Washington Life Magazine - April 2014

White House Social Secretary Jeremy Bernard

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Washington has found a new running mate.

Loews Madison Has Arrived in Washington DC

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54 '328)287 APRIL 2014

Kara Kennedy Fund Launch Party ...........................

SPECIAL FEATURES

A-LIST CLIMATE CRISIS

CRUISE SHIP REPORT CARD

THE POWER OF ELECTRIC EDITOR'S LETTER

EMBASSY ROW Art and Diplomacy ...............................................

Nowruz Commission Gala .....................................

Arena Stage Opening Night Reception.......................

International Women's Day Luncheon ........................

Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress Awards Dinner...............................................................

PRIVATE SECURITY The Business of Personal Protection ...........................

VIEWPOINT 100 Years of Covering the White House .....................

FYIDC

CHARITY SPOTLIGHTS N Street Village, MS Women on the Move, Catholic Charities and National Museum of Women in the Arts...............................

LIFESTYLES

Studio Theatre Gala ..............................................

FASHION EDITORIAL

Crystal Heart Awards Gala.....................................

Greens ..............................................................

LIFE OF THE PARTY

LUXURY TRAVEL Little Dix Bay and family friendly spring break resorts ...................................

Prevent Cancer Foundation Gala ..............................

PERFECT PITCH Violin Virtuoso .......................

Haute Hippie ....................................................

TREND REPORTS Globe Trotter and Spring

Teach for America Gala ..........................................

Joseph E. Robert Jr. Prize in Philanthropy ...................

St. Jude Gourmet Gala ..........................................

'Justice Is a Black Woman' Film Screening ..................

INSIDER'S GUIDE .....................................

THE DISH Laura Schiller and Phillip Blane's Unum ..

WHO'S NEXT Brett Johnson ...........................

SOCIAL CALENDAR April events .................

Heroes Curing Childhood Cancer .............................

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Light of Healing Hope Reception ..............................

WASHINGTON SOCIAL DIARY AROUND TOWN Palm Beach Splendor .............................................

Art Basel Miami Beach Launch.............................

ONE-ON-ONE American Dreamers .................

HOME LIFE INSIDE HOMES Alvaro and Ana Maria Roche's Design for Living ............................................

OPEN HOUSE Spring Offerings .........................

INTERIORS The Right Essentials .........................

REAL ESTATE NEWS

POLLYWOOD

THEARC Wacky and Whimsical Tea .......................

High Stakes Sales .................................................

HOLLYWOOD ON THE POTOMAC

OVER THE MOON

Startupland .........................................................

A Legendary Legacy..............................................

MY WASHINGTON Marriott's Kathleen Matthews ..................................

ON THE COVER White House Social Secretary Jeremy Bernard (photo by Tony Powell, taken at Le Diplomate). TOP FROM LEFT "Haute Hippie" fashion editorial (photo by Dustin Lilley. See inside for full crew and shopping credits). Katherine Bradley, Sen. Corey Booker, Walter and Cathy Isaacson, and Sen. Tom Harkin at Teach for America Gala (photo by Tony Powell). ABOVE REED KRAKOFF RDK leather hobo bag in green ($1490); saksfifthavenue.com.

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T H E I N S I D E R’S G U I D E TO P OW E R , P H I L A N T H R O PY, A N D SO C I E T Y S I N C E 1 9 9 1

EDITOR IN CHIEF

Nancy Reynolds Bagley EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

Anne Kim-Dannibale MANAGING EDITOR

Alison McLaughlin SENIOR EDITOR

Kevin Chaffee ASSISTANT EDITOR

Laura Wainman CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Brett Haber COLUMNISTS

Janet Donovan, Roland Flamini, Patrick D. McCoy,Vicky Moon, Stacey Grazier Pfarr and Donna Shor ART DIRECTOR

Matt Rippetoe CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Tony Brown, Ben Droz, Alfredo Flores, Nick Ghobashi, Dustin C. Lilley,Tony Powell and Kyle Samperton

PUBLISHER & CEO

Soroush Richard Shehabi ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER

John H. Arundel ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

Kaitlin Froelick and Sheila Menn BOOKKEEPER

Trina Hodges WEB TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPMENT

Eddie Saleh,Triposs Mihail Iliev LEGAL

Mason Hammond Drake, Greenberg Traurig LLP INTERN

Catherine Carlstedt

FOUNDER

Vicki Bagley CREATIVE DIRECTOR EMERITUS (*)

J.C. Suarès CHAIRMAN, EXECUTIVE BOARD

Gerry Byrne Washington Life magazine publishes ten times a year. Issues are distributed in February, March, April, May, June, July/August, September, November, and December and are hand-delivered on a rotating basis to over 150,000 homes throughout D.C., Northern Virginia, and Maryland. Additional copies are available at various upscale retailers, hotels, select newstands, and Whole Foods stores in the area. For a complete listing, please consult our website at www.washingtonlife.com. You can also subscribe online at www.washingtonlife.com or send a check for $79.95 (one year) to: Washington Life Magazine, 2301 Tracy Place NW, Washington D.C., 20008. BPA audited. Email us at info@washingtonlife.com with press releases, tips, and editorial comments. Copyright ©2011 by Washington Life. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial content or photos in any manner without permission is strictly prohibited. Printed in the United States. We will not be responsible for unsolicited manuscripts or photographs. *deceased

EDITOR’S LETTER

Seasonal Changes The day you become a parent is the day you realize how many things will now keep you up at night. Is my child eating enough?

Developing at the correct pace? Does he drive safely? Thankfully, I am far from having to worry about that with my 4-year-old.

What I’m losing sleep over now is the future of the planet on which I am raising him.

As I write this letter in late March, there is snow on the ground, while my West Coast friends are in the midst of a threeyear drought. Certainly no one can now deny that we are facing a climate crisis with carbon dioxide levels and greenhouse gas emissions at their highest levels in history.

With this in mind, and to commemorate April’s Earth Day, Washington Life explored three environmental hot-button topics: climate destabalization, electric vehicles and the significant pollution caused by cruise ships.

Our April issue would not be complete without our annual compendium of Washington A-listers. Among the most accomplished individuals in the country, these men and women turn heads wherever they go. Our most recent effort includes additions from the Obama administration, ambassadors, entrepreneurs and philanthropists, with pictorial highlights from photographer Tony Powell.

High among many A-listers’ concerns is personal safety and we include an insider’s view of the world of personal security consultants. Many former Secret Service agents and law enforcement officers are providing personal protection to an increasing list of power players beyond the world of political leaders and entertainment world celebrities.

Though it didn’t feel like it at the very beginning, spring is truly here and flowers are blooming in our gardens and parks.

Fashion photographer Dustin Lilley and our team of style experts capture the season’s best blooms at the American Horticultural

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Society’s River Farm in Alexandria. Those pages and our trend reports are sure to provide just enough inspiration to update your wardrobe, even if Old Man Winter got us off to a late start.

A lengthy bout of cabin fever has us ready to explore out-of-town alternatives and we’ve got just the remedy with our guide to a few of nation’s the best familyfriendly resorts just in time for spring break. From island paradises such as Virgin Gorda to traditional European-style chalets offering world-class golf and waterslides, there’s something here for you.

If you’re not planning a far-flung getaway, sit back at home with us to enjoy coverage of the season’s best parties. From the St. Jude’s Gourmet Gala and the launch of a foundation in Kara Kennedy’s memory to a “wacky and whimsical” tea, we’ve got all the highlights to make you feel as if you were there. We hope to see you this month at many upcoming WLsponsored events, including Africare’s annual dinner, N Street Village’s 40th anniversary celebration, the Children’s Ball, Catholic Charities’ gala, the National Museum of Women in the Arts’ gala and Refugees International’s benefit.

Nancy R. Bagley Editor in Chief Readers wishing to contact Nancy Bagley can email her at nbagley@washingtonlife.com

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FYIDC The Insider’s Guide to Washington

A DAY AT THE TRACK

Celebrate spring with a day of stake races, tailgates and great hats at the 139th running of the Preakness Stakes on May 17. More than 100,000 spectators are expected at Pimlico Race Course, for the second Thoroughbred race of the Triple Crown. Peruvian Amb. Harold Forsyth will host the International Pavilion this year, where attractions reflecting Peruvian culture, such as Paso Horses, will be on display. Gates open at 8 a.m., first race is at 10:30 a.m., tickets start at $25 for general admission, www.preakness.com

Georgetown French Market

MAIS OUIS!

Don your best beret and head to the Book Hill neighborhood for this annual celebration of all things Gallic. More than 30 shops in this quaint “arondissement” will be offering as much as 70 percent off goods with restaurants serving macarons, merguez sausages and crêpes to satisfy cravings for French delicacies. Free admission, April 25-26, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Book Hill between P St. and Reservoir Rd. NW.

Clarice Smith: Power & Grace

SPORTING STILL-LIFES

Cherry Blossom Festival

PETAL PUSHERS

The 102nd annual festival of flowers celebrating Japan’s gift of cherry trees to the nation kicks off the spring season as delicate pink and white blossoms literally blanket the District. Join in family festivities, kite flying, crafting, boating and the famed parade at this annual crowd-pleaser. Primarily free, continuing through April 13. For event details, visit nationalcherryblossomfestival.org.

Loews Hotels and Fiat Partnership

FOUR-WHEELED CONVENIENCE

For guests of the Loews Madison Hotel, traveling around Washington just got easier as the Loews company has partnered with Fiat to offer complimentary chauffeured rides around town in a Fiat 500L. “Loews has never done anything like this before, and neither has Fiat,” said Elizabeth Harlow, senior vice president of marketing for Loews Hotels & Resorts.

