last about a year. the guard soldiers will replace another virginia-based batallion that's conducting security operations in qatar right now. it was nice to finally get some clearing in andyou will is is is is in an right of center nor just checking back a little sleet falling at the moment the radar of missed data for a minute or two suits, funny little jump years. you look at this but depth that is in fact a wintry mix right over the rhone valley right now coming out a slipknot like that his primary disco light rain working between two systems one of the west of us is actually a little bit more smell and wonder the east of us is a powerhouse rainmaker which will then turn into a snow maker the dc metro area tomorrow morning they are

quite the mess we notice it on the forecast model this is it's three a.m. starting to happen there is precipitation just getting cold enough to change over to snow only have some snow showers driving to the region don't think it's can be a big player think the biggest thing you're going to notice tomorrow is how we need windy it is first thing in the morning yes we have sunshine coming in the afternoon yes we have temperatures around forty three degrees the first thing in the morning those wind gusts topping thirty miles an hour at times so bundle everybody up according the new river valley want to make sure no one in their children's school goes home hungry over the weekend. as wdbj7's christian heilman found out, the group is going strong, but needs more help. chris, three moms founded the program that helps feed radford city school kids each weekend. unfortunately, the need is growing faster than they are. nat thank you all so much for coming to help pack" this is what a mom on a mission looks like... nat we're going to loop around and get one of each of the items, ...a mission to make sure radford city school kids have something to eat over the weekend.

backpacks co- founder "and when your own child has a classmate sitting next to them who's hungry, we just couldn't ignore that. " jenny riffe is one of the three moms who founded the bobcat backpacks program. they -- and their many helpers -- gathered at the presbyterian church thursday evening to pack with a fury. nat grabbing snack each of the 65 kids in the program recieves breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack. radford university students started a similar smaller program almost ten years ago. cheryl outland, highlander helpers program "and we said, do you guys want to take over it? because as college students it's a lot for us to handle school and basically running all of this. " lynn jacomen, principal, bell heth elementary school "in my office i have a snack closet and it is depleted by the end of the week. " lynn jacomen is a principal at bell heth elementary, where 25 students are in the program. according to the department of education, about 44 percent of students in radford city schools recieve free and reduced lunch. that's up from about 28 percent ten years ago. jenny riffe, bobcat

founder "it's a problem. we need our kids to be fed so they can learn and they can be the best kids they can be at school. " it costs $400 per week for the food. now, the group is maxed out and can't help any more kids. nat "and then we need two snacks. put a second snack in here. " these moms hope volunteers, grants and donations can help their mission to feed this growing hunger in the district. jenny riffe, bobcat backpacks co- founder "well, we can't let our kids be hungry. we just can't. " they applied for a four thousand dollar grant, but won't hear back about that until april. if you'd like to find out how to help, we've got a link to their site on wdbj7.com christian heilman, wdbj7. new tonight, a lynchburg woman has been charged with embezzling thousands of dollars. jennifer musick was the treasurer of the parent teacher association at paul munro elementary for three years. investigators say from august 2012 to september 2015, she embezzled mroe than 31-thousand dollars. musick was indicted on six counts on monday and turned herself in today. natalie keepers is staying in solitary confinement tonight.

the killing of blacksburg teenager nicole lovell. today, a montgomery county judge denied her bail after an hour long hearing. lovell's parents were there in the courtroom as keepers told the judge about her childhood and trouble with mental illness. she said she had seen a counselor at virginia tech because she had issues with the transition between high school and college. her parents told the court she came from a christian home and was looked up to by her siblings. her dad said she wanted to follow in his footsteps to become an aerospace engineer. prosecutors gave a detailed timeline of what happened the night lovell went missing. that's on wdbj7 dot-com. just hours after keepers's hearing- family and friends laid nicole lovell to rest. the 13-year-old's funeral was held this afternoon. people paid their respects and shared special memories of lovell with one another. galax police confirm they've arrested a former employee of the vaughan-bassett furniture company for causing more than a hundred- thousand dollars

