James R. Walkinshaw

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize River City Marketing, LLC,

as the company celebrates its 30th anniversary.

Founded in 1996 near the James River in Richmond, Virginia, by marketing industry expert and digital marketing specialist Josh Fertel, River City Marketing was established with a mission to help small businesses grow through creative and strategic marketing.

In 2001, the company relocated its headquarters to Fairfax, Virginia, where it has continued to grow while serving organizations throughout Northern Virginia, the Washington metropolitan area, the Mid-Atlantic region, and beyond.

River City Marketing's 30-year history has coincided with a remarkable transformation in the marketing industry. When the company was founded, digital advertising was still in its infancy and online marketing was only beginning to emerge.

Today, digital search and online platforms have fundamentally changed how businesses connect with their customers, and artificial intelligence is once again reshaping the industry.

Throughout these changes, River City Marketing has continued to evolve to meet the needs of its clients. The company began by providing services including logo design and branding, marketing strategy, print collateral, direct mail, public relations, advertising, and audio and video production.

Today, its work is primarily focused on website design and development, Search Engine Optimization, Answer Engine Optimization, Generative Engine Optimization, Pay Per Click management, social media management, content development, and blogging.

Over the course of three decades, River City Marketing has served more than 1,000 clients, built hundreds of search optimized websites and generated more than 10,000 first page search rankings.

Its clients have credited the company's website development and SEO work with increasing their visibility, generating new sales opportunities, and strengthening inbound leads.

Despite the tremendous technological changes that have reshaped its industry, River City Marketing's mission has remained consistent: helping small businesses reach the right audiences, communicate their value, and glow.

As a family-owned business, the company has built its reputation on personalized service, responsiveness, creativity, and measurable results.

Thirty years of success in an industry defined by constant innovation and change is a significant accomplishment. As River City Marketing celebrates this milestone, it continues to embrace new technologies and approaches while maintaining the personal service and strategic focus that have defined the company since its founding.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in congratulating Josh Fertel and the entire River City Marketing team on 30 years in business and wishing them continued success in the years ahead.

Mr. Speaker, my constituents can't catch a break. They are paying more for groceries, electricity, housing, and healthcare, and President Trump's war of choice in Iran is making life more expensive.

In August, gas prices stayed above $4 a gallon, the most expensive August in American history. Every trip to work, every school dropoff, and every grocery run costs more because of this war.

Donald Trump promised to bring down prices on day one. He promised to keep America out of foreign wars. He broke both promises, and American families are paying the price.

End this war. Bring our servicemembers home. Put American families first.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the opening of Skyview High School in Herndon, Virginia, and to congratulate the students, educators, staff, families, and community members who will make up its inaugural school community.

The opening of Skyview High School marks an important milestone for Fairfax County. As the first new Fairfax County Public Schools high school to open in more than 20 years, Skyview represents both an investment in our growing community and an investment in the next generation of Northern Virginia students.

Skyview was designed with the future of learning in mind. Its campus includes bright and flexible learning spaces equipped with modern technology, outdoor classrooms, and an advanced robotics lab that will give students opportunities to explore, experiment, collaborate, and create. Students will also benefit from an aquatic facility, as well as a state-of-the-art auditorium, where future generations of students will take the stage for concerts, theater productions, presentations, and other performances.

Even Skyview's location offers inspiration. Situated near Washington Dulles International Airport, students will have a front-row view of

aviation in action, a fitting backdrop for a school whose students are just beginning to discover how high their own ambitions can take them. But what will ultimately define Skyview High School is not its facilities. It will be the students, teachers, staff, and families who bring those halls to life.

The inaugural students of Skyview have an opportunity that few students ever receive: the chance to help create a school's identity from the very beginning. They will establish its clubs and traditions, cheer for its first teams, celebrate its first performances and achievements, and create memories that will become part of Skyview's history. The traditions they begin today will be carried forward by generations of students who follow them.

The opening of Skyview High School reflects the dedication of the educators, administrators, school staff, parents, and community partners who worked to make this new school possible. Their commitment to providing students with outstanding opportunities strengthens Fairfax County, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and our Nation.

Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in celebrating this historic first year for Skyview High School and wishing its inaugural students, faculty, and staff every success. As they write the first chapter of Skyview's story, I look forward to seeing the traditions they establish, the discoveries they make, and the many accomplishments that will fill the chapters ahead.