“Whether as a perk for business or an upgrade for pleasure, the FIAT 500L service is an amenity that speaks to our guests in a language they can appreciate and a style they deserve.” The company plans to extend the amenity to include test drives for guests in the future. www.loewshotels.com.

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The nearly 40 paintings by the artist Clarice Smith on view at the National Sporting Library & Museum span more than 30 years and exemplify the artist’s penchant for intimacy and strength in and out of the paddock. Horses in the heat of a race come to life as they thunder toward the viewer in “Dead Heat” (1999) or nuzzle up to a lone figure in a quiet moment on a clear day. April 11 through Sept. 28 at the National Sporting Library & Museum, 102 The Plains Road, Middleburg,VA 20118; $10 adults, $8 seniors 65 and older and youth 13-18; Free for members; nsl.org.

DC Design House

CHARITABLE DESIGN

Check out a who’s who of local designers at the 7th annual D.C. Design House benefiting Children’s National Health System, which has raised more than $1 million over the past six years.This year 29 chosen designers showcase their work throughout the house, from the living room to the powder room and stairway.The six-bedroom, seven-bath house in the Forest Hills neighborhood of Washington will be available for viewing from April 13 through May 11 at 4600 Linnean Ave. NW, open from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.Tuesdays-Fridays, $25, www.dcdesignhouse.com.

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C H E R R Y B LO S S O M P H OTO BY VJ P I C K E R I N G V I A F L I C K R ; F R E N C H M A R K E T P H OTO C O U RT E SY O F G E O R G E TOW N B I D ; C L A R I C E S M I T H P H OTO COURTE SY NATIONAL SPORTING LIBRARY & MUSEUM; DC DE SIGN HOUSE PHOTO

BY JE SSE SNYDER.

2014 preakness stakes

FYIDC | THE DISH

HIDDEN GEM Discover Unum, a quaint Georgetown restaurant B Y L A U R A WA I N M A N | P H OTO B Y TO N Y B R O W N

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ucked between Suntrust But I met Phil and this was his bank and an Italian dream, and you always want to try restaurant lies an and help your partner realize their understated gray building without dreams.” a sign that could easily go The name, derived from the unnoticed by busy Georgetown Latin phrase E pluribus unum, offers passersby. Walk through the glass just as much insight into the menu door marked “Unum” and you’ll as it does the owners’ political be transported into an elegant, interests. Unum serves what Blane but comfortably intimate 50-seat calls “new American” fare, by which restaurant that in two years has he means incorporating influences made quite a name for itself. from all around the world. From his Despite the missing signage braised Indian spiced lamb shank to and the fact that the restaurant the rosemary gnocchi, truffle mac opened just two weeks after it and cheese, beet salad and sesameannounced itself in January 2012, crusted scallops with wasabi risotto, Unum has received high praise Blane hopes his dishes represent as from reviewers around town, many cuisines as the accents he including a prominent feature on hears daily in his adopted city of Washingtonian’s 2013 100 Best Washington, D.C. Restaurant list and inclusion “The lamb shank has been on in Zagat’s “10 Hottest New our menu since day one, and was Restaurants. “ inspired by one of my mentors, “We believed that if you build a woman named Raji who has Unum owners Laura Schiller and Phillip Blane created the Georgetown restaurant they it and put a lot of love into it, always wished had existed in the neighborhood when they lived there. since passed away,” Blane says. “She people will come,” co-owner grew up in India as the daughter of Laura Schiller says. a diplomat and was exposed to world cuisines at a young age. She The contemporary eatery was designed with locals in mind. Schiller switched careers from the medical field into cooking, much like me, and her husband, executive chef/owner Phillip Blane, created the and working with her taught me that there was not one right path a restaurant they had always wanted to see in Georgetown, where they chef could take. The dish is one of our most popular and I love that it lived for many years before moving to Burleith. reminds me of her.”

“We wanted this to be an extension of our home; cozy with an Schiller and Blane both count their previous work experiences, unpretentious attitude, avant-garde but approachable food and a politics for Schiller and health care administration for Blane, as neighborhood place where the regulars are taken care of,” Blane says. major assets that prepared them for the day-to-day tasks of running Though the opening of Unum was the realization of a lifelong a restaurant. The couple says that their skills in taking care of people dream for Blane, it was much more of a life twist for Schiller, who by translated to the hospitality side of that business and they felt “pretty day serves as Sen. Barbara Boxer’s chief of staff. In the midst of helping open-eyed going in” as to how much time it would take to run run Boxer’s re-election campaign in November 2010, Schiller told her Unum. What they weren’t expecting was the “all-encompassing nature husband that they could discuss opening a restaurant after the election, of it consuming your life in a good, but challenging manner,” Schiller thinking he would forget about it. But the morning after the election, says. “he had not forgotten,” Schiller recalls.

“When we opened we had a one-year-old son,” she says. “In every “Opening a restaurant was on my crazy bucket list of things I possible way having a restaurant is like having a few more children; might do one day when I was retired,” Schiller says. “It was not the you’re never really off, you’re always thinking about it and you are thing I was going to do while I worked crazy hours and had a toddler. never fully prepared.”

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FYIDC | WHO’S NEXT

WHO’S NEXT Brett Johnson, founder, The Brett Johnson Collection

As the son of self-made billionaire parents and BET founders Bob and Sheila Johnson, Brett Johnson had big shoes to fill, which he chose to take literally. Last fall, he launched an eponymous streetwear line for men, the Brett Johnson Collection, starting with high-end sneakers and added clothing, belts and scarves as the collection progressed. While his parents stay in the background when it comes to his fashion career, Brett, 24, did choose to join his mother as an executive producer of Lee Daniels’ ‘The Butler.’

WHAT WAS THE INSPIRATION FOR YOUR NEW AUTUMN/WINTER COLLECTION? Sophisticated Italian meets New York street.

When I design and conceptualize a collection I always want to hit three points: style, sophistication and edge.

WHAT’S YOUR ADVICE FOR DRESSING FOR THE ‘NERD PROM ’ THE WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS DINNER ?

Take a risk! A lot of Washingtonians like to play it “Deerskin Cafe Racer” jacket ($1,995) IF YOU COULD DRESS ONE safe and conservative when Brett Johnson WASHINGTONIAN WHO dressing. Have fun with WOULD IT BE AND HOW WOULD YOU how, as African Americans, we are now able styling from time to time.

STYLE THEM? to play an integral part of American society I would dress the United Arab Emirates today.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST ADVANTAGE ambassador, Yousef Al-Otaiba. He evokes the AND DISADVANTAGE OF BEING THE true definition of a BJC man — a stylish, WHAT LESSON DID YOU LEARN FROM SON OF VERY SUCCESSFUL ENTREPREconfident, entrepreneurial jet-setter. During PRODUCING THE FILM? Fight for your NEURIAL PARENTS? As the son of Bob and the week I would dress him in our lambskin- moral beliefs and don’t let others deter you Sheila Johnson I’m able to pick their brains trimmed wool peacoat. On the weekend I from your ultimate goals. and ask any questions about business and would have him in our lambskin biker jacket how to balance work with my personal life. with calf suede trim.

WHAT SIMILARITIES DO YOU SEE On the other hand, it’s hard having people BETWEEN DESIGNING AND PRODUC- think that things are just handed to me, [such WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO GET ING? There is a direct correlation between as] my clothing line, when in reality I conINVOLVED IN THE PRODUCTION OF the two. It’s creating art, telling a story and ceptualized and worked just as hard on it as ‘THE BUTLER’? Once I read the script I was delivering a message. any other designer. I like my work to stand immediately sold and knew that it was an on its own. important story to be told. It’s truly remark- NAME ONE CLOTHING ITEM EVERY able how far this country has come in such a MAN SHOULD HAVE IN HIS CLOSET A WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU? l’m off to Florshort amount of time in regard to race issues. jacket or coat. This is the one item that can ence, Italy, to work on the Brett Johnson The movie provides a great understanding of distinguish a man the most. Everything from Collection Spring/Summer ’15 line.

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B R E T T J O H N S O N P H OTO BY E N I D A LVA R E Z ; P R O D U C T P H OTO BY JA M I E M AG N I F I C O

the construction to the fit of the piece is important.

FYIDC | social calendar

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april Great Ladies Luncheon and Fashion Show

Join the “ladies who lunch” at the 4th annual luncheon and fashion show benefiting the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation in partnership with Saks Fifth Avenue. The morning begins with an educational symposium presented by Dr. Howard Fillit and moderated by NBC’s Andrea Mitchell. Marriott’s Kathleen Matthews emcees the lunch honoring the University of Tennessee’s former head women’s basketball team head coach Pat Summitt with the Great Ladies Award. Ritz-Carlton Washington, D.C.; 10:45 a.m.; $200-$1,500; sponsorships start at $3,250; contact Kerri Larkin, 240-497-5318, Kerri_Larkin@s5a.com.

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Youth Orchestra of the Americas Spring Benefit

Be transported to vibrant island nations at the YOA Spring Gala supporting the 2014 Caribbean Tour and Global Leaders Program.

With décor by design firm Jose Solis Betancourt, Caribbean-inspired cuisine and lots of tropical cocktail concoctions to sip, you’ll soon forget you aren’t partying on sandy beaches.

