to encourage healthy habits and safe commuting. kim berley walked with school children in tacoma park. >> reporter: international walk to school day has international

meaning. a crossing gua last year was hit by a car. she still hasn't returned to work. >> are we ready to walk to school? >> reporter: it takes serious organization to get a bunch of kindergarteners out the door by 8:00. >> you are brothers? >> no. >> just friends. >> cousins. >> community activism is a family affair that starts early in tacoma pa. >> walk to school. you can do it, too. >> thanks to renovations this, is the first year her school had a safe walk. >> we are returning from a holding site. this is our first year back. so far, so good. everybody is being very safe, watching out for the children. >> reporter: teaching kids and parents is the easy part.

the hard part, teaching the drivers. >> a lot of reports of wreckless driving. we need to slow down, watch o for the crossing guards and patrols. >> reporter: 30% of the student body walkso school every day. >> what is the best part? >> walking to school with my friends. >> i am her friend. >> reporter: on this day, the children celebrate their first accomplishment before the bell rings. >> walk to school today! >> if you are thinking you missed your chance to walk with your child to school, you haven't. organizers want all of october to be walk to school month.

> inner loop, from springfield, up to braddic road. a couple of minutes ago, backed up, despite the construction, not too bad. asyou come down from i-66, around the bend, toward springfield moving well. now, in the district, considering the massive projuct going on for an awfully long time, kennelworth, you see the construction cones are out. the stop signs are in place it. looks like everybody is treating it like a four-way stop. we will keep you updated. barbara? >> thank you very much, jerry. budget problems could cause firefighters in montgomery county to lose teir job. "the washington examiner" says that 1 in 10 county firefighters could get pink slips if vors

reject the new ambulance fees in november. 100 fire and rescue workers woulbe eliminated. >> our time, 11:09, and the secret talks could be going on right now to end the war in afghanistan. who vice presint biden said [ male announcer ] are you paying more and more for cable anenjoying it le and less? stop paying for second best. upgrade to verizon fios and get tv, internet and phone

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the talibans claiming responsibility for today's attack on nato tankers in pakistan. they say it is revenge for the escalation of strikesin northwest pakistan. the pakistan government has taken issue with the drone campaign, and cut off troops. the crossing was closed last week. three people have been killed. there is aew development in the war in afghanistan. the "the washington post" is reporthat this afghan government is currently in talks with the taliban to negotiate an end to the war. the tas are preliminary.

and it cmes on the heels of general p patraeus. >> secretary of state told him, woodward said that biden would swap jobs with clinton. axelrod said these reports are ote asbestos lute fiction. >> vice president joe biden was telling the crowd, that democrats kn how to balance the budget. his quote, if i hear one more republican tell me they know how

to balance the budget, i will strangle them. he said it was a figure of speech. >> a least he is keeping his sense of humor. the president spoke in an auditorium to a group that fortune 500 called the most powerful women. heas interrupted not by a heckler, but a falling prop. >> science, engineering and math. we cannot sustain -- what happens. was that my -- goodness! that is all right. all of you know who i am. >> that was the presidential seal that fell on the floor. before the incident, the president promoted flexible

hou hours. >> visitors will be able to tour the jackling kennedy garden, the rose garden and the the kitchen garden, and the south lawn. the park service will hand out free tickets at the ellipse visitor pavillone on a first come, first servebasis. >> this wouldn't be a bad day to be on a tour of the white house gardens. >> not at all. and it is 4-h. yourth science day. hundreds if not thousands of students will be doing outdoor experiments on carbon dioxide, on the environment. >> 4-h. >> i was not a member, but i did get pit by the science bug, maybe in that group today doing experiments on the air and on the water. maybe there will be some meteorologists in that group. we will see what is going on

today. mostly cloudy skies, across the greater part of the area. 57 is the temperature right now at reagan national airport. and the airis filled with moisteur throughout. alexandria, indian head, 57, with generally a westerly wind. we do have clouds through the area. we have been getting light showers in the rly part of the day. well up north. chambersburg, in pennsylvaa, you see them there. harrisburg, the light showers making their way south and east. we have more out of the west. charleston. this one is going to get to the

south and east. as it drops through, we will get the best chance of rain, between 5:00 and 10:00, i think. you got a few of those showers, same thing, south and east, lexington park. now, look at the big rains in the southwest. the desert southwest. they keep getting hammered with heavy rain. this is their rainfall total 4.7 inches of rain and days of thunderstorms. there is more storms, too, these are to the north and east. real to the north of theward islands. this could become otto. it is a low pressure system right now. it would beco a tropical storm.

