🌱 Roanoke Man Arrested for Kroger Robbery + Taubman Happy HeARTs

Hello and happy Saturday! I hope you all had a nice relaxing time last night with whatever you chose to do. Here's a look at some local news to get you started.

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First, today's weather:

Humid with a thunderstorm in spots.

High: 81 Low: 68.

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Here are the top five stories in Roanoke today:

1. The Botetourt County Sheriff’s Office has announced the arrest of a Roanoke man in the May robbery and threat to bomb the Daleville Kroger. Michael Thor Dricker, 46, faces three felony charges: threatening to bomb, robbery and constructing or using a hoax explosive. Dricker allegedly approached a cashier in the store, placed a bag on the counter, and said it contained a bomb and that he had the detonator in his pocket. He then demanded money and fled the store with an unknown sum of cash. Dricker was arrested August 5 after a grand jury indicted him. He is being held at the Botetourt-Craig Regional Jail without bond and his trial has been set for October 25. (Roanoke Times)
2. The Taubman Museum of Art hosted a pilot program called Happy HeARTs this summer and has now received a $240,000 grant to continue and expand the program. Every week this summer, young adults with autism and other diverse abilities practiced their motor skills and communication capabilities by stacking LEGOs, molding clay and dancing. "It was an open area where they got to freely explore different hands-on art expression activities. And it was fun to watch students that we’ve been with for years, what they chose to do," said Blue Ridge Autism and Achievement Center Clinical Director Samantha Zaldivar. (WSLS)
3. The Roanoke City and County Public School divisions each responded Thursday after statewide Standards of Learning numbers were released. Roanoke City showed a 12% decline and said in a statement that "like many school divisions across the Commonwealth and country, our students in Roanoke City Public Schools were impacted by the pandemic and virtual learning. Navigating the pandemic has been challenging for everyone." Roanoke County, meanwhile, showed an average of 16 points higher than the state average. "We are back to pre-pandemic performance in many of our individual subjects. Our reading performance last school year was strong and our math performance was exceptional, well above the statewide average," said Director of Assessment and Research Ben Williams. (Roanoke Times)
4. Representatives of Virginia Western Community College in Roanoke said they are excited to be using a new state initiative to get the word out about the availability of fast-track training for in-demand, well-paid jobs. The new initiative is called the Virginia Infrastructure Academy and is designed to help fill the more than 100,000 infrastructure jobs awaiting applicants throughout the state. "There’s never been a more affordable time to consider career training. We offer short and focused training that can help you start a new career. That’s why we’ve got these courses, we didn’t just make them up out of the air. They are in-demand and match the needs of employers in the area," said Milan Hayward, chief workforce officer at VWCC. (Franklin News Post)
5. Puppy Love, the second floor pet store in Valley View Mall, has suddenly closed its doors. The closure was announced Thursday morning via a Facebook post that said in part, "with sadness we announce the closing of Puppy Love. Unfortunately, this [is] effective immediately. We sincerely appreciate all of our customers support from near and far that were able to find their best friends with us." Signs on the doors of the store on the second floor of the mall read “all of our puppies have been safely placed in their new homes,” but did not clarify where the puppies were sent and no response was received from the mall or the store when asked for further comment. (WSLS)

Today in Roanoke:

• Face the Forest 5k Obstacle Course Run at Thomas Jefferson’s Poplar Forest (7:30 a.m.)
• 25th Annual Fab 5k at Green Hill Park (8 a.m.)
• Botetourt Honey Festival at Daleville Town Center (8:30 a.m.)
• 31st Annual Car, Truck, & Cycle Show at the Salem Civic Center (9 a.m.)
• Ladies of the 80s at Mill Mountain Theatre’s Waldron Stage (2 p.m.)
• Backroads Blues Festival at Roanoke’s Summer Concert Series in Elmwood Park (6:30 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Roanoke Valley SPCA: "Miss Fiona was adopted through our rehoming program, which allows pets to skip coming into the shelter. Instead, these animals stay in their loving homes while we help spread the word that the animal is available for adoption." (Roanoke Valley SPCA via Facebook)
• Roanoke Fire EMS Department: "Check out these pictures from our Heavy Technical Rescue Team's rope training that took place over last weekend! They spent several days practicing high-angle rope rescues downtown on the Church Ave parking garage. ⛑️💪🏙️" (Roanoke Fire EMS Department via Facebook)
• Roanoke Sheriff's Office: "Thanks to Captain Muse and Sergeant Norwood-Smith, Women Behind the Badge was formed on Aug. 17. Although women make up a smaller percentage of employees within our department, their strength and tenacity does not go unnoticed." (Roanoke Sheriff's Office via Facebook)
• Downtown Roanoke, Inc.: "We have a new section on our website called "What's New" that basically works like a blog. This week, we're giving you the scoop on downtown breweries. 🍺 Check it out at downtownroanoke.org/whats-new or click the link in our bio 🔗" (Downtown Roanoke, Inc. via Instagram)

Alrighty -- you're all caught up for today. 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