🌱 Roanoke's First Red Flag Case + GO Fest Returns To Elmwood Park

Hello, Roanokers! It's Thursday! Here's a look at what's happening in the Star city today...

Now, today's weather:

Variably cloudy with a possible thunderstorm.

High: 85 Low: 66.

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Here are the top five stories today in Roanoke:

1. The Roanoke City School Board was updated at its last meeting before the beginning of the new school year on the status of staffing for city schools. At the meeting Chief Human Resources Officer Dominick McKee told board members that the city had hired 179 teachers since the beginning of the year and had 29 open positions it was still trying to fill. "We’re well above what we used to be in the past. But we still have about 29 positions to fill, so we’re still looking for teachers out there,” McKee said. The school district will be hosting a job fair for open supporting staff positions such as custodians, maintenance workers, instructional assistants, and bus aids today. (WSLS)
2. Roanoke area McDonald's restaurants hosted a drive-thru hiring event on Tuesday allowing customers and potential applicants to pick up job applications through the fast food chain's many pickup windows. According to a spokesperson for McDonald's the chain has 300 open positions across the Roanoke Valley it needs to fill. Many who picked up an application were offered an interview right on the spot. "If we believe that you’d be a great fit with the ‘McFamily’ as we call it, usually in about four days we’ll make you an offer. It’s a quick and easy way for us to gather applications," spokesman Steve Kramer said. (WDBJ)
3. A Vinton area man, Douglas Paul England, 45, is the recipient of Roanoke's first substantial risk order since the state Red Flag law took effect. An affidavit filed in county court states that England called the Commonwealth Attorney's Office in July and "stated to [the secretary] that he was ‘going to start hurting people’ and was ‘going to [expletive] you up.' He had called the office several times that day stating that he was a United States citizen and was being deported due to a previous custody issue." The affidavit further states that upon investigating police learned England had also phoned a Veteran's Crisis Line and made similar threats. "I’m done. I’ll just start taking people out. I’ll start killing off some people. Somebody will start answering my god-[expletive] questions. Time to start ending people’s lives," he reportedly said to the operator. Upon the serving of the substantial risk order England was asked to turn over his firearms and his concealed carry permit to police, which he voluntarily did. The order is presently in effect through October 21 when it will be reviewed by the court. (Roanoke Times)
4. Today is the first day of school for many area school systems and many police agencies have announced step-ups in traffic enforcement including the Botetourt County Sheriff's Office that announced the beginning of its 'Schools Open Campaign,' a part of their wider 'Be Safe Botetourt' initiative focused on educating drivers on laws about stopped school buses, pedestrians and speed limits in school zones. "It is imperative that we remind motorists, that our children will once again be headed to school as both passengers and pedestrians along our highways. The safety of our children will be our top priority," Sheriff Matt Ward said. Drivers caught speeding in active school zones, which is considered reckless driving, could face a year in jail, a $250 fine and possibly a six-month suspension of their driver’s license. (WFXR, WFXR)
5. GO Fest, Roanoke's three day outdoors centered festival, will return to Elmwood Park in October. This year's festival will include an onsite climbing wall, a demo pool for kayaks and canoes, live music, two beer gardens and other favorites such as the Lumberjack and BMX stunt shows. "The decision to move downtown is one that we make really carefully. We take feedback from people, and we listened to last year, and we know that people were really missing that green space and the open feel,” said Kait Pedigo, events manager for Roanoke’s Go Fest. (WSLS, Go Fest website)

Today in Roanoke:

• Music Heritage Hike, Thursdays - FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge (10 a.m.)
• Party in the Park featuring Cat5 Band at Elmwood Park (5:30 p.m.)
• Crank Sisters Social Ride with Cardinal Bicycle (6 p.m.)
• School Board Regular Meeting - Roanoke County (6 p.m.)
• Creek Freaks Skills Session on the Roanoke River Blueway at Rotary Park (6:30 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• Roanoke College: "Katherine Charbonneau '23, through participation in the newly reimagined Fowler Student Policy Scholar Program, is exploring how machine learning can help predict future international political uprisings and conflicts." (Roanoke College - Salem, VA via Instagram)
• Roanoke County Public Schools: Today, more than a hundred school buses will return to Roanoke County roads for the start of the 2022-2023 school year. We remind drivers to please stop for school buses when you see those flashing red lights. It's the law! (Roanoke County Public Schools via Facebook)
• Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke: "Center staff Laurel (a Roanoke College graduate and upcoming student at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine) in-took this juvenile Cooper’s hawk, who was found in a parking lot coming up to people and landing on people’s cars." (Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center of Roanoke via Facebook)
• Roanoke Fire EMS Department: "This summer, the city of Roanoke hosted interns in different city departments. We were lucky enough to get Ryleigh Balzer from Radford University. Ryleigh spent eight weeks with us assisting with outreach, communications, and community risk reduction efforts." (Roanoke Fire EMS Department via Facebook)
• Roanoke City Public Schools: "At the end of July, the William Fleming Varsity Cheerleaders volunteered at the West End Center! They taught some chants to students and enjoyed touring the facility. Thank you for serving the community, Colonels!" (Roanoke City Public Schools via Facebook)
• Roanoke Valley SPCA: "Simba, pictured here, has already been through some stressful changes in his life. His hearing and vision are impaired, so when he finds his new home, he will likely need time to adjust to his new environment and routine." (Roanoke Valley SPCA via Facebook)

Alrighty. You're officially in the loop 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