Honored guest artist violinist Sarah Chang, YOA chamber musicians from across the Americas and Baltimore’s St. Veronica’s Youth

Bret and Amy Baier with Norah O’Donnell and Geoff Tracy at the 2013 Children’s Ball (Photo by Tony Powell)

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Steel Orchestra are set to perform throughout the night, with a deejay closing out the evening. Four Seasons Hotel; 7 p.m.; Caribbean attire; $175-$375; sponsorships start at $1,000; contact Paola Tinta, 703-236-1787, ptinta@yoa.org.

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Africare’s Bishop John T. Walker Memorial Gala This annual dinner connects individuals from diverse fields who share the mission of empowering Africans to improve their lives and support Africare’s community initiative across the continent. This year’s gala pays tribute in memoriam to Africare’s honorary board chairman, Nelson Mandela, and honors co-founders C. Payne Lucas and Dr. Joseph C. Kennedy. Washington Hilton Hotel; 6 p.m.; black-tie or national dress; $300; sponsorships start at $10,000; contact Kendra Davenport, 202-3285375, kdavenport@africare.org.

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Signature Theatre Sondheim Award Gala

Legendary orchestrator Jonathan Tunick joins the ranks of recipients of the Sondheim Award, an annual acknowledgement of those who have contributed to the works of composer Stephen Sondheim and the canon of American theater. Tunick, who has scored nearly all of Sondheim’s musicals, is one of only 11 people to have earned Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony awards and has orchestrated five Signature Theatre productions. A seated dinner and award presentation follows the 6 p.m. cocktail reception. Embassy of Italy; 6 p.m.; black-tie; sponsorships start at $1,000; contact Zack Lynch, 571-527-1828 for more information, including individual ticket prices.

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N Street village Gala N Street Village’s annual fundraiser celebrates the organization’s 40th anniverary

providing homeless and low-income women with comprehensive services addressing short- and long-term needs. Sens. Kelly Ayotte and Kay Hagan will be recognized with this year’s Founder’s Award. Ritz-Carlton Washington, D.C.; 6 p.m.; business attire; $500; sponsorships start at $5,000; contact Stuart Allen, 202-939-2085, sallen@nstreetvillage.org.

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The Children’s Ball “Dream a Little Dream” at the Children’s National Medical Center’s 8th annual Children’s Ball. Following a cocktail reception, guests at this popular event can look forward to a seated dinner courtesy of celebrity chefs Nobu Matsuhisa and Wolfgang Puck and a performance by a surprise entertainer. After-hours dancing concludes the evening around midnight.

Bret and Amy Baier and Unitd Arab Emirates Amb. Yousef Al-Otaiba and Mrs. Al-Otaiba share chairmen duties this year. Ritz-Carlton Washington, D.C.; 7 p.m.; black-tie, white dress preferred; $1,000; sponsorships start at $15,000; contact Diana Kurnit, 301-565-8500, dkurnit@ childresnational.org.

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Catholic Charities Gala Join Patrice and Scott Brickman for an evening of dinner, dancing and entertainment from Haute Chile. This annual black-tie evening benefits Catholic Charities’ efforts to foster a spirit of community through service. The soirée culminates with a young professionals after-party. Marriott Wardman Park Hotel; black-tie; $350; sponsorships start at $1,000; contact Kimani Superville, 202-7224331, kimani.superville@catholiccharitiesdc.org

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Bachelors & Spinsters Ball Mingle with Washington’s most eligible singles at this annual party, which has been a staple of the capital’s spring social clendar since the 1930s. Drinks, (bellini bar anyone?) dancing, an early breakfast and the chance of meeting the apple of one’s eye await.

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FYIDC | SOCIAL CALENDAR

City Tavern Club; 9 p.m.; black-tie; by invitation only; www.bachelorsandspinsters.com.

THEATRE WASHINGTON HELEN HAYES AWARDS The 30th annual Helen Hayes Awards will be the last gala before the awards overhaul is rolled out in 2015. Celebrating outstanding theatrical achievement since 1985, Theatre Washington presents nominees and recipients across 26 categories and announces the winner of the 2014 John Aniello Award for Outstanding Emerging Theatre Company as well as the Helen Hayes Tribute. National Building Museum; 6 p.m.; $150; sponsorships start at $500; contact Lindsay Gaughan, 202-337-4572, boxofďŹ ce@theatrewashington.org.

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CORCORAN BALL The ball will go on, despite the recent takeover of the Corcoran Gallery by the National Gallery of Art and George Washington University. This year’s proceeds will support ongoing efforts to digitize the collection. For the ďŹ rst time, deejays have been hired to appeal to younger guests, but the usual orchestras will be on hand as well. Corcoran Gallery of Art; 7 p.m.; black-tie; $350-$1,500; sponsorships start at $10,000; contact Libby Helfer, hampdenla@aol.com.

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NATIONAL MUSEUM OF WOMEN IN THE ARTS GALA Salute the curlture of Marrakesh and the museum’s patrons, members and friends at the 27th annual spring gala. This year’s theme, “Nine Thousand and Nine Hundred Nights,� refers to the approximate number of days the institution has existed. Annie Totah returns as gala chairwoman while Iran’s former empress, Farah Pahlavi, serves as honorary chairwoman. National Museum of Women in the Arts; 6:30 p.m.; black-tie; $650; contact 202-266-2815 or main@nmwa.org for sponsorship details.

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REFUGEES INTERNATIONAL TH ANNIVERSARY DINNER Nearly 500 guests are expected to attend this celebration honoring singular humanitarians.

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Indonesian Amb. Dino Djalal and Rosa Djalal at the 2013 Refugees International 34th Anniversary Dinner (Photo by Tony Powell)

This year’s honorees are legendary chef JosÊ AndrÊs and Oscar-winning actor and activist Forest Whitaker. Actor Matt Dillon returns as emcee. Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium; 6:15 p.m.; business/cocktail attire; $175-$400; sponsorships start at $1,250; contact Garrett Bradford, 202-828-0110 ext. 218, garrett@refugeesinternational.org.

MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS’ WOMEN ON THE MOVE LUNCHEON The organization’s 10th anniversary features a conversation with former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s wife, Ann Romney, moderated by Norah O’Donnell, and includes a discussion of Mrs. Romney’s struggle with the disease since 1998. Amy Knight and Carrie Marriott serve as chairwomen. Marriott Wardman Park; 12 p.m.; $125; sponsorships start at $3,000; contact 202-2965363, womenonthemovedc@nmss.org.

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Russell Terrier races, six hurdle and timber races, tent tailgating, hat contests and, for only the second year, pari-mutuel betting.

Great Meadow in The Plains, Va.; gates open at 10 a.m., ďŹ rst race starts at 1 p.m.; dandy attire encouraged; $85; visit www.vagoldcup.com for more information.

SAVE THE DATE :/ 6321625(' (9(176

MAY 1 TRUST FOR THE NATIONAL MALL BENEFIT LUNCHEON MAY 4 KENNEDY CENTER SPRING GALA MAY 7 MARCH OF DIMES GOURMET GALA MAY 9 WTEF TENNIS BALL MAY 9 MUSICA Y SUENOS MAY 10 WPAS GALA

VIRGINIA GOLD CUP MAY

Spend a day in the country at the 89th annual running of the Gold Cup steeplechase race. More than 50,000 spectators are expected as the spectacle kicks off with Jack

MAY 16 PHILLIPS COLLECTION GALA AND AFTER PARTY

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LIFE OF THE PARTY WL-sponsored and Exclusive Events | Teach for America’s Gala, Heroes Curing Childhood Cancer, Prevent Cancer Foundation Gala!

Danielle Farrah, Katherine Kennedy Allen and Jocelyn Kmet at Prevent Cancer Foundation’s Gala (Photo by Tony Powell)

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LIFE

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Lighting the Way speaker Jennifer GriďŹƒn

Mistress of Ceremonies Andrea Roane

Laura Denise Bisogniero and Italian Amb. Claudio Bisogniero, Prevent Cancer Foundation President and Founder Bo AldrigÊ, Gilles and Ellen Noghès, Nobuko Sasae and Japanese Amb. Kenichiro Sasae WL EXCLUSIVE

PREVENT CANCER FOUNDATION GALA National Building Museum | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL

Gala chairmen Je and Gail MacKinnon

Sen. Patrick Leahy and Marcelle Leahy

CELEBRATING TWO DECADES: The Prevent Cancer Foundation beneďŹ t marked a high point in the spring gala season with over $1.7 million raised (making a grand total of over $21 million since the event’s inception 20 years ago) for cancer research and screenings. Guests enjoyed dining and dancing at the “Graceful, Gracious Japanâ€?themed event this year, with Japanese Amb. Kenichiro Sasae and Nobuko Sasae serving as honorary chairmen. Ellen Noghès, a three-time cancer survivor and wife of former Monaco Amb. Gilles Noghès, received the annual Cancer Champion Award.

VIEW ALL THE PHOTOS AT WWW WASHINGTONLIFE COM

Marcia Carlucci, Liechtenstein Amb. Claudia Fritsche and Dr. Michael Olding

Rep. Doris Matsui

Gen. Dave and Kate Papak with Mary Vander Linden and Stacey Black

Corporate Committee chairmen Rich and Linda Tarplin

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Cancer survivors Kathryn Rand, Joyce Gates and Greta Kreuz

Kim and Byron Dorgan

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Sen. Corey Booker and Jim Abdo

TFA Founder Wendy Kopp and Sen. Tom Harkin

David and Katherine Bradley with Mayor Vincent Grayv Gala chairmen Stanley and Joey Sloter WL SPONSORED

TEACH FOR AMERICA GALA Omni Shoreham Hotel | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL

Cathy and Walter Isaacson with TFA CEO Matt Kramer

Interim Exec. Director Amanda Nichols, Kristen Ehrgood and Stephanie Kapsis

Rama Mandadi, Mary Haft and KIPP DC Founder and Exec. Director Susan Schaeer

Stephen and Andrea Weiswasser

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EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION: Joey Sloter, Gala Chairwoman and Kwame Griffith, Executive V.P. for Teach for America welcomed the audience of business leaders and Teach for America teachers for the fourth annual Teach for America Gala. Katherine Bradley thanked supporters and introduced Sen. Cory Booker who gave an impassioned speech about his rise to the Senate and the need to support the work of Teach for America because of its ability to provide meaningful change for children through quality public education. Honoree Sen. Tom Harkin echoed beneďŹ ts of the work that Teach for America has been able to accomplish in the Metropolitan Washington DC area.

