DIPLOMATIC SPOTLIGHT
The Washington Diplomat
February 2014
Choral Arts Society Gala
From left, Ambassador of Italy and gala honorary patron Claudio Bisogniero, gala chair Olwen Pongrace, Laura Denise Bisogniero, and Donald Pongrace of Akin Gump welcome guests to the 33rd annual Choral Arts Society Holiday Concert and Gala held at the Kennedy Center, where the Italian theme was “Buon Natale.”
Cinnie Fehr, left, and Choral Arts Society of Washington Executive Director Debra Kraft attend the 33rd annual Holiday Concert and Gala fundraiser for the Choral Arts Society, whose symphonic chorus of over 180 volunteer singers performs at the Kennedy Center each year.
Ambassador of Russia Sergey Kislyak and his wife Natalia attend the 33rd annual Holiday Concert and Gala for the Choral Arts Society of Washington, founded by Norman Scribner in 1965.
Ambassador of Bulgaria Elena Poptodorova scans the silent auction items at the Choral Arts Society annual fundraising gala, which featured “An Enchanted Christmas” concert with Italian holiday classics and a black-tie dinner atop the Kennedy Center.
Brooke Stroud Carnot, left, a past gala chair, and Kitty Dove attend the Choral Arts Society Holiday Concert and Gala. Last year’s benefit raised more than $625,000 for the group.
Brian Jarosinski of “The Bachelorette,” left, and jazz artist Ski Johnson attend the Choral Arts Society Holiday Concert and Gala.
Stradivarius at Italy
From left, Ambassador of Singapore Ashok Kumar Mirpuri and Gouri Mirpuri join Vice President of General Dynamics Information Technology Jo Decker and Dr. Stuart Seidner at the Choral Arts Society Holiday Concert and Gala. Ambassador of Italy Claudio Bisogniero, left, examines a rare Stradivarius violin with Kenneth Slowik, artistic director of the Smithsonian Chamber Music Society, at a special concert held at the Italian Residence to showcase Stradivarius violins from the Smithsonian Institution collection.
From left, former CIA and FBI Director William Webster and his wife Lynda Webster of the Webster Group join Agnes Aerts and her husband, outgoing Ambassador of Belgium Jan Matthysen, at the Choral Arts Society Holiday Concert and Gala.
Nepalese Farewell
From left, attorney James Feldman, novelist Natalie Wexler, Karen Schuiling, and Choral Arts Society Artistic Director Scott Tucker attend the Choral Arts Society Holiday Concert and Gala at the Kennedy Center.
From left, James and Hannah Burris join Laura Medina Mora and Ambassador of Mexico Eduardo Medina Mora at the 33rd annual Choral Arts Society Holiday Concert and Gala.
Arab-American Day
Departing Ambassador of Nepal Shankar P. Sharma, center, addresses his guests with his wife Kalpana, right, and Nisha Desai Biswal, assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian affairs, at the ambassador’s farewell reception. From left, Ambassador of Laos Seng Soukhathivong, Ambassador of Mauritius Somduth Soborun, Ambassador of Suriname Subhas-Chandra Mungra, and Ambassador of Sri Lanka Jaliya Wickramasuriya attend a farewell reception for the Nepalese ambassador.
photos: gail scott
Laura Denise Bisogniero, left, welcomes former U.S. Protocol Chief Selwa “Lucky” Roosevelt to a reception at the Italian Residence (Villa Firenze) celebrating Stradivarius violins from the 17th and 18th centuries as part of the Year of Italian Culture in the U.S.
photos: gail scott
From right, Ambassador of the League of Arab States Mohammed Al Hussaini Al Sharif welcomes Ambassador of Oman Hunaina Sultan Al-Mughairy and her husband, former Ambassador of Oman to the U.N. Fuad Mubarak Al-Hinai, to the second annual Arab-American Day at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center hosted by the Arab League and the Council of Arab Ambassadors in Washington, D.C.
photos: Kaveh Sardari
From left, Deputy Chief Representative of the League of Arab States Sameh Alfonse, Arab League Ambassador Mohammed Al Hussaini Al Sharif, Afghan reporter Nazira Karimi, former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, former Arab League Ambassador to the U.N. and U.S. Clovis Maksoud, former U.S. Ambassador to Oman Richard J. Schmierer, Ambassador of Oman Hunaina Sultan Al-Mughairy, and International Trade Director at the Ronald Reagan Building Andrew Gelfuso attend the Arab-American Day reception.
Qatar National Day
From left, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and his wife Martha-Ann talk with Agnes Aerts and her husband, outgoing Ambassador of Belgium Jan Matthysen, at an Italian reception showcasing Stradi varius violins from the Smithsonian’s vault.
Page 42
Finnish National Day
photo: gail scott
Ambassador of Finland Ritva Koukku-Ronde, center, stands with Norwegian chef Sindre Risvoll, left, and the Finnish Embassy’s new chef, Petri Hotti, at Finland’s National Day celebration.
From left, Ambassador of Lebanon Antoine Chedid, Ambassador of Oman Hunaina Sultan Al-Mughairy and her husband, former Ambassador of Oman to the U.N. Fuad Mubarak Al-Hinai, attend the Qatari National Day reception.
Outgoing Ambassador of Qatar Mohamed Abdulla Al-Rumaihi, left, welcomes Ambassador of Cambodia Hem Heng to Qatar’s National Day reception held at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium.
The Washington Diplomat
photos: gail scott
Ambassador of Dominica Hubert J. Charles, left, and Ambassador of Mauritania Mohamed Lemine El Haycen , attend the Qatari National Day reception.
February 2014