it could curve to the north and east. no worries for us. is moving out to sea and bermuda. on the list, quickly making our way through, paula would be next. six more named storms on the list. it was predicted to be a busy, active season for the atlantic. us? sunshine, high pressure moves n say hello to dry air. look at the trend on the temperatures, the warmth taking over. 70s to near 80 down south. all right. for today, a few light showers to deal with during the afternoon. 63 to down into the 40s tonight. as we clear out, it will get a little nippy. we will get a bit of wind. breezy73. awfully niceompared to what we

have seen all week long. when the sunshine starts, t sunshine stays for friday, saturday and sunday. >> have to get plans going for the weekend. >> me too. >> checking the traffic now. check in with jerry again what. is going on out there? >> road work, at mid day. a lot of constction. the temperature high enough to put down pavement. and between newington and woodbridge, various lane closures, not much in the way of delays. that is good news. 395 northbound on the slow side right at the 14th street bridge. you can see, the far left lane, a all in all, manageable as long

as everybody behaves. >> it is 20 minutes after. >> we will sit down and talk about her honor in just a bit and helping children learn about diversity early in life. we will tell you about a new series of books. now you see it now you don't. a giant eyeball is stolen in virginia. first, here is what is t on nbcwashington.com. hi tre. i'm ian wright

and i'm investigating what makes aruba so happy.

oh my word, that fantastic. i'll tell you what; it's not aloe vera the main export. it's happiness. i haven't even got bait on the end of mine. i don't care; it's just nice sitting here. you're getting it. you're getting it.

this morning, police are on the lookout for a giant eye, we are talking about the giant eye from in front of the science museum. in richmond. they stole the fabric around the stone ball. the eyeball art was promoting a new exhibit about the science fear. tapes are being looked at. it is being valued at $4,000. parents are getting help from a series of books about diversity it is called "alphabet

books." the authors are here. thank you all three for coming. tell us about the book. start with you patrice. >> this is called "alphabet kids." each book h a subject matter expert. >> tell us about the book you were the expert for, jane. >> this is "jan's new dance." it is about it. it talks about tching the kids to do a few exercises for tie chee. and allege ra, you have one

named after you. one of the books has your name on it. what is your book about? >> we have six different characters from different ethnic backgrounds, allege remarks italian-american, elainea, hispanic-american, and she is jewish-american, and ony is african-american. they are children up to junior high school, they seem to enjoy the boo as well. >> you have a buy one, give one program. >> yes, we were inspired by comshows, they have a buy one, give one. and ben and jerry's has a community service program. we felt there were many children that don't have books, if each

book purchased, we give one away for a child in need. >> children, of cose, should learn that lesson of diversity early. i know you are on a nation-wide tour. one of many stops, we thank you for coming to see us here. >> our time, 11:26, the controversial case in front of the speak today. bidding the rights of grieving families to the right of free speech. >> we will talk about the movie and sitown with t psychiatrist, and talk about the problems of gay, bullying and suicid anthe forecast for

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police have extra security at a funeral right now to prevent retaliation. someone shot jackal coats on youth street t happened outsider a funeral service for ashley mcray. they believe the death could have been gang related. >> the father of a marine, tracy

has more from capitol hill. >> it is a funeral for god's sake! >> reporter: the s.w.a.t. team was called in when referee brought his "thank god for dead soldiers" protest. >> they turned into a kir cus. a three-ring sir s. >> it sent his father into a dep pression. >> these people are terrorists. >> a jury gave him $11 million. appeals court over-turned it. the e most hated family in america is protected by the first amendment. >> you don't have to like me, i have a sneaking feeling they don't. i have the right to preach it,

and he has the right to object to it. >> reporter: today, the supreme court will determine if it interfered with a private citizen. >> whether or not you ha to pay the price of inflicting distress on someone, rather than the government fining you or preventing you from speaking in the first place. >> reporter: theprotested 200 military funerals, claiming that god is killing american soldier to protest acceptance of homo sexuality. >> he has followed in the letter of the law in every local ordinance. tracy pots, nbc news washington. >> the justices will deliberate before the term ends in june or july.

