Email: dusty@patch.com

Phone: 571-268-0860

Hometown: Ashburn, VA

Birthday: Feb. 16

For more than a decade Northern Virginia communities have been my beat. I've focused on Loudoun County as an Ashburn resident since 2004.

I've covered politicians at all levels of government, land use, schools, public safety, human interest, crime and justice. I've had the fortune—it's hard to always consider it good fortune—to cover big stories like the Columbine High School massacre, the Robert Hanssen spy arrest, Springfield Mixing Bowl construction costs and a murder-for-hire case I continue to follow.

I interned with Fortune magazine in college, worked for several weekly newspapers and prior to Patch worked for the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Public Integrity.

Now I've got a young daughter, so my interest in what this community has to offer her has grown considerably. It's my goal to provide my Ashburn neighbors with all of the important information they want and need. One of the most important aspects of doing that is listening to you.

Beliefs:

At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible because human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal their beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. This disclosure is not a license for you to inject your beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that your beliefs are on the record will cause you to be ever mindful to write, report and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you ever see evidence that we failed in this mission, please let us know.

Politics: I've voted for all sorts of candidates: Democrat, Republican, Independent, Reform. I do not like the extreme ends of the two major parties.

Religion: I'm non-religious and, more specifically, agnostic.

Local Hot-Button Issues: Transportation, education, homes values and taxes have been the issues irking folks in Ashburn over the years, all pressures from the area's tremendous growth. As long as people keep having babies, growth will occur. I think it should be carefully managed because development mistakes are difficult to erase. But I also know Ashburn residents love local sports and spending time with their neighbors, so I'll try my best to hear what you care about and not miss any of it.