Good morning, Blacksburg.

Matt Gentry retired on June 2 after a 47-year journalism career that started in Blacksburg, and his work as a reporter and photographer made a lasting impact on the community.

His retirement celebration at Alexander Black House drew local friends and colleagues—honoring a legacy rooted in decades of local news coverage.

A woman died when her car rolled over on I-81 on June 10th—authorities are investigating the accident.

The Pulaski County Sheriff's Office is asking the public for help finding Selwyn Maurice Stuart, a 27-year-old man from Dublin who was last seen May 30 and is 6 feet 2 inches tall, about 180 pounds with black hair, brown eyes and tattoos (a teardrop on his face and a sun on his neck) known to frequent areas in the New River Valley.

Virginia Tech students won a national competition to design the ContentCube satellite that will launch later this year aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

The cube will be deployed from the Northrop Grumman Cygnus NG-22 module at Cape Canaveral and will allow people to take a selfie from space — a test that will run for about three months — while the team prepares to build more CubeSats in the future.

Virginia Tech's licensing and trademarks team earned two national awards—one for its co-branded work with Metallica and one for its support of veterans through Operation Hat Trick.

The awards mark the second consecutive year the team received national recognition for its creative product partnerships.

Family and friends gathered at the Center for the Arts at Virginia Tech to remember retired poet and professor Nikki Giovanni, whose 35-year career left a mark on students — the tribute honored her dedication as teacher and mentor — and celebrated her lasting legacy.

In May, Gary Kinder and Renee Ryan retired from their roles as advisor and assistant department head in the building construction program after decades of service—guiding thousands of students to graduation and careers.

They helped build the First-Year Experiences course that more than 11,500 new students joined during the 2024-25 academic year.

Virginia Tech researchers are working to develop new treatments for pediatric brain cancer by targeting a protein called KAT6A.

The one-year study will test whether a KAT6A-selective compound called Pf9363—delivered with focused ultrasound to open the blood-brain barrier—can improve treatment outcomes for children.

Virginia Tech researchers analyzed nearly 9 million property sales to study how solar farms affect local land values and found that agricultural and vacant lands saw a 19.4% increase while nearby residential homes dropped by 4.8%.

Experts say these changes—likely due to perception rather than physical factors—could guide future solar development planning.

Lavender Fest Days

12-6 p.m. — Beliveau Farm Winery — $8.00 entry — Immerse yourself in the sights and scents of lavender while enjoying local vendors, live music, and specialty drinks.

Salsa Under The Stars

6:30-10:30 p.m. — Beliveau Farm Winery — $12 per person — Dance the night away with a salsa lesson and vibrant music under the stars.