today >> sergeant miller was a green ret, killed in 2008 n his second deployment in afghanistan. he was working in a small patrol when they were ambushed. instead of retreating, miller charged forward alone. he was hit twice, ctinued to fire on the enemy until he ran out of ammunition. the remen saidy they wouldn't he survived without his brave action. >> we got a bit of a break this morning. if i were grading the type of weather we had, i wuld give monday a d minus, the weekend is

aplus. 57 degrees atapitol hill and maine avenue. sandy spring at 5 degrees. and today, a lightwind. can you see where the clouds are, up north and east. and to the south, right down through car line county. the showers rotating east. the low pressure system is making its way to the south and east. th showers will be light. only a 10th of an inch we will get. cooler ather, up to the north. and for tomorrow, 73, 76 for saturdaynd sunday. a lot of sunshine. >> great days to get out and rake the leaves. >> they are coming down now. >> not what you had in mind? >> no. >> d.c. voters will be able to

ask questions of gray, who laid out his goal fist he is elcted mayor. creating more police presence on the streets. he said he wants the public's input on the district's financial problems. >> we will do that together. by the way -- >> gray plans to visit each ward, up next is ward 3, an overwhelming majority voted to keep mayor fenti in office.

>> one d.c. council member wants to keep children in school longer, to seven hours. the dirict has the shortest public school days. the mobile cameras will be used along work zones in fredricks county, including the icc work zone. and we are going to take a break and come back with jerry's forecast. no, we go to jerry first.

thought we would have to take a break before we can see you. here we are. good morning. >> you can at least hearme. a live look at 395 northbound, 14th street bridge. as a result, the far left lane about mid span, sluggish now, delays well after the pentagon, a bit slow during the midday, stay to the left, you will be all right. going to the capitol beltway. wilson bridge. on the beltway toward central avenue, a report of an accident. and on the beltway, in the stretch around 214 report of an accident. the stretch between college park and silverspring, moving along well. i couldn't find an accident,

police are telling us they are headed over there. all in all moving along well this hour. >> the bullng of gay, lesbian and sex transgenders. craig melvin reports. >> not a lot has changed that is why i agreed to do the film. >> reporter: then, he was scared middle schooler, struggling with his sexuality and bullies. >> many students saw him as ay. that was enough for some campus bullies. >> reporter: this past weekend, they held a vigil for tyler, who

jumped to his ath, when they streamed video of a sexual encounter with anotherman. the 15 year-old hanged himself. in texas, his parents say bulls pushed him too far about his sexuality, and he shot himself. all of these have been. >> they are supposed to safe in school, unfortunately, they are not. >> he said, the film is about more than one gay teenager's struggle with bullies, schools have to take action. >> they have to, you can't be neutral on this. >> i really hope that people can

see my story that we are human beings and deserve respect. more kids have suicidal thoughts than you might think. dr. joshua winelooks at this issue, think bulldog this a lot with some of the new stories we have been hearing. are suicidal thoughts that common? >> sadl really common. suicide is the number two leading cause of death for college students. for every one successful suicide, there are 100 others who will attempt suicide. 20% of high school students at some point will experience

serious suicidal oughts. and others will make an attempt that leads them to th hospital. >> the majority of those who end up making suicide attempts, have a disorder, bilar or substance abuse. >> when people are in pain and don't know what to do, they think of suicide. >> if kids are having problems with a boyfriend or girlfriend, would that lead them to make a suicide attempt? >> maybe have are having a bunch of negative factors, it can

push peoplever the edge. suicide is an impulsive act. kids wishing they were dead, you have to take seriously. >> how is a parent supposed to be able to recognize when they have a serious problem? >> parents needs to follow up with questions. make sure u are talking to somebody about when they express suicide thoughts. number two, d you have a plan? if they you want to find out what the plan is. if it is someone you don't know

well, have they tried to hurt themselves in the past? the combination of suicidal thoughts plus drugs or alcohol, it will decrease ambitio. you don't want to minimize someone's statement about suide. you want to take their statement seriously. >> we have other issues to talk

about. >> actress rea peaman, and we will take hi there. i'm ian wright and i'm investigating what makes aruba so happy. oh my word,that'santast.