Joe Ruzzo, Rep. John Delaney and Mark Lowham

Jack Davies, Laurie Peterson, Cathy Merrill Williams and Leah and Jack Gansler

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Monica Thompson

Sanju Bansal and Charlotte Pineda Herrera

Siobhan Davenport and TFA board member Kendrick Ashton

Lyn and Mark McFadden

Eleanor Rutland and Gabriella Smith

2013 DCPS Teacher of the Year Kathy Hollowell-Makle

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Hillary Baltimore, Mae Haney Grennan, and Siobhan Davenport

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Caitlin Chalke and Ashley Lamade Elizabeth Blalack, Matthew Nicely and Severina Mladenova Alison and Dr. Kurt Newman WL SPONSORED

HEROES CURING CHILDHOOD CANCER Four Seasons | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL

Chris and Caroline King

TREE OF LIFE: In keeping with the theme “The Giving Tree� at this year’s gala, a live apple tree in the center of the ballroom greeted nearly 350 guests, including Georgetown Cupcake’s Sophie LaMontagne and former Redskins Mark Rypien. That set the tone for an evening of generous giving with guests bidding for exclusive experiences in a silent auction that helped raise $640,000 for patient teams at the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children’s National Medical Center, which also provides psychosocial therapy in addition to medical treatment for young patients.

Cidalia and Masud Akbar

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Dave and Jamie Dorros

Jennie and Reginald Meyer

Heidi Kline, Jessica Blake and Amy Porter Stroh

Tracie, Evan, Kelly and Rylie Richards

Nina DiSandro and Cristina DiSandro

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Cynthia Robert-Clark, Aimee Robert, Dr. Kurt Newman and Christine Robert Amy and Brett Baier

Elizabeth Saint and Joe Robert III

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JOSEPH E. ROBERT JR. PRIZE Children’s National Medical Center | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL

Barbie and Paul Hills

Dr. Mark Batshaw, Jim Lintott and Dr. Tony Sandler

CARE GIVERS: Fox News Channel anchor Bret Baier and his wife Amy, the recipients of the inaugural Joseph E. Robert III prize in philanthropy, were honored for establishing the Paul Francis Baier Comprehensive Media Room at the medical center as well as the Children’s Circle of Care, a group of philanthropists who have pledged to give $10,000 or more each year to further medical care for children.

Carrie Marriott

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Russ and Norma Ramsey

Jeffrey Robert

Jenn Crovato, Michela English and Denise Cora-Bramble

Jean-Marie Fernandez and Mae Haney Greenan

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Evan and Cindy Jones with Mike Williams

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Gen. Jim Jones and Toni Verstandig

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POLLYWOOD The Nexus of Politics﹐ Hollywood﹐ Media and Diplomacy | Kara Kennedy Fund Launch Party, Embassy Row and more!

Dr. Jill Biden and Tipper Gore at the International Women’s Day Luncheon (Photo by Tony Powell)

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POLLYWOOD

HOLLYWOOD ON THE POTOMAC

STARTUPLAND The real life adventures of launching a tech company B Y J A N E T D O N O VA N

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teve Case, co-founder of AOL and CEO of R evo l u t i o n , a r r ive d late to the recent premiere of the documentary web series “Startupland.” He was coming from a dinner with Bill Gates and about 100 members of Congress at the U.S. Capitol and snuck out early to join members from the startup community at the E Street Cinema for the intimate screening. “It was a little embarrassing, but I wanted to get here because it’s an important movie,” he told the gathering. “It really celebrates what is unique about the D.C. tech community.”

The buzzed-about film Jonathon Perrelli, Steve Case and Justin Gutwein (Photo by Rich Kessler) directed by Justin Gutwein and co-produced by Jonathon Perrelli tells infrastructure to get people on, or the second the real-life, no-frills story of five startups wave where people are building company struggling to get off the ground with familiar apps on that platform,” he said. “This third Washington tech faces like LivingSocial’s wave is starting to impact every aspect of Tim O’Shaughnessy and Blackboard and our lives — how it transforms learning and SocialRadar founder Michael Chasen health and transportation. making appearances.

“It is also a particularly big opportunity It’s a story Case knows well. In 1983, for this region because we understand and he moved to Washington and started AOL realize that policy and government do when the city was mostly comprised of matter, the partnerships are critical. I think government contractors and lobbyists. “The that DNA is going to play very well in this startup community at the time was not great. region,” he added.

A quarter of a century later, it is vibrant and The hardscrabble story of these exciting,” he noted, adding that the future for entrepreneurs is front and center in the the D.C. startup community looks bright. documentary, which is what the filmmakers “My prediction is that the next wave of wanted to portray. “We had seen a number of great entrepreneurial success stories are not film and television productions that tried to going to be what characterized the first wave depict the glamorous life the entrepreneurs of the Internet that helped build the core live which isn’t always the case,” Perrelli told

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us. “The vast majority of the time entrepreneurs are bootstrapped, struggling to make ends meet, typically eating ramen noodles, sleeping on couches and working long hours for very little pay, if anything.”

Gutwein got the idea for the documentary while doing video work in Washington, mostly in the technology space. Through several conversations and a little bit of whiskey, the idea of showing what it’s really like to go through an accelerator program came to fruition.

“It’s really just hard work every day,” he said. “It’s actually kind of almost not exciting, but that’s what’s exciting about it — the passion that drives you.”

His take-away? The importance of teams in a startup. “I’ve always kind of been a lone wolf and it’s been very, very freeing for me,” he said. “When you have multiple imaginations working together in a room, your output is much grander than what you can ever do by yourself.”

But most importantly, he added, you can’t count on funds to get your idea off the ground.

“You really need to test little kernels of your idea and get it out there.”

The film itself is a testament to that startup mentality — rather than showing it in a traditional setting, it’s cut up into short episodes viewers can watch online while they’re on the metro or scarfing down a burrito at their desk.

Treat it like “House of Cards” or “Breaking Bad” and binge on all the episodes at once starting this June.

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Kat Townsend, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend and Kerry Townsend

Ted Kennedy Jr., Joan Kennedy and Patrick Kennedy (holding daughter Nora Kara) with his wife Amy Kennedy Robin and Rob Wilder WL SPONSORED

KARA KENNEDY FUND LAUNCH PARTY

Kass Goodwin and Leslie Sandberg

Jaleo Bethesda | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL REMEMBERING KARA: Friends and family gathered in Bethesda to celebrate the establishment of the Kara Kennedy Fund, started this year to honor the late Kara Kennedy and the causes she championed. The fund will support programs that make her favorite activities, such as swimming, available to the less fortunate, and endow nonproďŹ t groups that display her boundless passion toward children, literacy and public service.

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Abbe Kaufman

Ramona Carver and Rachel Carver

Jamie and Lisa Sterling with Tim Rockwood

Sissy Yates and Linda Potter George Harrop, John King and Martin Hannes

Sarah Nixon, Ginny Grenham and Mariela Trager

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Kyle Samperton and Izette Folger

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POLLYWOOD | EMBASSY ROW

Art and Diplomacy New statuary proliferate on Embassy Row and a new protocol chief is named

BY ROLAND FLAMINI

Vice President Joe Biden presides over the unveiling of a statue of Nelson Mandela at the Embassy of South Africa as Amb. Ebrahim Rasool looks on. (Courtesy photo)

BRONZED: There must be times when there are more statues than people on Embassy Row, more so in the past six months following an important jump in the statuary population.

Since September 2013, Nelson Mandela has graced the forecourt of the South African Embassy, his right hand raised in a clenched fist as a reminder of his life-time struggle against white supremacy in his country.

Outside the Turkish ambassador’s residence in Sheridan Circle stands a finely honed statue of Kamal Ataturk, the early 20th century leader whose vision and determination transformed Turkey into a modern, secularized state. The statue is at street level, unusual positioning, but wouldn’t it have more impact on a plinth?

There’s another Ataturk statue, in a more dramatic pose, visible through the iron railings of the Turkish Embassy chancery nearby; but it’s molded fiberglass covered in bronze paint. The new one, erected recently at the initiative of the Ataturk Society of America and marking the 75th anniversary of Ataturk’s death, is cast in bronze.

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The most eye-catching of the relatively new arrivals is a white-and-gold statue of the four-armed Hindu goddess Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, outside the Embassy of Indonesia. Completed last June, it was “bequeathed” by Ambassador Dino Patti Djalal some time prior to his departure “to jazz up Massachusetts Avenue,” he said at the time, but it also sends a message of religious tolerance. Hindus are a small minority in Indonesia, a country of 280 million Muslims.

AFTER CAPRICIA: Almost six months after the highly accomplished Capricia Penovik Marshall resigned as chief of protocol, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has recommended approval of her proposed successor to the full Senate. He is Peter A. Selfridge, currently deputy assistant to the president and director of advance operations at the White House. He is no stranger to his new boss at State. He was advance man on John Kerry’s presidential campaign.

