Faces of Del Ray: An Introduction

Everyone has a story, a unique sphere of influence, an area of expertise or a cause they are passionate about.

We are surrounded by ordinary people who live extraordinary lives, in the way that their perspective is unique and their experiences invaluable. The person ordering a turtle sundae next to you in line at could have just returned from a humanitarian aid trip to South America. The woman down the street with the weird cat could have received regional teacher of the year award for her unique way of teaching history.

There are some things I have learned to be true in my adult life (which hasn't been that long). Here are two: The first is that individuals will share little nuggets of their lives if you ask. And the second is that we hardly ever ask.

But the stories are out there. Listen to Ira Glass share the fascinating tales of people on NPR's "This American Life." These are not people from the imaginary world of interesting stories. These are people who mow their lawns and grocery shop at Harris Teeter and have a war of wills with the dust bunnies on their hardwood floors. They're in our communities.

We just need to be better about asking.

And so I've decided to embark on a little adventure to get to know the stories that make up our community. Twice a month, I will feature a "face" of Del Ray—an individual who lives or works or frequents our neighborhood. I will share with you a part of his or her story that makes them unique. In so doing, we'll learn a little bit more about the extraordinary lives that make up our community.

At the very least, it will cause me to start asking people about their lives. I hope that it will get you talking, too.

Do you know someone who has an interesting story to tell? Would you share their name with me? I'd love to feature them on this blog. Email me at jessica.mancari [AT] gmail [DOT] com.