WMRA Daily

Immigration advocates and faith leaders in Staunton rally support for a youth being forced out of the country, away from his family, by immigration enforcement… Public surveys show solid support for a trail-only option for the proposed project between Broadway and Front Royal… Senator Tim Kaine tours the Moton Museum in Farmville, and Jeff Schapiro surveys the week in Virginia politics….

We have the latest on a Staunton man detained by ICE, now back home with his family… New state funding lowers health insurance premiums for about 200,000 Virginians enrolled in the state’s marketplace… Adoption in Virginia gets a big boost from a private non-profit….

Senator Tim Kaine starts a tour of the Shenandoah Valley with a stop at a health clinic in Winchester… A Louisa County music teacher is the new president of the National Education Association… Virginia’s new law against law enforcement officers wearing masks may not survive in court….

A state Supreme Court panel denies the attorney general’s effort to combine separate lawsuits against the state’s assault weapons ban… Artificial intelligence is not very good at illustrating small towns… During its annual Fourth of July yard sale, the small community of Fulks Run reflects on America’s 250th birthday….

Farmville asks residents to conserve water… After a six-year hiatus, Charlottesville City will again deploy School Resource Officers to public schools… Shenandoah University gets a grant to create a shared commercial kitchen for the Winchester area….

Cooling centers open around the region as we head into an Independence Day weekend of extreme heat… The Free Clinic of Culpeper launches a new peer recovery program… We pay a visit to the Front Royal campus of the Smithsonian Institute, where rescuing black-footed ferrets has become a success story….

State health officials warn of dangerous heat this July 4th weekend… WMRA’s Calvin Pynn explores the phenomenon of “flash droughts”… A federal judge blocks a new Virginia law that prevents ICE officers from wearing masks….

The measles outbreak in Buckingham County spreads to neighboring Cumberland… A Virginia program called SUN Bucks helps feed children when school is out of session, and some farmers markets are participating... Staunton residents with Valley Supportive Housing help alleviate housing instability there….

ICE confirms arrests in the Ruckersville area, just days before restrictions on cooperation with local law enforcement go into effect… It’s official, Virginia has a budget, just before today’s deadline… We dig into the popularity (and health risks) of raw milk….

As potentially dangerous, triple-digit heat looms later this week, Rockingham and Augusta counties declare drought emergencies… Fewer Virginians sign up for health insurance using the state’s health exchange, with the end of federal subsidies and higher premiums to blame… On July 1st, Virginia’s unemployment benefits increase, and Styrofoam begins to go away….

Areas east of the Blue Ridge are still under extreme drought, but weekend rain could help… As Virginia’s budget debate moves toward a resolution just before the deadline, Jeff Schapiro shares his perspective on Virginia politics… We take a ride through American history on the Norfolk & Southern 611 steam train….

Page County deputies shoot and kill a woman after a welfare checkup… For the first time, EMU names a Black woman as president… Jim Ryan reflects on life one year after resigning as UVa’s president….

Shenandoah County leaders move forward on new rules for data centers… In the second part of our series on the rebuilding of Nelson County’s Department of Social Services, we investigate the staffing challenges faced by small rural agencies… We meet the all-volunteer crew in Mount Solon that rehabilitates injured bats and teaches the public how to protect them….

Nelson County’s Department of Social Services is rebuilding after a year of turmoil… The General Assembly approves a new budget, just over a week before the deadline… We take a deeper look at the compromise in that budget over a legal marijuana marketplace….

The Virginia House and State Senate meet today to vote on Virginia’s next two-year budget… Virginia remains in a near-statewide drought warning… Residents in Chesterfield county push back on plans for three new data centers.

Researchers from the University of Virginia have found a possible negative side effect of weight loss injection drugs on muscle mass ... Mary Page Marlowe tells the story of a woman’s life over the course of several decades, complicated by her personal choices and circumstances. The play, produced by local theater company ShenanArts, debuts in Staunton tomorrow ... and more.

Shenandoah National Park officials suspect a norovirus outbreak along the Appalachian Trail is infecting some hikers… The case against the Natural Bridge Zoo will be split into three separate trials… A Fluvanna County woman invents a wearable device to help breast-feeding mothers....

Residents pack a public forum in Strasburg over a proposed data center complex… The two missing baby giraffes from the Natural Bridge Zoo have been found safe… Governor Spanberger and legislative leaders announce a deal on a retail marijuana market….

Residents in several places in the northern Shenandoah Valley are debating proposed data center projects… Morale in Albemarle County’s police department is down, according to one survey… Old-fashioned pinball and video games are thriving at parlors around the state, and we visit one in Charlottesville….

Health officials ask residents in Buckingham County to help contain the measles outbreak there… Drought conditions worsen, with nearly 40% of Virginia under extreme drought… The House of Delegates releases its budget proposal, which still includes a tax break for data centers, but also a commission to study them….