident concerns, a boutique hotel with about 21 rooms and a bistro restaurant with 190 seats hopes to begin construction as early as Spring 2023 and open by 2024. "I’m still convinced it will work because there are still a lot of parking places that are open. There will be sometimes days that you say ‘oh that’s a problem now here; it’s getting crowded’, and that’s why we’re very lucky that we have an overflow situation where we can park in the parking garage," said developer Rudy Van Thiel. (WDBJ)
5. The former CEO of the Roanoke's Rescue Mission, Joy Sylvester Johnson, has written her first children's book, "The Seed and The Song." The story says author Johnson is about how life is a collaborative effort with God and is a modern retelling of the Biblical parable of the mustard seed. "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed it can grow into something larger, perhaps something so large even the birds will sing from it. So, this was a fun story about a little girl who has lost her song and she and her brother and sister go in search of it," said the author. The book was illustrated by Marian McConnel, a local artist and musician and a book launch event is planned for Saturday at the South County Library. (WFIR)

Today in Roanoke:

• Jared Stout Band and Chad Nickell & The Loose Change at Daleville Town Center (5 p.m.)
• Kinnfolk (Celtic music duo) at Valhalla Vineyards (6 p.m.)
• Face 2 Face: The Tribute to Billy Joel and Elton John at Dr. Pepper Park (6 p.m.)
• Harvest Tours at Virginia Mountain Vineyards (6 p.m.)
• 15th Annual Guns & Hoses Charity Softball Game at Salem Memorial Ballpark (7 p.m.)
• The Wilson Springs Hotel at Martin’s Downtown Bar and Grill (10 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke: "How funny! 😂 This young Cedar Waxwing and Ruby-throated Hummingbird are incubator roommates, and the Cedar Waxwing decided to check out the hummingbird’s nectar feeder." (Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke via Facebook)
• Roanoke Valley SPCA: "Boss is still waiting on his new home after two years in the shelter - the longest of any other pet in our care. We know that it takes time to get to know him, since he is fearful of meeting new people and he is very sensitive, but he's quite the amazing dog." (Roanoke Valley SPCA via Facebook)
• Roanoke Fire EMS Department: "Station 1 had a special guest this week! Former chief Rawleigh Quarles stopped by to visit. Mr. Quarles was the first Black chief of the Roanoke Fire Department, serving from July 1989 to February 1995. Thanks for coming by to see us! 🚒" (Roanoke Fire EMS Department via Facebook)
• Roanoke Valley Television: "Mark your calendars for the Green Hill Highland Games on Saturday, August 27 at Roanoke County, Virginia's Green Hill Park. It's a free family event with music, food and more. Some proceeds from the clan entry will go to benefit Ronald McDonald House." (Roanoke Valley Television via Facebook)

Now you're in the loop and ready to start this Friday off right! I'll see you tomorrow.

— Ian

About me: Ian Graham is a novelist, screenwriter, and freelance contributing writer. His interests are in politics, history, and religion and the stories and characters he writes about are centered on the explosive conflicts created when the three intersect. He is a firm believer in being yourself… unless you can be Batman. Always be Batman.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Roanoke Daily? Contact me at roanoke@patch.com