Fredericksburg Parent

6 Fredericksburg Parent and Family • February 2021 PUBLISHER Leigh Anne Van Doren Tabitha & Jamie Nelle's mom EDITOR & WEBMASTER Chris Jones Quincy, Hayden & Olive's dad MEDIA & ADVERTISING DIRECTOR Megan Walsh: Mia, Noelle & Adelaide's mom DESIGN & PRODUCTION Cheryl Carter, Owner, Carter Creations Alex, Kate & Jackie's mom SOCIAL MEDIA AND MARKETING MANAGER Lauren Malloy: Olivia and Naomi's mom CALENDAR & COOL THINGS TO DO ELETTER Leigha Pecher: Jake & Luke's mom EDUCATION AND INFANT ELETTERS Debra Caffrey: Aidan's mom MARKETING AND EVENT INTERN Mira Dover parent fredericksburg & family Entrepreneur of the Year PROUD FOUNDING MEMBER ADVERTISING PHONE 540-429-3572 EMAIL leighanne@fredericksburgparent.net CALENDAR & SOCIAL MEDIA E-MAIL webmaster@fredericksburgparent.net EDITORIAL PHONE 540-429-3572 E-MAIL fredparenteditor@gmail.com SNAIL MAIL P.O. Box 7884, F'burg, VA 22404 www.fredericksburgparent.net The publishers reserve the right to reject any advertisement, editorial or listing that does not meet the publication's stan- dards. No part of this magazine may be reproduced with out permission. Listing and advertising rates are available upon request. Every effort has been made to assure the accuracy of the information con- tained herein, however, the publisher cannot guarantee such accuracy. Listings and advertisements are sub- ject to typographical errors, ommissions and/or change without notice. For terms and conditions please visit our website at www.fredericksburgparent.net © Copyright 2019 Nurture, Inc. All rights reserved. LIKE facebook.com/ FredericksburgParent SIGN UP www.FredParent.net TWEET twitter.com/fredparent PIN www.pinterest.com/ fredparent FOLLOW @fredparentmagazine WRITTEN BY LEIGH ANNE VAN DOREN thoughts from the publisher LESSONS from YEARS of This letter from the publisher was originally written in early 2020 to celebrate the beginning of our 20th year in business. It was put on hold when the pandemic hit, to make room for more urgent pandemic coverage for our readers. A year later, we are finally running it to celebrate the end of our 20th year and the beginning of the 21st. We are emerging stronger in many ways and hope you are too. In this issue, we also take a peek at two local families affected by heart issues, with a story about heart patient AJ's amazing community birthday party outside at the YMCA and a shoutout to powerhouse local nonprofit Gwyneth's Gift, founded by her parents after the death of a local young girl. At least seven lives have been saved already though the free CPR lessons and AED kits provided by the foundation. Our hearts were warmed and we are sure yours will be too. If you want more stories of strength and resilience, be sure to go to www.fredericksburgparent.net and see our Stories of Strength and Survival, Fredericksburg during COVID19. Feel free to share you stories of strength with us on our social media or send to chris@fredericksburgparent.net 1. I'm not sure what's harder—naming a magazine or naming a baby. When we were building the magazine in the late '90s—before the days where every business name had to make immediate sense to a search engine algorithm—cutesy, fun names were much more popular. We launched our first issue in 2000 under the name Nurture. This still embodies our mission for Fredericksburg-area parents, children and families, but the realities of the Internet quickly forced us to re-think that name. We chose Fredericksburg Parent & Family to more precisely reflect the kind of information our audience is looking for. 2. Parenthood can be lonely, and we need to do something about that. When I had my first daughter, I had quit a career managing publications for national organizations in D.C., and found myself struggling to find the resources I needed as a new mom in the Fredericksburg community. Googling wasn't a thing yet, and all of my family was out of state. Starting this magazine was a way for me to work through the process of finding community. We are a region with so many military families and others who have recently moved here, and I know that many our readers also feel this struggle. The pandemic has only intensified these feelings of isolation. FredParent exists to help you make meaningful connections in this wonderful community. 3. Let's work harder to support the parents of special-needs children. I still second-guess steps I took as I navigated the maze of diagnoses, treatments and specialists necessary to help my special-needs child. Running a parenting magazine has in part been my way of learning more about the community resources I need to help my own family. I am so proud of every single article FredParent has published sharing resources and perspectives from parents and organizations who help those in our community with special needs. Our new support group for parents managing schooling during the pandemic has been a similar adventure. 4. Stop worrying about everyone else—do your thing. Media is a competitive sport. FredParent has seen its share of competitors and changes in the media landscape over the years. I have learned that the best way to compete is to stay lock-focused on your own product, and to use competition as a way to constantly get better. There are so many challenges during a pandemic, and not enough resources to go around so cooperation and support is better. 2 F r e de r i c ks b u r g P a r e n t. n e t 2 0 Y e a r Ann i vers ar y ! 2 0 Y e a r Ann i vers a r y ! F r e de r i c ks b u r g P a r e n t. n e t LESSONS from Visit www.FredericksburgParent.net to read the remaining 16 lessons learned.

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