Together With:

Good morning, Newport News! You’re reading The Newport Newser, your friendly local guide to what’s happening, changing, and worth knowing around Newport News. Every issue brings you local stories, upcoming events, business spotlights, and community gems that make our city feel like home.

In today’s newsletter:

☀️ Weather

⚓ Shipbuilding Legacy

🌡️ Heat Safety

⚓ Sailor Housing

📅 Events

Here’s what’s up.

What historic train station is the last remaining C&O Railroad depot on the Virginia Peninsula?

Reed’s Lawn Care, LLC is a family-owned business serving Newport News with more than fresh-cut lawns. The team handles mowing, mulching, flower bed installation, leaf cleanups and more, but their real calling card is how they treat people.

They talk with customers before each job so everyone is clear from the start, and they offer discounts for military, police and EMS. When one client recently went through a family loss, Reed’s stepped in and provided lawn care at no charge. As they put it, “At the end of the day, we’re all human beings. Kindness can go such a long way.” For reliable lawn care with a personal touch, Reed’s is a local name worth knowing.

⚓ Newport News Marks 140 Years Of Shipbuilding Legacy

🌡️ It’s Dangerously Hot, Newport News, Here’s What To Know

The heat index is pushing toward 100 degrees this week, and that is not something to play with. Drink water, stay out of the sun during peak afternoon hours and please check on your elderly neighbors, they may not ask for help but they need it. And please, keep kids and pets out of parked cars. Seriously, not even for a minute.

If you need to cool down, the city has you covered:

📍 Pearl Bailey, Main Street and Grissom Libraries

📍 Brittingham-Midtown and Denbigh Community Centers

📍 Downing-Gross Cultural Arts Center

📍 Four Oaks Day Service Center

Stay cool out there. This weekend is too good to spend it feeling terrible.

⚓ State Clears Up $40M Loan For Sailor Housing

Virginia lawmakers added new language to the state budget spelling out how a $40 million loan for sailor housing in Newport News could be forgiven once the project is finished. The money is tied to a larger effort to improve living conditions for sailors assigned to ships under maintenance at the shipyard, an issue that drew heavy attention after several sailor suicides in 2022. City and state leaders had raised concerns because the original loan language was unclear. Mayor Phillip Jones called the update a step forward for sailors’ quality of life. The budget still needs Gov. Abigail Spanberger’s signature, but this puts the project on firmer ground. Read More...

Here’s what’s happening this weekend 👇

🐾 Empty The Shelters Adoption Event — July 5 To July 26

Peninsula Regional Animal Shelter, 5843 Jefferson Avenue, Newport News. Adoption fees for dogs and cats will be reduced to $70 or less during this summer adoption event. Pets go home spayed or neutered, vaccinated and microchipped. If your home has room for a new best friend, this is a good time to meet one. Read more...

🏥 Free Sports Physicals And School Vaccines

Vaccines are available at no cost with the right consent forms. The Fire Department’s CAREs Team will also be there to connect students and families with mental health resources and community support.

📍 Ella Fitzgerald Middle School, 432 Industrial Park Dr., June 30 and July 14

📍 Warwick High School, 51 Copeland Lane, July 7

A parent must be present, and forms must be completed before the exam.

In the Thimble Shoals area of Newport News, Second Breath LLC is more than a training center. It is a community mission. Founded by Rosa Butcher, a 24-year veteran of the helping field, Second Breath offers CPR, First Aid, mental health resilience training, babysitting certification, and notary services, with mobile, on-site training available.

“A certification card isn’t enough,” Rosa says. “My mission is to ensure my participants have the confidence to act.”

HISTORY & HERITAGE

📺 TV Pioneer Tony Brown Dies In Newport News

Tony Brown, longtime host of Tony Brown’s Journal, died June 17 at his Newport News home. He was 93. Brown helped bring Black voices and issues to national television for decades. He also served as a dean at Howard University and Hampton University. Read More...

ON THE WATERFRONT 

🚢 James River Ghost Fleet Still Works

Those gray ships near Fort Eustis may look retired, but several are still maintained for possible future use. The fleet has been part of the James River view for generations, and it still has a job. Read More...

BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT 

🍳 Cockeyed Rooster Coming To Newport News

The Smithfield breakfast favorite is opening a second location in Hidenwood this fall.

BUSINESS & ECONOMY 

📊 Newport News Study Finds Gaps In City Contracting

The city reviewed $814 million in contracts awarded between 2019 and 2024 and found that minority, women and veteran-owned businesses are being left out. Newport News is now proposing the Bridge-Forward Business Access Program to fix it. City Council votes July 14. If you own a small business here, show up or pay attention. Read More...

🏈 Denbigh Sophomore Goes Viral For Trash Can Football Workouts

🐾 Cassie Is Ready for Her Second Chance at a Forever Home

Lee Hall Depot

😊Thanks!

Thanks for reading Newport Newser today! Know someone always asking ‘what’s going on this weekend?’ Send this to them.