corey hodges is charged with breaking and entering and felony destruction of property. because of the extent of the damage, vaughan- bassett's finishing room will be closed again tomorrow. virginia's house has unanimously approved a bill that would let national guard members with valid permits carry concealed weapons on duty. commanding officers would still be able to prohibit guard members from carrying guns in certain cases. the legislation is a response to last year's deadly shooting at a recruting center in tennessee. it now moves on to the senate. after last night's town hall, the two remaining democratic presidential candidates went head to head again in new hampshire. it's five-days before the primaries there, with bernie sanders leading hillary clinton in the polls. tonight, both debated over who is best able to effectively represent progressive values. sanders says despite spending his political career an independent, his liberal vision makes him worthy of the nomination. clinton responded with many democrats in sanders' home state

a new poll shows donald trump continues to hold a wide lead among likely republican primary voters in new hampshire. marco rubio climbed to second place, followed by ted cruz. the poll also found about a third of likely gop primary voters say they're still trying to decide. there's another name added to the growing field of candidates for roanoke city council. amy carter is running as an independent and has worked as a teacher and small business owner. she said today education was one of her main concerns. amy carter/independent candidate roanoke city council: empowering our kids to be whatever they want to be is very important but to do this we have to provide a safe environment for them, in the schools and out of the schools." nearly a dozen people are running for three open seats in the election this may. florida's top officials are preparing to fight the zika virus after 12 cases have been confirmed there. governor rick scott has declared a state of emergency for five counties. the virus is quickly spreading in latin

caused thousands of babies to be born with small heads. health officials are making voluntary screening for pregnant women a priority. florida gov. rick scott: "we have 20.3 million people living in our state. we're a state that has mosquitoes that are similar to the mosquitoes that can carry this, so it's better than we get a head of this." the governor is asking the c-d-c to provide testing kits to help speed things along. mosquito spraying is also happening in many at-risk counties. new tonight- we hear from the first confirmed zika patient in virginia. heather baker says she's traveled to guatemala four times in the last two years to help missionaries and special needs children. she returned from her last trip in november, and said she didn't feel right a few days later. heather baker/diagnosed with zika virus says "body aches started, photo sensitivity, fatigue, brain fog, just a nothing completely severe, enough i knew something was wrong." weeks later, baker recieved a letter from

disease control and prevention confirming she had the zika virus. she says she wants people who may be traveling to central or south america to know their risks, especially woman who may be pregnant or may become pregnant. new tonight, a rockbridge county clinic has big plans to expand after it received a million dollar government grant. w-d-b-j-7's khiree stewart spoke with leaders at the health center who say this expansion is needed. the rockbridge area health center served more than three thousand low- income, insured, and uninsured people last year. that number is growing "really the people that need help the most aren't able to get it." "it's terrible it's a terrible situation." suzanne sheridan is the ceo of the rockbridge area health center and she's hoping to change that. the center plans to use the million dollars in grant money to renovate and add to the building. "we want to expand our program areas, so we're going to be adding medical exam rooms, we'll be adding dental operatories,

we want to be able to serve more people." sheridan says it's still hard for some people in our area to get access to healthcare, partly because virginia hasn't expanded medicaid. "they're too poor or they make too much money to qualify for medicaid, but they don't make enough to qualify for the special tax incentives that are available through the affordable care act." "just because you have health insurance doesn't mean you have access to healthcare services. this is especially a problem in rural area where you don't have a lot of doctors." she hopes this expansion solves that problem. sheridan says the facility is still in the design phase of the project. rockbridge area health center expects to serve more than five thousand people this year and add jobs once construction is complete. she hope this will get people the health care treatment they need. "being able to see a doctor for routine care without having to sue an emergency room."

sherridan says construction is planned to begin in march. they're also for the center in april. you can read more about it by clicking on this story on our website. khiree stewart, w- d-b-j-7. botetourt county is moving forward with the plan to relocate two slave houses on the greenfield plantation. leaders have hired a team of archaeologists to investigate and confirm whether there are unmarked grave sites of slaves on the land. the decision to move the two houses has caused a lot of controversy in the county. there's also a lawsuit pending from a woman who says her relatives buried on the land. county leaders say the plan is to move the houses a mile away to a historic preservation site. botetourt deputy county administrator david moorman: "the anticipation is that the building work will continue and those buildings will be relocated as planned" judy morris "i'm completely against it. there are slaves that are buried all over this hilltop. they should be honored and they should stay exactly where they

no date has been set on the relocation. roanoke valley stakeholders are hoping to help find the right buyer for the former happy's flea market. it's been on the market now for more than two weeks after it was shut down last year for code violations. the local business association met with city and county planning and economic officals today to discuss the best uses for the property. new, troubling details are out on the water crisis in flint michigan. a warning for dog owners. little bows look cute and fashionable, but they can pose a huge risk. how they've changed one dog's life forever. if you had trouble filing your taxes through the irs website today, you're not alone.