CULTURE, ETC.: Like Topsy, cultural diplomacy keeps growing in Washington.

Some highlights: If you thought you had savored the last of the Italian Embassy’s highly visible 2013: Year of Italian Culture in the United States, not so. The program lives on with the creation of its own website (www.italyus.org) and Facebook addresses to advertise future Italian cultural activities. Ambassador Claudio Bisogniero calls it “a unique showcase and a virtual hub where maximum use is made of social media. That was one of the main lessons of the Year of Culture.”

March marked the Embassy of France’s Francophone Month celebrating the French language, which may not still enjoy the dominance it once did in diplomatic life, but is still spoken by some 220 million people around the world.

A highlight of the month-long program that spills into April (consult www.francophonie.org) was La Grande Fête on March 21, with music including France’s hypnotic psyche-punk rock collective La Femme), films, dance and — natch — food, or rather cuisine, from France itself and the Francophone nations.

Yes, culinary events remain a favored diplomatic dish. The Austrian Embassy showed a mouth-watering film of the Naschmarkt, the famous central market where the Viennese have for centuries bought their produce.

At the former Spanish Embassy residence on 16th Street NW, a two-month exhibition focusing on Spain’s current vogue for “design gastronomy” called “TAPAS. Spanish Design for Food,” created by the Spanish designer Juli Capella with the ubiquitous Spanish chef José Andrés as its chief consultant, drew crowds culminating in a closing reception on March 17. The old embassy — originally built to house U.S. vice presidents but instead sold to Spain in 1929 — is turning out to be an ideal venue for exhibitions.

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Batu Kutelia and James Mellor

Saeid Ghafouri and Massih Tayebi

Minoo Lari, Houri Kalilian and Serge Sira

Gissou and Bijan Kian

CELEBRATING THE DIVERSITY OF NOROOZ AT THE 5TH ANNUAL NOWRUZ COMMISSION GALA

Kazakhstanian Amb. Kairat Umarov, Dusen Kaseinov and Firaz Purat

Aijan Muktar and Kyrgyzian Amb. Muktar Djumaliev

Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium | PHOTOS BY ALFREDO FLORES A NEW YEAR: This years gala brought together Ambassadors from 12 nations, which in addition to Iran, celebrate the first day of Spring as marking the beginning of a new year. Founders Nasser Kazeminy, Bijan and Gissou Kian welcomed over 500 guests with a sumptuous Persian feast catered by Design Cuisine and entertainment from The Silk Road Dance company and artists from other member countries. The organization auctioned off an electric guitar made out of a first aid kit bought on ebay and made by Ma/ Schaub raising $100,000 from two Patrons, Nasser Kazeminy who bid $50,000 and then immediately gi8ed it back to the Commission to be placed on bid again and bought by Dr. Massih Tayebi who paid another $50,000 only to gi8 it back to the Commission. The funds will be used for critically needed heart operations for poor young children and for graduate student fellowships.

Major Jesse Greaves, Hetaher Greaves and Ghassan Aidi

Keyvan Massali, Bulgarian Amb. Elena Poptodorova and Shahin Mafi

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Bobby and Jasmin Barakat

Nasser Kazeminy and Farah Pahlavi

Turkish Amb. Namik Tan and Ukrainian Amb. Olexander Motsyk

Scott Bruggeman and Narges Gheissari

Peter Robinson, Dr. Asad Kazeminy and Louis Freeh

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Mary Darling, Lady Homayoun Rewnwick and Naomi Tate

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Setareh and Kiomars Jahanbin with Fred Fardshisheh

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Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Carrie Higginbotham, Arvind Manocha and Rynthia Rost

Beth Newburger, Rep. Jim Moran and Richard Schwartz

Molly Smith and Kathleen Turner

Moises Kaufman and Ted Trimpa

OPENING NIGHT RECEPTION FOR ‘THE TALLEST TREE IN THE FOREST’ Arena Stage | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL BEST OF BOTH WORLDS: Heavy hi/ers from the political and theatrical worlds gathered for cocktails and a seated dinner prior to the opening night performance of Arena Stage’s “The Tallest Tree in the Forest.” Kathleen Turner, who stars as the title character in Arena Stage’s Mother Courage and Her Children (through March 9) and Rep. Marcia L. Fudge (D-Ohio) were honored with the American Artists Award and American Voice Award respectively.

Reps. Marcia L. Fudge and Maxine Waters

Rep. Barbara Lee

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Hilary Rosen and Gloria Borger

Kathy Calvin, Jill Biden and Tipper Gore

Jennifer Klein, Marnie Levine, Kathy McKiernan and Molly Silver

Judy Woodruff

Pat Ellis, Donna McLarty and Anne Vasar

Jane Harman and Amb. Cathy Russell

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INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY LUNCHEON Mayflower Hotel | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL GLOBAL SISTERHOOD: A lunch hosted by the United Nations Foundation, the Women’s Foreign Policy Group and the United Nations Information Center is no ordinary occasion, especially when the guests include many of Washington’s most powerful women. Jill Biden, Judy Woodruff and Cathy Russell, U.S. ambassador at large for global women’s issues for the State Department, were among the luminaries who gathered to discuss how to keep the rights of women and girls a top priority in many nations throughout the world.

Maureen Orth and Ann Stock Vicki Kennedy and Elizabeth Stevens

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Buffy Cafritz, Ann Jordan and Jan Smith Shamim Jawad and Mariella Trager

Lady Westmacott, Alexandra de Borchgrave, Holly Petraeus and British Amb. Sir Peter Westmacott Dr. Milton Corn and Bill Webster

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LIGHT OF HEALING HOPE RECEPTION Gail and Togo West

British Ambassador’s Residence | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL

HEALING THROUGH WRITING: Author Alexandra Villard de Borchgrave’s Light of Healing Hope Foundation helps bring the healing power of poetry to wounded veterans and others who are suffering from great trauma.

At a party hosted by British Ambassador Sir Peter Westmaco and his wife Susie, supporters learned that it has provided over 5,500 beautifully illustrated volumes to 25 hospitals here and abroad as well as numerous DVDs and CDs for patients who, as de Borchgrave noted, “can’t hold a book.” Hollister (“Holly”) Petraeus, the wife of Lt. Gen. (and former CIA Director) David H. Petraeus and the evening’s honored guest, encouraged everyone to help the foundation’s mission to send “a message of beauty and hope to those who need it most.”

Daniel Lubin and Sen. Angus King

Dan Weekly, Ann Loomis and Sen. Joe Manchin

Joe Duffey with Nina and Philip Pillsbury

Stephanie Nye, Swedish Amb. Bjorn Lyrvall, Madeline Lyrvall and Lindsay Angerholzer

Austrian Amb. Hans Peter Manz and Daniel Lubin WL EXCLUSIVE

CSPC AWARDS DINNER

Togo West Jr., Go Kobayashi, Hilary West and Mel Martinez

Ritz-Carlton, Washington, D.C. | PHOTOS BY NICK GHOBASHI BIPARTISANSHIP CELEBRATED: At the 47th annual Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress Awards Dinner, Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) were honored with the Publius Award for their bipartisanship and spirit of compromise in Congress. The audience was filled with college students participating in CSPC fellowships researching Congress, the presidency and government. “At a time when compromise seems to be a dirty word and dysfunction and partisanship unfortunately remain prevalent in Washington,” Manchin noted, “it is an honor to work with colleagues from across the aisle like Senator Collins who truly want to solve our nation’s greatest challenges rather than cast partisan stones to win the next election cycle.”

David Thomson, Mathew Hunter and Lindsay Angerholtzer WA S H I N G T O N L I F E

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POLLYWOOD

PRIVATE SECURITY FOR THE A-LIST

THE BUSINESS OF PERSONAL PROTECTION Fueling a new industry in private security for Washington elites

BY JOHN ARUNDEL

W

hat may be the ultimate power symbol in Washington — an around-the-clock governmentprovided security detail — is trending toward the elites these days, with dozens of new private security firms cropping up, providing bodyguards, armored vehicles and enhanced home security systems to protect the most affluent, most powerful or most recognizable CEOs, technology tycoons, foreign dignitaries and celebrities visiting the nation’s capital.

The increased importance of Washington, along with the gusher of federal spending and Jack Hickey with Haiti’s President Michel Martelly surge in visits by Hollywood stars, has fueled and Chief of Protocol Capricia Marshall. the new industry, helping to spawn a gold rush of sorts for local private security firms, Hickey was guarding Ben Stiller on a Washington, many of which have filled their ranks with D.C. movie set and “the crowd grew from 20 retired Secret Service personnel, federal agents onlookers to 200 in minutes,” he recalls. “People and former law enforcement officers, or those were getting trampled. They wanted to touch trained at their academies. him or take a photo. But it got dangerous very Walk into any A-List dinner or reception fast, so we went to ‘Plan B.’ I remember grabbing these days, and you might see one by the door, his belt and taking him to a private elevator, and with an armored Suburban idling outside. out the back door where our car was waiting.”

Northern Virginia-based Jack Hickey, founder “There’s always a back up plan to the back of Aegis Global, is just that person. Hickey’s up plan,” says Hickey, such as the time his team firm provides personal protection, residential was ambushed in South America protecting a security, witness protection, private investigations, political figure’s motorcade in the countryside. surveillance/counter surveillance, person locates, “Everyone got out safely, because we went to risk assessments, security drivers, special events Plan B,” he recalls. and workplace violence/hostile terminations.

