🌱 Roanoke's First Pay-What-You-Can Café + New Sheetz Location

Friday! We made it Roanoke! I hope you all have some fun plans for tonight. A personal Friday evening favorite for yours truly is watching one of my favorite Celtic music bands, Kinnfolk, play. They'll be on the front porch at Sweet Donkey Coffee tonight at six. See ya there? In the meantime, here's a look at the local news.

First, today's weather:

A thunderstorm in spots.

High: 80 Low: 66.

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Here are the top stories in Roanoke today:

1. The Sheetz at the corner of Orange Avenue and Williamson Road near the Berglund Center will be closing when a new Sheetz location opens at the corner of Orange Avenue and King Street, about two and a half miles east of the current station. The new location has a much larger lot that will allow for bigger vehicles and wider turns versus the current location. "We are continually evaluating our strategy in every market where we operate, and as a result, we have made the decision to close the store along Williamson Road," said PR Manager Nick Ruffner. (WSLS)
2. Two Roanoke County School Board members are facing a public backlash over comments they made at a recent board meeting referring to at-risk students as "bottom feeders" and "look a-likes." Board members Tim Greenway and Cheryl Facciani both made their comments while speaking in support of at-risk programs and funding, but some in the audience and online took offense. Greenway issued an apology saying in part, "I make no excuses. I should have used better wording, period. I will, however, continue the fight for more funds and more resources (tutors) for our most ‘at-risk’ students. I too was an at-risk student long ago." Facciani responded by text message to requests for comment and sited research indicating that students with commonalities perform better when placed with their peers. (Roanoke Times)
3. A brand new, first of a kind café has opened at the corner of Jefferson Street and Franklin Road in downtown Roanoke. Ursula's Café is Roanoke's first ever 'pay-what-you-can' eatery and offers diners the option of paying for all, some, none or even more for their meals. Ami Trowell, co-president of the café, and her husband decided on the idea during the pandemic. "People in our community are out of jobs or you know, not finding good jobs and we see there’s homelessness rising and so forth. So we’re like, ‘We’ve got to do something,'" said Trowell. "I just don’t know how I can have everything I need and know that people in my community aren’t even able to feed themselves." The café is set up as a nonprofit organization and relies on volunteers to staff the café. (WFIR, WSLS)
4. A Roanoke man, Stephen L. Miller, 44, was arrested after leading police officers on a chase through downtown Roanoke. The chase began when an officer observed Miller running a stop sign near 13th Street and Campbell Avenue and tried to stop him. Miller fled, continuing to run stops signs and red lights until ultimately being stopped on Orange Avenue near Gainsboro Road. Miller was taken into custody without further incident and is being held without bond in the Roanoke City Jail. No reason for his actions has been given. (Roanoke Times)

Today in Roanoke:

• Lunch with Leaders by Latinas Network at the Williamson Road Library (11 a.m.)
• St. Philoxenus Food Festival at St. Philoxenus Orthodox Church (11 a.m.)
• Mended Fences presented by First and Third Fridays (5 p.m.)
• Brett Eldredge - Budweiser Summer Series (6 p.m.)
• Kinnfolk at the Friday Food Truck & Tunes event at Sweet Donkey Coffee (6 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Roanoke College: "Roanoke College has received a generous $1.5 million endowment gift from Trustee Joanne Leonhardt Cassullo ’78 to support the College’s Center for Studying Structures of Race!" (Roanoke College via Instagram)
• Roanoke City Public Schools: "As our school buses return to the roads next week, please be mindful of buses and follow all laws to ensure our students' safety. Please remember to: • Slow down in school zones • Watch for students at bus stops • Watch for students walking." (Roanoke City Public Schools via Facebook)
• Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke: "Come one come all to our annual in-person charity gala, A Night Owl on the Town, on October 1st from 6pm to 10pm at The Shenandoah Club! Meet live native wildlife, do a little dancing, have wonderful food and drinks, and bid on some totally awesome auction items!" (Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke via Facebook)
• Roanoke Valley SPCA: "Simba has some health issues, which is to be expected since he is a senior dog, but he keeps showing us he's got life left to live! And he's hoping to find someone who understands his needs and can give him the tender loving care he deserves..." (Roanoke Valley SPCA via Instagram)
• The Rescue Mission of Roanoke: "We are hiring! Go to https://rescuemission.net/empl... to take a look at our openings!" (The Rescue Mission of Roanoke via Facebook)

You're officially in the loop for today. I'll catch up with you bright and early tomorrow with a new update!

— 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