it will not stop looking into flint michigan's water crisis. a 30-million dollar spending proposal has been approved to help residents with their water bills. we've also learned michigan officials warned of the link between the contaminated water and a surge in legionnaires' disease. internal emails reveal an aide in michigan's governor's administration were aware of the connection long before the governor reported it to the public. rick snyder disclosed the spike last month after he said he just learned about it. but public records show the governor's office knew about the outbreak 10-months before that. actor george takei is coming to roanoke to help promote the acceptance of refugees and immigrants in the community.

hosting the event on may 4th. the star trek alum will talk about his experience as a japanese-american being held in an internment camp during world war two. this comes after roanoke mayor david bowers said in november, he didn't want syrian refugees in the roanoke valley and compared the refugee crisis to those japanese internment camps. the event is open to the public. officials say the time and location of it will be announced closer to the date. a dog in tennessee is recovering after what turned out to be a life-altering trip to the groomer. her owner says the dog's ears had turned black a little more than a week after getting groomed. for years, the dog wore bows put on by her owner's groomer. the vet ended up having to amputate them because the circulation had stopped. she found rubber bands had been wrapped around her ears. veterinarian monica webb: "instead of just getting in the hair, [the groomer] actually got them around the pinna, the ear flap, and basically caused her ear to basically die

the dog had dead tissue removed and had laser surgery to heal the wounds. the owner of the grooming school says the student groomer did not put the rubber bands around the ears, but paid for the dog's treatment. fresh off yesterday's hearing in new york for federal securities fraud, former drug company c-e-o martin skhreli was on capitol hill today. martin shkreli was subpoenaed to testify at a hearing looking into high-priced drugs, but refused to say anything. lawmakers didn't let him off the hook. they criticized him, and asked if he felt that he did anything wrong. after the hearing shkreli fired back on twitter, calling the committee members "imbeciles." his attorney insists he is misunderstood. it'll be another year before legislation to make drug makers revel how much they spend marketing high-priced drugs will be talked about in virginia's general assembly. health insurers pushed the bill as a way for companies to

from happening. senators say the bill wasn't ready for prime-time, but will be reviewed in 2017 after more studies are done. technical difficulties hit the internal revenue service's website yesterday and continued through today. the irs says hardware failure brought down some tax processing systems, including the one that allows people to file electronically. the good news is, the systems are back up and running now - and taxes aren't due for another two- months. carilion clinic has become one of the only hospitals in southwest virginia to participate in the healthier hospitals intiative to reduce its carbon footprint. hospital leadership was on board to incorporate sustainable and green practices throughout the hospital system. this "green roof" helps keep the building cool in the summer and prevents excess runoff. from more bike racks and recycling bins, to fresh, local veggies, fruit and meal options in the cafeteria, the hospital is dedicated to going

sara wohlford/efficiency & sustainability program manager: "it is a nationwide initiative to help us reduce our energy use, reduce our waste, purchase products that are safer for the environment, using safer chemicals, more sustainable food sources." hospital leaders say green initiatives help the hospital run more efficiently and saves money. a group working to bring a passenger train station to bedford is keeping its effort on track with some help from richmond. the bedford- franklin regional rail initiative is partnering with a conulting firm called wendell companies. they helped study the feasibility of a train station in roanoke. now, they're doing the same thing for bedford. the study will estimate the number of riders who might travel from a bedford stop, and the economic impact a station would have on the area. chip badger/consultant: "we'll need to convince the state that it's worth the public investment and that it's a net benefit to the rail line." the study should be finished by march 15th. the rail initiative will use the information to convince state and railroad leaders to

stop. ahead, a cop that protects, serves, and babysits! a former war vet teaches a would-be robber that crime hard way. in music and radio are singing the praises of country star, who just so happens to be from galax! the complete first alert forecast after the break these lil' chickies and lil' doggies are small, -but they're intense. -oh, yeah. small but intense like my niece, hannah. oh, yeah. and you, uh, take karate? yeah she does. show him how intense you are, hannah. -yah! yah! ah! -(karate sounds) oh, my... hey!