Guarding the royal families of Saudi Through the years he has protected the best of Arabia or the United Arab Emirates requires a them, from royal families to political figures like logistically different travel plan than being on former Presidential candidate Hillary Rodham set with stars like Angelina Jolie, whom Aegis Clinton and movie stars. Hickey crafts a security Global protected during the 2010 shooting of protocol unique to each client, doing the her movie “Salt.” “In this day and time, privacy necessary homework for any potential threats. for stars is a thing of the past, so we try to get The rising use of Twitter, Buzzfeed and them not to follow a routine,” he says. other social media to track the whereabouts of Hickey does not live by the idea of reflexive celebrities creates challenges, such as the time training; rather, he aims to be “proactive as

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opposed to reactive” to keep his clients safe.

This personal motto kept Hillary Clinton safe from 2006 to 2008 when as the detail leader on her presidential campaign he encountered “credible threats” to her safety.

“One man arrived at one of her campaign offices wearing what appeared to be a vest of explosives,” he recalled. “After a 10-hour stand-off the man surrendered, only for us to find he had road flares taped around his chest. That was an eye opener.”

Business is booming at other area firms as well. “Nationwide there’s been a number of significant events which has created an increase in the overall demand for security,” says Shawn Scarlata, co-founder of Landover-based Blueline Security Systems, which recently added four new divisions. “I think social media has had a big part in raising awareness of security.”

John Sexton of Sexton Executive Security, who runs a training academy for new agents, says his primary concern is preventing “work stoppages.” Many VIPs coming in from out of town or from overseas “just need us to help them get to and from meetings so they can take care of business. We provide security so people don’t interfere with them.”

Sexton has a diverse clientele, including royalty and foreign heads of state. “Given the very powerful people coming here,Washington has to be a very security-minded city,” he says.

“When clients contact us the night before, it does create challenges. But when security is executed properly, there are not too many crazy incidents.”

Alyson Casey and Catherine Carlstedt contributed to this report.

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POLLYWOOD

VIEWPOINT

100 YEARS OF

COVERING THE WHITE HOUSE A longtime senior White House correspondent reflects on the White House Correspondents Association’s storied history.

B Y C O N N I E L AW N

T WHITE HOUSE CORRE SPONDENTS, 1924. DIGITIZED GLASS NEGATIVE , LIBRARY O F CO N GR E S S , P R I NTS AN D P H OTO GRAP H S D I VI S I O N , WAS H I N GTO N , D.C .

he White House Correspondents Association began as a small group of white male reporters on February 25, 1914. They banded together to set standards, gain access to the president, better serve the reading public and deal with numerous issues. The president at the time was Woodrow Wilson; the association has dealt with 17 presidents since then.

Some were open and friendly; others nasty and cold. They have tried to use the press to their advantage, just as the press tried to use them.

I cannot begin to cover all the jokes and speeches delivered over the years, but I can offer my own reflections. The presidents’ presentations are always the best — far better than the professional comedians. The ones I remember most were delivered by George W. Bush. One year he had an imitator on the podium with him. Another time Laura Bush delivered the speech and talked about the way her husband likes to go to sleep by 9 p.m. Another vignette featured a White House hunt for weapons of mass destruction.

Bill Clinton was always funny, even in difficult times. He made a film showing himself riding a bike and fighting with a soda machine in his last irrelevant months in the White House.

In the mock video, Helen Thomas is seen as the

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only one in the press room, scolding Clinton.

“Are you still here?!” she demands.

Sometimes there were periods of intense crises. The Nixon White House was unraveling during Watergate, and many somber conversations were taking place in the hospitality suites. The aides were ordered back to the White House after the dinner, but some told me they would not go. I developed my own valued “deep throat” sources that night.

There was also the time a very drunk officer in a hospitality suite cursed the president about the Kuwait invasion when American troops went in after the Iraqis. He accused the president of ending the war too quickly after 100 hours. We were about to go into Iraq and the Republican Guard would have surrendered in Beirut, but this move stopped them, according to the officer. If he was correct, how different history could have been.

I have many memories of the guests I invited over the years. Some were important officials who came in from New Zealand, Australia, Israel and Canada. One of my favorite memories involved Don McKinnon, the strapping deputy prime minister of New Zealand. The U.S. and New Zealand were on the outs at the time over nuclear policy., but I brought several U.S. officials to our table to meet him, including the secretary. of defense. From another table, controversial former Washington, D.C. Mayor Marion Barry

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was watching. He invited himself over, sat down and was determined to stay. Barry had recently been set up and busted for cocaine possession.

To get rid of him, one person opened a pack of sugar and spread it in a line on the table! We all convulsed in laughter, and the mortified mayor slunk away.

The dinners have become more “glamorous” over the years, with a collection of actors and major personalities. There are fewer diplomats and politicians, but it is hard to have in-depth conversations over the crowds and noise, so it really does not matter.The association also installs a new president and gives out scholarships.

The parties begin early in the week, go on before and after the dinner, and can end with wonderful brunches at some of the best locations in Washington. It is more than a “Nerd Prom”; it is a happening. There are many other major events in the nation’s capital, but this is the best. I am honored to have been a part of it all these years. Happy birthday White House Correspondents, here’s to another terrific 100 years!

Connie Lawn has been covering the White House and the world since 1968 for Audio Video News, an outlet she founded, broadcast worldwide. Her first job was with WAVA, the first all-news radio station founded

by Art Arundel.Connie’s adventures can be found in her book,“You Wake Me Each Morning, 2010 Edition.”

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SPECIAL FEATURE | THE A-LIST

ALIST

P H OTOS N OT OT H E RW I S E N OT E D A RE F I L E ; FO R J E R E M Y BE R N AR D P H OTO H AI R BY A L E X P R OV E N Z A N O A N D M A K EU P BY F L A M I N I A GA R I ON I

THE

White House Social Secretary Jeremy Bernard photographed at Le Diplomate by Tony Powell

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Bill Cafritz and Bill Clinton

Rusty Powell and Hillary Rodham Clinton President BARACK H OBAMA and First Lady MICHELLE OBAMA

Vice President and Mrs. JOSEPH R BIDEN, JR (Jill) H.E. the Ambassador of Saudi Arabia ADEL BIN AHMED AL-JUBEIR and Mrs. Al-Jubeir (Farah)

World Bank President Jim Yong Kim (Photo courtesy World Bank)

Federal Reserve Board Chairman Janet Yellen (Photo courtesy IMF)

Mr. MARTIN BARON Mr. JEREMY BERNARD, Social Secretary,The White House The Honorable and Mrs. JAMES H BILLINGTON (Marjorie) H.E. the Ambassador of Italy CLAUDIO BISOGNIERO and Mrs. Bisogniero (Laura

Lady (Susie) Westmacott, British Amb. Sir Peter Westmacott and NationalofSecurity Advisor Rice Secretary State John KerrySusan and Teresa Heinz Kerry of the Central Intelligence Agency, and Mrs. Brennan (Katy) Associate Justice and Mrs. STEPHEN G BREYER (Joanna) Mr. and Mrs. CALVIN CAFRITZ (Jane) Mr. and Mrs. WILLIAM N CAFRITZ (Buffy) Representative DAVID CAMP

Mr. and Mrs. ROBERT L ALLBRITTON (Elena)

Denise)

H.E. the Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates, YOUSEF AL-OTAIBA, and Mrs. AlOtaiba (Abeer)

Mr. ANTONY J BLINKEN and Ms. EVAN RYAN

Representative and Mrs. ERIC I CANTOR (Diana)

The Speaker of the House of Representatives and Mrs. JOHN A BOEHNER (Debbie)

Mr. and Mrs. STEVEN B CASE (Jean)

H.E. the Ambassador of Kuwait, Sheikh

Mr. JAMES “JAY� CARNEY and Ms. CLAIRE

SALEM ABDULLAH AL-JABER AL-SABAH, and Sheikha RIMA AL-SABAH

Mr. BENJAMIN C BRADLEE and Ms. SALLY

Ms. ADRIENNE ARSHT

Mr. and Mrs. DAVID G BRADLEY (Katherine)

The Honorable WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON and The Honorable HILLARY

Mr. PHILIPPE AUGUIN

The Honorable JOHN O BRENNAN, Director

RODHAM CLINTON

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QUINN

SHIPMAN

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Japanese Amb. Kenichiro Sasae

Sen. Barbara Mikulski (Photo courtesy Medill DC)

Ryuji Ueno and Sachiko Kuno

John Podesta(Photo courtesy Center for American Progress Action Fund)

French Amb. Francois Delattre, Sophie l’Helias Delattre with Evan Ryan and Anthony Blinken

Sen. Dianne Feinstein

Sen. John D Rockefeller IV and Sharon Percy Rockefeller

Michael Kahn

Rep. Steny Hoyer (Photo courtesy Third Way)

The Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and Mrs. G WAYNE CLOUGH (Anne)

Mr. DONALD E GRAHAM and Mrs. AMANDA BENNETT

Associate Justice and Mrs. ANTHONY KENNEDY (Mary)

Mr. and Mrs. WILLIAM E “BILL� CONWAY JR. (Joanne)

Mr. DAVID GREGORY and Ms. BETH WILKINSON

The Honorable JOHN F KERRY, Secretary of State, and Mrs. TERESA HEINZ

Count and Countess JEHAN DE LA HAYESAINT HILLAIRE (Constance Milstein)

The Honorable CHARLES T “CHUCK�

HAGEL, Secretary of Defense, and Mrs. Hagel (Lilibet)

