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Warren Coalition is accepting nominations for the 2025 Larry M. Funk Memorial Award for Outstanding Service to Children. This award was established by the Warren Coalition in 2022 to recognize an individual who has made a positive impact on the children of Warren County through dedicated service.  

The award is open to anyone who serves children in any way, though if it is their profession, the nominator will need to explain the way in which they go above and beyond their normal job requirements. Nominators are asked to explain the contributions made to the children and youth of Warren County, cite specific examples, and list five outstanding qualities of the nominee.

Nominations can be made online at https://bit.ly/FunkAward. (Note that the link is case-sensitive.) A panel will review the nomination packages, and the selected recipient will be presented with a plaque and $500 cash at the Warren Coalition’s Annual Membership Luncheon in late July. Nominations are due June 15, 2025.

People who have been nominated before may be submitted again. However, past honorees are ineligible for five years following receipt of the award. Past recipients include Roger Smelzer (2022), Laura Nelson-Haas (2023), and Michael S. Williams (2024). Questions may be sent to Celeste Brooks at celeste@warrencoalition.org.

Larry M. Funk was a member of Warren Coalition for more than 20 years, serving in a number of positions to include Vice President and President during that time.  The Warren County Sheriff Department employed Larry for over 28 years, and 27 of those were as the D.A.R.E. instructor and Community Policing representative.  He received many awards and recognitions from community organizations such as Kiwanis, Elks Lodge, Moose Lodge, Warren County Sheriff Department, Warren County Board of Supervisors, and American Legion Post 53, just to name a few. His many activities included presentations at events and distribution of educational materials for the youth of Warren County. This included many bike rodeos; Warren County Fair booths; Warren Memorial Hospital annual health fair; drug awareness displays; car shows; and car seat safety checks. He coordinated and organized the annual D.A.R.E. Day, which was the culmination of a year of planning for the fifth graders of Warren County Public Schools as part of the D.A.R.E education during the school year.

At his church, Larry served as an elder, assistant Sunday school superintendent, and a youth Sunday school teacher. His family recalled that he would practice his presentations for hours until he got them just the way he wanted.  He took great pride working with the children of the community.  Students and former students would frequently greet him with hugs whenever they would see him. Larry’s impact was great and long-lasting.

Larry was married for 38 years; the proud father of two sons; and grandfather of five grandchildren. He loved spending time with them and especially teaching them. 

With eight video submissions for their annual Health Video Contest—more than any year since COVID—Warren Coalition staff and board members found it difficult to determine the four winners for 2025. However, selections were made, and during the week of April 7^th, the winners were presented with their first-place prizes of $125 Amazon gift cards: Kenny Buhl of Warren County Middle School took first place in Getting Quality Sleep, while fellow WCMS student Alaina Lauffer claimed first prize in the Eating Healthy/Nutrition category. Ryder Bowen, a student at John Paul the Great Montessori Academy, took home the top award in the Drinking Enough Water category.  Landon Marut of Legacy Christian Academy won the top prize in the Exercise category. Each of the students received $125 in Amazon gift cards. 

The contest was open to all middle school students, ages 11-14, in Warren County. Students could elect to submit a video about getting regular exercise, getting quality sleep, drinking enough water, or maintaining healthy eating habits. The contest was held as part of the Warren Coalition’s WAHOO (Working to Achieve Healthy Outcomes and Opportunities) program, which is funded by the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth. Their videos will be used as healthy living ads throughout Warren County in the late spring/early summer.

“This was a great group of submissions, and it was not an easy decision,” said Celeste Brooks, Community Outreach Coordinator. “Our youth representative to the Coalition board, Lauren Foltz, took the lead on the judging, with several staff members weighing in. We took into consideration the clarity of the video and the audio, as well as the creativity. Kenny and Landon both won last year in the same categories as this year, and their videos just keep getting better. Alaina and Ryder provided outstanding first-time submissions. We appreciate the time the students took to make such a fun group of videos!”  

Warren Coalition is a nonprofit agency established in 1994 to help fill the gaps in health care and substance abuse awareness to the community. The Coalition began under the guidance of Warren Memorial Hospital as an outreach project, but it has since grown and was incorporated in 2001.  The office is currently located in the Warren County Community Center.  Their mission is to make Warren County a safe, healthy, and drug free community through many programs and in collaboration with 15+ member agencies.

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Annual Run Supports Cross Country Teams, Scholarships

Edward Jones and Warren Coalition are pleased to team up for the Edward Jones 5K Race for Education, which benefits local high school athletes and students. This year’s race will be held Saturday, March 15th at Warren County Middle School. The annual fundraiser supports the Warren County High School and Skyline High School cross country teams, and provides scholarship funds for local high school students, to cover Advanced Placement testing fees and dual enrollment classes at Laurel Ridge Community College.