-bow to her, peter. -i'm not gonna bow to a... bow to her, peter. (gong) big flavor in a little package. new lil' chickies and lil' doggies. and grab a burrito and drink for $3.00 delivered in two minutes--

nowsuggest within the last half hour we've had this up falling precipitation move-in is a little bit of sleet mixed with a little bit of rain the apparatus trying to pick out what's what and it's essentially running through pontotoc county near trout built around 1181 in dunford boones mill it's in the higher elevations it's catching you this week it fell as a sleet rain mixture here brought up as we went unchecked it's just a little while ago and in some spotty showers moving up through that for me to the higher elevations there heir admitted following moore's wintry precipitation don't think this is a disruptive thing your bedroom in the higher elevations there admitted following moore's wintry precipitation, i don't think this is a disruptive thing for you this evening but in the lookout said on what was going on outside there on outside there it is in fact just cold enough to let the precipitation fall is a frozen pellets and it will meld a juicy temperature big island is forty right now what initially this because it's a good indication because winds were and continue to see

about thirty miles an hour i happened in may avin today temperatures ranging anywhere from twenty nine as you slip over toward bloomfield the 42 in lynchburg thirty four in bristol and forty four in dando colder air certainly i imply we get this moisture coming up from the south which is starting out a sleet we also have more moisture coming in from the west and that may very well fall is natalie sprinkles but also flurries as well so we get everything pretty well covered with this idea for tonight generally cloudy skies and temperatures in the twenties in many locations martinsville danville liking a little bit behind with numbers that are in the mid- thirties now let's plan ahead for you we can little bit let's watch our high-pressure friend there are gc is pumping temperatures in the fifties and 40s across the mid-atlantic no problem there and it's a blocking system at least until sunday in effect sunday it slips over just a little bit and promotes more southerly breeze which gets her temperatures into the fifties as well so couple of clear days ahead doesn't look too bad i were friday is

breezy that's the key. there i with them temperatures ranging anywhere from forty five forty seven degrees big showdown next week. jetstream is dropping fast supercold air especially on tuesday wednesday and thursday juicier highs will struggle to get into the mid the mid-30s. mr. got seven as a fine increasing sun son for friday partly sunny saturday super bowl sunday's super indeed with sunny skies and temperatures near 50 monday tuesday, and an impact timeframe there with the possibility of morning snow showers on tuesday and notices temperatures dropping you are planning to rob a store clerk, make sure he isn't a seasoned military veteran. you can see the suspect holding the clerk at gunpoint and demanding money. but in an instant, the clerk turns the tables and begins beating him. he gets the gun away from the guy, too. the suspect got away, and police are looking for him. sometimes it's not enough to protect and serve. sometimes, you have to babysit.

babysitting a two- year-old is making its roundson social media, and for very cute reasons. the girl's father had to attend traffic court, and she wasn't allowed inside. so the cop stepped in! the two played games and videos on his phone until the little girl fell asleep on him. the giant panda cub who's captured the hearts of millions stepped outside for the first time today in washington dc! zoo staff say bei bei enjoyed the outdoors and even managed to climb a tree during the excursion. he made his public debut at the smithsonian national zoo last month. for those of you who are lactose intolerant or vegan, life is about to get a little more tasty! ben and jerry's is churning out a line of non-dairy and vegan products, made with almond milk and certified vegan. there's still time to submit your favorite super bowl party recipes for us as you get ready for sunday's game. head over to wdbj7 dot-com and click under "party recipes" in the must see 7 section.

of our favorites on wdbj7 sunday morning. nats of game carilion clinic doctors and medical students faced off tonight in the docs for morgan basketball game at patrick henry high school. the students are from virginia tech carilion school of medicine and jefferson college of health sciences. the event raises money for the morgan dana harrington scholarship fund that helps medical students. and our own travis wells and karen loftus also played in tonight's game, with jean jadhon as emcee. the tech women continue to struggle on the court plus zac glover checks in with a super bowl champ from radford but first our extra point, tony stewart will miss the start of racing season after he suffered a broken vertebrae sunday in an atv accident, undergoing surgery wednesday. there is not set date for his return to the track, but he is expected to

racing this year. women returned to the cassell coliseum court tonight to face georgia tech trying to get back on track. early on domonique powell goes to work down low for the tough bucket on the strong move. then it's vanessa