♪ row your boat gently down the stream... ♪ i'll tell you what; it's not aloe vera e main export. it's happiness. i haven't even got bait on the end of mine. i don't care; it's just nice sitting here. you're getting it. you're getting it.

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we will check in with courtney reagan. >> good morning, right now, the dow up 19 points, as we inch closer to the 11,000 mark, after a strong rally yesterday it. did mark the dow's highest rate in five months. if we will hold on to the gains by the close x think of the best we had seen. adding to the rsearch batch of positive data, to indicate that suer was a pause in recovery. and adp says that u.s. economy lost 39,000 jobs in september. economists were looking for a gain of 20,000.

>> the national retail federation is forecasting sales to rise that will be the the best performance of 2006. the irs said shoppers are being sele selective. the recession was officially over last year. toyota plans to offer ribaits of 3,000 and provide financing they are trying to overtake mercedes benz by the end of the year. they are trying to make up some of the loss. >> thank you. see you tomorrow.

>> see you then. now to a subject dear to our hear hearts, adoption. the 12group is honoring actress rea pearlman, she is known for "cheers" and this. we have been hearing about your work for years. >> you do great things, really proud to be part of the adorgz event. >> we have been doing it for years. >> through the children's aion network, i have worked for many years on various children

issues, their focus, is on older foster children. they are of older children, speaking about themselves. you hear the child talk about the hopes the droems, our local fox station has been great about showing them. >> letting the children speak for themselves is what works. >> i hope so. everybody one of themselves -- they steal your heart. we know about the problems for older kids getting adopted. what do you know about the issue? >> when you in the great thing

that we ha a system for kids abusednd nected. we have to protect them. once you are in the system, you are bounced around, home to home. i lived in ten states>> it is heart-know bending. >> if they are not a -- you are not as appealing to people. they don't know they are out there. they are such great kids. >> tell us about the danny

devito foundation. >> we don't have a foundation, but i just want to y, the great thing that happen ed a bil called ab 12 will extend benefits to the age of 21 if they want them. if th haven't found permanent homes, they end up homeless, prey to criminals. >> thank you so much.

angels in adoption. >> coming up. veroni veronica. e i thought it w crazy feed. i always feed in the fall. but, it's the best time. feed your lawn in the fall. the fall feeding makes all the. what the fall feeding does is build the roots.. that's when the roots sorta want nrition i give my lawn scotts winterguard. it's like a root building machine. it builds your lawn from the roots up. next year you get is! the stronger the roots, the stronger the lawn. all year long. it is the best thing you can do for your lawn. i use scotts winterguard.

the john wahl era has debuted and the return of gilbert arenas. the story the wahl, the wizards won 97-94. and looking at the stories that we wil be following for news4 this afternoon. a preview of things tcome. mel gibson'sex-girlfriend about the leaks to the media. this is a new name on the ballot, a new push to get the new mayor elected. we will check in with

veronica for the forecast for mid-day. >> the clouds have us for the rest of the day. me of us uld get a drop or two on our heads you can see the washington monument, with the overcast skies, wind out of the west seven miles an hour. ic ical -- they keep making their way to the south and east. pretty much all cloudy now. st. mary's hanging on with more sunshine the last couple of hours. the upper level low that plagued us for days, it will be moving out of here.

76 for saturday and sunday. columbus day is monday. >> se people have the day off. >> not me. >> neither i. >> do you like spam? >> no. not even as a kid. >> spam lovers, a tasty treat this is a spam-topped macaroni and cheese pizza. it won at the state fair, and prentation. the man behind the pizza, philip curtis for the spam jam. we inve you to tine in at

5:00, 6:00 and 11. i will be back here torrow at "news4 midday." we will see you in the morning. [ female announcer why settleor plain bread when you can have pillsbury grands! flaky layers biscuits? the warm, light delicate layers are like nothing else. add a layer of excitement to your next meal. ♪ to bring the family together on sunday mornings than with the warmth and aroma of frely baked pillsbury cinnamon rolls. [ wink! ] ♪

(male announcer) five women fm the oc captured the imagination of the public. tonight, we recount the moments and stories that made season two of the real housewives of orange county