Mr. JIM YONG KIM, President,The World Bank, and Dr. YOUNSOOK LIM

H.E. the Ambassador of France FRANÇOIS DELATTRE and Ms. SOPHIE L’HÉLIAS-DELATTRE

General MARTIN E DEMPSEY, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Mrs. Dempsey (Deanie) The Honorable and Mrs. CHRISTOPHER J DODD (Jacki) Mr. and Mrs. ROBERT S DUVALL (Luciana)

Count and Countess JEHAN DE LA HAYESAINT HILAIRE (Constance Milstein) Mr. and Mrs. JOHN S HENDRICKS (Maureen) The Honorable ERIC H HOLDER JR , Attorney General, and Dr. SHARON MALONE Representative STENY H HOYER Ms. VALERIE JARRETT, Senior Advisor to the President

Mrs. CHRISTINE LAGARDE, Managing Director, International Monetary Fund Mr. and Mrs. THEODORE J “TED� LEONSIS (Lynn) Mr. and Mrs. THEODORE N “TED� LERNER (Annette) The Honorable JACOB J “JACK� LEW, Secretary of the Treasury, and Dr. RUTH SCHWARTZ

Senator DIANNE FEINSTEIN and Mr. RICHARD BLUM

Mr. and Mrs. VERNON E JORDAN JR (Ann) Mr. MICHAEL KAHN

Mr. and Mrs. J WILLARD MARRIOTT JR (Donna)

Senator and Mrs. AL FRANKEN (Frannie)

Mr. MICHAEL KAISER and Mr. JOHN ROBERTS

Mrs. JACQUELINE BADGER MARS

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Mr. and Mrs. CHRISTOPHER MATTHEWS (Kathleen) Senator and Mrs. JOHN S MCCAIN III (Cindy) Senator A MITCHELL MCCONNELL and the Honorable ELAINE LAN CHAO Mr. DENIS MCDONOUGH. Chief of Staff, the White House, and Mrs. MCDONOUGH (Kari) Senator BARBARA A MIKULSKI The Honorable and Mrs. WILLIAM T NEWMAN JR. (Sheila Johnson) Her Majesty Queen NOOR AL-HUSSEIN Her Imperial Majesty Empress FARAH PAHLAVI Senator and Mrs. RAND PAUL (Kelley) Representative NANCY PELOSI and Mr. PAUL PELOSI Mr. DAN PFEIFFER, Senior Advisor to the President Mr. JOHN D PODESTA, Counselor to the President, and Mrs. Podesta (Mary) The Honorable and Mrs. COLIN L POWELL (Alma) Mr. and Mrs. EARL A “RUSTY� POWELL III (Nancy) The Honorable PENNY S PRITZGER, Secretary of Commerce, and Dr. BRIAN TRAUBERT Senator and Mrs. HARRY M REID (Landra) The Honorable SUSAN E RICE, National Security Advisor, and Mr. IAN O CAMERON The Chief Justice and Mrs. JOHN G ROBERTS JR. (Jane) Senator and Mrs. JOHN D ROCKEFELLER IV (Sharon) Mr. and Mrs. DAVID RUBENSTEIN (Alice) Mr. and Mrs. ROGER SANT (Victoria/“Vicki�)

H.E. the Ambassador of Japan KENICHIRO SASAE and Mrs. Sasae (Nobuko) Mr. and Mrs. B FRANCIS SAUL II (Patricia/�Tricia�)

Associate Justice and Mrs. ANTONIN SCALIA (Maureen) Mr. and Mrs. DANIEL M SNYDER (Tanya) Associate Justice SONIA SOTOMAYOR Mr. and Mrs. GEORGE C STEVENS JR. (Elizabeth/“Liz�)

H.E. the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China CUI TIANKAI and Ms. NEI PEIJUN Mr. RYUJI UENO and Ms. SACHIKO KUNO H.E. the Ambassador of the United Kingdom SIR PETER WESTMACOTT and Lady Westmacott (Susie) Ms. KATHARINE WEYMOUTH Mr. ROBERT WOODWARD and Ms. ELSA WALSH The Honorable JANET L YELLEN, Chairman,The Federal Reserve System, and Mr. GEORGE AKERLOF

Count and Countess Jehan de la Haye-Saint Hilaire (Photo by Tony Powell)

Ms. FRANCESCA ZAMBELLO and Ms. FAITH E GAY

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45

EARTH DAY FEATURE

A CLIMATE IN CRISIS

A WAKE UP CALL FOR PLANET EARTH The world has added 100 billion tons of carbon to the atmosphere since 2000 with no sign of slowing this pace.

B Y L A U R A WA I N M A N

D

The rate of global sea level rise per year in the last two decades is nearly double that of the preceding 80 years. This January marked the fourth-lowest Arctic sea ice level in the history of satellite measurements.

(U.S. Geological Survey/ photo by Jessica Robertson)

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r. James Hansen first raised the alarm on our looming climate crisis long before it became a part of the national discussion. In 1981 he published his first warning that climate change was real, leading to a New York Times headline, “Study Finds Warming Trend That Could Raise Sea Levels.”

In the sweltering summer of 1988 he spoke again, this time testifying before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

He unequivocally stated that there “was a strong cause-and-effect relationship between observed temperatures and human emissions into the atmosphere.” This time the Times headline read, “Global Warming Has Begun.”

Hansen, a former director of NASA’s Institute for Space Studies, spoke out when no one wanted to listen and many wanted him to keep quiet. Joe Romm, editor of “Climate Progress,” likens him to “a modern day Paul Revere if Paul Revere’s midnight ride had taken place in 1750 and the message was,‘The British are coming, the British are coming in 25 years.’” In essence, he was trying to warn of the impending danger that a changing climate would bring, even though the devastation had yet to be seen.

Three-plus decades after Hansen’s warnings, the world is arguably going in the wrong direction. In 2013 the United States witnessed a 2 percent increase in energy-related carbon emissions, which the Energy Information Administration blames on the increase in coal burning (39 percent in October 2013, up from 37 percent in 2012). Thanks in large part to Hansen’s early efforts, the dialogue in most academic circles no longer centers on proving the reality of climate change, but on what the appropriate response should be. According to Matt Larsen, the U.S. Geological Survey’s associate director of climate and land use change,

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This sculpture by Isaac Cordal is called “Politicians Discussing Global Warming” and reflects the artist’s view of how politicians continue to debate while the climate crisis accelerates (Photo courtesy Isaac Cordal)

approximately 97 percent of the scientific community now agrees that our climate is changing and that humans are the cause.

The 2013 U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) made it clear that the most alarming aspect of the debate today is the accelerated rate of change contrasted with the lackadaisical response from the general public.

In a Twitter-paced society, instant gratification is desired and scientists have found that individuals tend not to respond to incremental changes that they don’t think they can immediately rectify.

Gavin Schmidt, a climatologist at the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, argues that individuals can best effect change by holding accountable“the people who make the big decisions whether at the group, city, state or federal level,” Schmidt said. “Scientifically, we are much better at defining and recognising the fingerprints of change and in simulating the affects and future predictions. There has also been a lot of progress in having people think about climate change aspects in planning decisions, except in some parts of the federal

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government. Decisions made at the federal level are still our weakest area.”

Even as we inch closer to the 2 degree Celsius increase in temperature that scientists have agreed would signify catastrophe for the planet as we know it, according to reports only a small portion of the population has engaged in meaningful action. A large part of the problem with the inadequate response to our current climate crisis is that it hasn’t yet been made tangible to the average citizen. We hear scientists citing the increased PPM levels of CO2 and watch on CNN as Congress engages in bickering matches over the course of action to take, but statistics and pointless yelling do not hammer the point home. Social scientists suggest that our visual society needs images in order to connect to the issue, and grasp the reality of what could happen.

“Climate change is a very slow moving problem and anytime something is slow or distant we have a tendency to not deal with it,” Larsen said. “When we see an image of a polar bear struggling some people may have a gut

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reaction and say ‘oh that is terrible,’ but most of us have never seen a polar bear so it isn’t relatable. If the goal is to stir viewers to action, it’s important to use images that directly affect the majority of the population. For example we’ve all seen the image of the roller coaster out in the surf after hurricane Sandy. That image makes you think ‘wait a minute, I’ve been there’ and so you form a connection.”

Whether or not society can picture the changes, they are there and occurring across all spectrums of life, according to reports from the CDC, IPCC, NASA, NOAA, USGS, WHO as well as the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which has mobilized to communicate the science of global climate destabilization to the general public and politicians. As the 2013 IPCC report stated, “the atmosphere and ocean have warmed, the amounts of snow and ice have diminished, sea level has risen and the concentrations of greenhouse gases have increased.” All 10 of the warmest years on record have occurred in the past 12 years and increases in average

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Massive forest die-off is projected to occur in the Southwest with increasing frequency as a result of climate change. ( U.S. Geological Survey/ photo by Craig D. Allen)

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temperature levels that have beem occurring since the 1970s are responsible for at least 150,000 extra deaths per year; global sea levels rose about 17 cm. in the last century, but the rate per year in the last two decades is almost double that of the preceding 80 years; today’s CO2 levels are 30 percent higher than the highest natural levels over the past 800,000 years and the world added roughly 100 billion tons of carbon to the atmosphere between 2000 and 2010, which is about a quarter of all the CO2 put there by humanity since 1750; the globally averaged combined land and ocean

surface temperature data show a warming of .85 degrees Celsius from 1880 to 2012.

“We have the choice to rein it in, or let it grow at an alarming and dangerous rate, but we can’t stop it,” Schmidt said. “We can only try and keep it slow enough that it isn’t too expensive to adapt to.”

However, Schmidt warns against using that as an excuse to become complacent, or worse, giving up hope altogether as he says “there will always be choices that will make the situation worse or better and we will need to keep making them.”