The course follows the length of Leach Run Parkway and back. Registration begins at 8:00 am; the race will begin sharply at 9:00 am, rain or shine. Walkers are welcome to register and participate in the camaraderie and help support these local causes. Baby strollers and leashed dogs are also welcome.

Learn more on the Facebook page at facebook.com/EdwardJones5k, or visit https://runsignup.com/Race/VA/FrontRoyal/EdwardJones to pre-register for the race. Early registration is currently $25 per adult participant and $20 for students; children four and under are free. The early bird registration prices are good through February 28^th; after that, costs will increase by $5. Same-day registrations will be accepted.

Plans for Warren County’s second year of participation in the Global Day of Unplugging are well under way, with businesses and organizations around the community jumping on board to help individuals disconnect from their phones for a while and reconnect with themselves, each other, the community at large, and nature!

On average, people check their phones 205 times per day—nearly once every five minutes. Led by Warren Coalition, “Warren County Unplugged” is a local event held in observance of the Global Day of Unplugging, from 6:00 pm Friday, March 7^th, to 6:00 pm Saturday, March 8th. This event encourages people to establish some protected time to disconnect—whether that is for a few hours or the full 24 hours.

Warren County Unplugged will provide in-person activities throughout the area to make it easy to meet up with friends and enjoy time without a smartphone or other device. The fun begins on Friday evening, March 7^th, at 5:45 pm, with a Youth Unplugged Party being held at the Health & Human Services Complex. Youth of all ages will have the opportunity to meet up at the gym for free pizza provided by Warren County Parks & Recreation (while supplies last). The first 225 people will receive a free “smartphone nap-sack,” with wiki stix for elementary school-aged children. There will be a countdown to 6:00 pm, when people will turn off their phones (or at least drop them into the nap-sack and put them away).

Beginning at 6 pm, the activities will be split by ages. Warren County Parks and Recreation and Young Life will host middle school and high school students at the gym, with volleyball and cornhole tournaments, arts and crafts, and backyard games such as spike ball and can jam. Elementary school students and their parents will head over to Diversified Minds, where they will enjoy Resilience Bingo (with PRIZES!), Affirmations Jenga, archery, inflatable bowling, and more. (There are unconfirmed rumors of Uno games….) Warren Coalition, Warren County Sheriff’s Office, and Scouting America are hosting this section. There will also be a parent information session to provide education about the impact smartphones have on our children and how parents can set healthy boundaries. Door prizes will be awarded!

Later Friday evening, Royal Family Bowling (which is also an Event Sponsor!) will host a Hyper Bowl Party.

On Saturday, downtown Front Royal will be hopping with a Backyard Games party hosted by Habitat for Humanity at the gazebo. Explore Art & Clay is offering 20% off Paint Your Own Pottery and wood kits. Main Street Geek customers will receive a free comic book and 10% off throughout their store. C &C Frozen Treats, which always provides a variety of free fun activities for kids, will also host some special story times.

Off Main Street, Play Favorites is bringing back the free-all-day unplugged arcade (video games are disconnected, but everything else is free to play all day!), sidewalk chalk, board games, and will offer 10% off everything in the store. The Northern Virginia 4-H Educational and Conference Center is encouraging people to hike the Appalachian Trail, which is accessible from their property, and complete a nature scavenger hunt.

For those who want a little more unplugged time on Saturday evening, Shenandoah River State Park will offer “Nighttime Vernal Pool Expedition” 6pm to 8 pm.

In addition to all of this, Phoenix Project will host a community art exhibit. Submissions from grades K-12 will be accepted prior to the Global Day of Unplugging, and placed on display at a surprise location that will be announced later in February.

An online schedule is available on our website and posted to the Facebook event. Events and activities may be added through February 21^st. Businesses and organizations that would like to join in should email Celeste Brooks at celeste@warrencoalition.org or call 540-660-3367.

Warren Coalition is grateful to the many sponsors who have stepped up to make this event possible, including the Title Sponsors: Mountain Laurel Montessori School, Angel’s Korner Daycare and Learning Center, Mom’s Country Kitchen, and Melting Pot. Event sponsors include Dusty’s Country Store, Edward Jones (Bret Hrbek), L’Dee’s Pancake House, and Royal Cinemas.

Warren Coalition is a nonprofit agency established in 1994 to help fill the gaps in health care and substance abuse awareness to the community. The Coalition began under the guidance of Warren Memorial Hospital as an outreach project, but it has since grown and was incorporated in 2001.  The office is currently located in the Warren County Community Center.  Their mission is to make Warren County a safe, healthy, and drug free community through many programs and in collaboration with 15+ member agencies.

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