For the third time since 2024, Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity's push to designate Nov. 21 as "Church Heritage Recognition Day" in Fairfax County failed to advance after no colleague seconded his motion.

At the July 14 Board of Supervisors meeting, none of Herrity's nine Democratic colleagues provided the second required under board rules to bring the proposal to a vote. Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn, who represents Reston on the 10-member board, was present at the meeting but did not second the motion or comment publicly on it, according to the local news site FFXnow.

"I can't understand why we can't do this one," Herrity said at the meeting.

Board Chair Jeff McKay responded that there is "objection every year to this" and called a broader religious freedom resolution the board previously adopted a "much more appropriate recognition" than Herrity's church-specific proposal.

Herrity, the board's lone Republican, argued his resolution was not meant to divide but to acknowledge the impact of local Christian churches. His proposed resolution called churches a "vital role in shaping the cultural, social and moral landscape" of Fairfax County communities.

Three years, same outcome

The dispute traces back to 2024, when the conservative lobbying group Family Foundation of Virginia called for a Church Heritage Recognition Day proclamation after Fairfax County recognized March 31 of that year as Transgender Day of Visibility. That date coincided with Easter.

In October 2024, the board rejected Herrity's first attempt and instead adopted a broader measure supporting religious diversity and all faith communities, proposed by then-Braddock District Supervisor James Walkinshaw. Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck joined Herrity in trying to pass both resolutions together; that effort failed, and Storck abstained from the final vote on the alternate version. Herrity ultimately supported it.

Herrity then created a "Springfield District proclamation" and presented it at a ceremony at Burke Community Church. He tried again in October 2025 and was rebuffed a second time before this latest attempt on July 14.

The board is on summer recess until its next meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 25. Residents can submit public comment by signing up at fairfaxcounty.gov/bosclerk/speakers-form, calling the Clerk to the Board at 703-324-3151 (TTY 711), or emailing [email protected].