downtown, that's good for three. and how about regan magarity with the finish. magarity can dish it too, as she does here. but it wasn't enough as georgia tech won it 51 to 34. this sunday will also mark the six- year anniversary of superbowl 44, when the new orleans saints defeated peyton manning and the indianapolis colts. wdbj7's zac glover caught up with former hokie and current radford resident, pierson prioleau , who was a member of that superbowl champion saints team. zac glover: pierson prioleau's basement is full of memories from his 12-year nfl career. but before he made it in the pros, he cut his teeth as a defensive back at virginia tech. pierson prioleau, super bowl champion: "my experience at virginia tech was probably some of the best years of my life, the best four years of my life. i was very thankful to frank beamer and his staff for giving me the opportunity to come up from south carolina and play. i enjoyed being a hokie, and i'll always be a hokie." zac glover: after his career at tech, prioleau was drafted by the san francisco 49ers in 1999, but was released from the

seasons. but he was able to find a spot on the buffalo bills roster, beginning a long relationship with first-year head coach, gregg williams. pierson prioleau: "i was willing to do everything to be there in buffalo, because i had just let an opportunity in san francisco slip, so i was one of the guys that went the extra mile. for me, that was kind of easy, coming from virginia tech, where special teams was at a premium. so no matter what team i was on, i always made a good relationship with the special teams coordinator. 'hey, i'll cover kicks guys.' because i know there's longevity in that." zac glover: and that longevity would go onto earn him four seasons with the buffalo bills, three with the washington redskins, and one more with the jacksonville jaguars, all before the 2009 season. pierson prioleau: "i was at home that summer, just finishing up my 10th season, playing in jacksonville for one year, and i didn't even know if i was going to play any more years. i was at a point in my life where retirement was actually being

williams called me once again, i became a member of the saints, and the first thing he told me when i got there, he said, 'hey, we have something special here." zac glover: the saints would go 13-3 in the regular season, eventually earning a trip to superbowl 44, where they'd meet peyton manning and the indianapolis colts. pierson prioleau: "the two weeks of practice preparing for peyton manning, was line no other preparation we had done that year. because we knew how smart he was as a quarterback. we knew he was going to out-think us." zac glover: but a 4th quarter pick six off of manning, cemented a 31-17 superbowl victory for prioleau and the saints. pierson prioleau: it was just a feeling like, 'hey, clock, just run out!' out on this field and start the celebration. there was tears, and at that moment, we realized, 'hey, we really won this thing.' never, ever let go. it will always be a part of me, to be able to experience that with that team and that year, being the first super bowl for new orleans, it was really

zac glover: prioleau would reach the end of his nfl career soon after that, and has since began a new chapter of his life, working in the radford school system. and he says there's much more to him than just his past accomplishments. pierson prioleau: "you know, i'm an elementary p.e. teacher at radford, i'm a high school football coach, i'm a dad, i'm a husband. 'hey, coach prioleau is just like all of us.' that's my expression to them. anybody can do this. anybody can be whatever they want to be." zac glover: words he's continued to live by on his way to a superbowl championship, and even now, as just dad. in radford, zac glover, wdbj7. keeping the super bowl countdown going, we are quickly closing-in on the big game, and continuing to get some help from a few stand-out high school football players in the area. tonight it's magna vista senior quarterback, shoalin mcguire, as we are now just 3 days away from the superbowl. mcguire helped lead the warriors to their second-straight football state title, beating lord botetourt in the 3a championship game. you can catch super bowl 50 right here on wdbj7 at 6:30 this sunday, as the

broncos. a galax woman is about to drop her debut country album, but it's already making headlines before the first copy is sold. dori freeman's self-titled album comes out tomorrow. but rolling stone magazine, npr, and other critics have already listed it as a top anticipated release and dori as one of the next big

she hopes people enjoy the album as much as the critics and says the praise was very unexpected. dori freeman, galax musician: "it's sort of bizarre. i had no idea that it would get the attention that it's gotten so far. it's kind of surprising and it's really exciting. i'm thrilled with all the press that it's gotten with rolling stone and npr and bluegrass situation. i couldn't be happier, fell really lucky that it's gotten the attention that it's gotten." hear some of her work and learn more about dori by checking out our full story on wdbj7 dot com. for the latest weather anytime, turn to our webpage at wdbj7.com and be sure to follow us on facebook and twitter for weather headlines and more

wdbj7weather. thanks for watching your hometown news leader, wdbj7. captioning sponsored by cbs ( band playing