The Polar Vortex Mystery The White House’s John Holdren explains why an unseasonably cold winter is an important component of the climate destabilization discussion.

W

ashington-area residents know that the winter of 2013/2014 was one of the harshest and longest in years, with significant snowfalls in late March and weeks of blisteringly cold temperatures.

But the Washington area was not alone in experiencing this phenomenon. According to the National Weather Service, “on January 6, 2014, alone, approximately 50 daily record low temperatures were set, from Colorado to Alabama to New York.” In some places around the country temperature averages were measured at 40 degrees below the norms for the region. Yet on January 27, 2014, Alaska’s Port Alsworth recorded the warmest temperature ever measured in the state during January, with a high of 62 degrees Fahrenheit.

“If you’ve been hearing that extreme cold spells like the one we’re having in the United States now disprove global warming, don’t believe it,” said President Obama’s science advisor, John Holdren, in a popular White House YouTube video explaining the polar vortex.

Holdren goes on to state that “no single weather episode can either prove or disprove global climate change” as climate relates to a pattern of weather that is observed geographically over the seasons.

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So why the arctic-like temps in our region while Alaskans experienced balmy, summertime temperatures in January? The proverbial finger wagging can be directed at the polar vortex, which Holdren defines as the “great counter-clockwise swirling mass of cold air that hovers over the Arctic.” Due to the fact that the Arctic is warming twice as rapidly as the mid-latitude regions (such as the U.S.), the temperature differences between the regions are shrinking, causing the polar vortex to weaken and send larger excursions of cold air southward and warmer air northward.

Though we may have moved into spring for this year, we’d suggest keeping the winter coats on hand as Holdren predicts that we will continue to see more extreme weather patterns in the near future.

“Computer models tell us there are many different factors influencing these patterns,” Holdren said. “But I believe the odds are that we can expect, as a result of global warming, to see more of this pattern of extreme cold in the mid-latitudes and some extreme warmth in the far North.”

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What can an Individual Do?

The Jet Star Roller Coaster was found in the ocean after part of New Jersey’s Funtown Pier was destroyed during Superstorm Sandy. (AP Photo/Mel Evans, File)

stark climate realities 1. Ice loss in northeast Greenland, a region that had been stable for 25 years, has nearly tripled since 2003, according to a March 2014 study in Nature Climate Change. If Greenland’s ice sheet completely melts, approximately 23 feet worth of sea level would be pushed into the ocean over the coming centuries, in which case many of the world’s major population centers near sea level would be rendered uninhabitable.

2. In order to stay below the 2 degree Celsius temperature rise that scientists have agreed would spell disaster, CO2 emissions must remain below 1,000 billion tons of carbon; approximately half of that has already been put into the atmosphere according to the IPCC. CO2 levels are now above 400 parts per million for the first time in the 165,000-year history of humanity according to data from the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii.

melts completely, it will release a carbon bomb approximately 6 times the size of the one Hansen said would be “game over.”

5. The Danish Meteorological Institute found that average temperatures in the Arctic were 9 to 27 degrees Fahrenheit above average in the months of January and February 2014, soaring over 60 degrees F, while the midlatitudes (such as the U.S.) experienced a blast of cold weather with temperature changes as great as 40 degrees below the norms for the region.

6. Ocean acidity, which is threatening marine life such as plankton, oysters, clams and corals, has increased by approximately 30 percent since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution according to NOAA.

3. According to former NASA scientist James Hansen, the dirty carbon-intensive tar sands in Canada contain 240 gigatons of Carbon, which if tapped will release a carbon bomb adding 120 ppm to the atmosphere and “it will be game over for the climate.”

7. According to the CDC, wetter and warmer climates correlate with higher rates of reproduction among insect pests, such as mosquitoes, which can carry dangerous human parasites such as Plasmodium, the causative agent of Malaria. The same correlation is also found for other dangerous pathogens of humans, other animals and crops.

4. The permafrost that covers approximately 20 to 25 percent of surface area in the northern hemisphere is estimated to contain up to 1,600 gigatons of carbon.

As it thaws, carbon is released into the atmosphere as methane, a greenhouse gas that is 20 times more potent than CO2 according to the E.P.A. If the permafrost

8. California, the supplier of more than 90 percent of the country’s almonds, walnuts, pistachios, broccoli, strawberries, grapes and tomatoes, is in the midst of a threeyear drought, which is on track to be its “worst drought in 500 years” according to University of California-Berkeley professor B. Lynn Ingram.

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New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina (Photo

by Jocelyn Augustino, FEMA)

The easiest way for an individual to help lessen the effects of climate change is to focus on reducing greenhouse gases. Here are some practical options to consider: CALCULATE YOUR HOUSE’S CARBON FOOTPRINT

Find out the amount of greenhouse gas emissions your household generates and then identify ways to reduce them at http://www.epa.gov/ climatechange/ghgemissions/indcalculator.html SWITCH YOUR HOME TO RENEWABLE ENERGY

Consider switching home electricity sources to renewable energy through companies such as Ethical Electric, Virdian Energy and Washington Gas Energy Services. In many communities this can be easily accomplished online at minimal extra cost.

CHANGE FIVE LIGHTS

Replace light fixtures with bulbs that have earned the E.P.A’s ENERGY STAR designation. They generate 75 percent less heat, use 75 percent less energy and last 10 to 50 times longer.

EVALUATE THE CAR YOU DRIVE

See Washington Life’s companion piece on electric vehicles on p. 52.

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EARTH DAY FEATURE

CRUISE SHIP REPORT CARD

CHOOSING A GREENER CRUISE Ranking cruise lines sheds light on the seas’ worst polluters

BY MARCIE KEEVER

I

t’s that time of year again when people start to daydream about warm weather, and the lucky ones schedule tropical getaways. For those planning a cruise vacation, consider choosing a greener cruise line. It’s no secret that the cruise industry is one of the biggest polluters around. Friends of the Earth’s 2013 Cruise Ship Report Card ranks 16 major cruise lines and 162 cruise ships for their air and water pollution footprint.

Behind the clean and green image the industry presents is a river of polluted wastewater and a smokestack belching soot.

Many cruise ships burn some of the dirtiest fuel around and have generated more than one billion gallons of sewage last year that isn’t required to be treated much, or at all, before being discharged into our oceans.

While the waters of North America are now governed by an international control program that regulates the emissions of nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides and particulate matter from ships within 200 nautical miles of the shore, many cruise lines have gone to Congress and the E.P.A. requesting exemptions. Outside of North American waters, ships can burn viscous, dirty bunker fuel, which is made from the residual fuel left over from the refining of diesel, jet fuel and gasoline. The E.P.A. estimates that every single day an average-size cruise ship (3,000 passengers and crew) travels between Vancouver, B.C., and Alaska burning bunker fuel, it emits the same amount of sulfur dioxide as 13.1 million cars and releases as much soot as 1.06 million cars.

The best way to clean up cruise ship air emissions is for the ship to install and use shore power; its use would be equivalent

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to taking millions of cars off the road.

Shore power technology allows cruise ships in port to plug in to shore-based power and receive electricity to operate their refrigeration, cooling, heating and lighting systems without having to burn dirty fuel, cutting their emissions to zero while docked and protecting public health in portside communities.

The story behind cruise ship wastewater is even more troubling. An average-size cruise ship generates about 200,000 gallons of sewage per week, plus more than one million gallons of gray water, all of which is

polluted with fecal matter, bacteria, viruses, pathogens, nutrients, hazardous waste and pharmaceuticals. Within three nautical miles of shore, cruise ships are allowed to discharge sewage treated by a marine sanitation device (MSD). However, the E.P.A.’s regulations governing ship sewage discharges have not been revised since 1976, and most wastewater treated by MSDs doesn’t even meet these out-of-date standards. More importantly, the E.P.A. doesn’t require testing or monitoring of sewage discharges, so even if an MSD malfunctions and a ship discharges raw sewage near shore or out at sea, there is no

Source: Friends of the Earth

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Cruise ship emissions Number of cars it would take to equal the daily emissions from an average cruise traveling from Vancouver, B.C., to Alaska carrying 1,886 passengers: CURRENT EMISSIONS

WITH STRICTER LIMITS IN 2015

1.31 million cars

12.7 million removed

1.06 million

Sulfur dioxide

900,000 removed

Fine particulates

Sulfur dioxide

Disney Cruise Line was the only company to receive an overall grade of an A for 2013.

(Photo via Wikimedia Commons user Davesjourneys)

Fine particulates

- Source: EPA -

way of knowing that a violation occurred.

The cruise ship fleet we graded generates more than one billion gallons of sewage a year, plus nine billion gallons of gray water.

Friends of the Earth has turned all of this research into the Cruise Ship Report Card for 2013 to give cruise passengers a choice when it comes to greener cruise lines. Disney Cruise Line topped our rankings this year, as it did in 2012, with an overall grade of A. Disney made the grade by installing AWTS, an advanced sewage treatment technology, and shore power on its ships. Six cruise lines improved their grades this year, nine remained the same or lost ground and one newly evaluated line (MSC Cruises) received a failing grade in 2013.

Carnival Cruise Lines â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the company with the largest fleet of cruise ships in the world with 24 vessels and whose parent company, Carnival Corporation, also owns six other cruise lines on the report card â&#x20AC;&#x201D; continues to get an â&#x20AC;&#x153;Fâ&#x20AC;? in the sewage treatment category since only two of its 24 ships use advanced sewage treatment.

Half of Carnival Corporationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fleet continues to use outdated technology that pollutes our oceans and threatens sea life, our health and that of our marine ecosystems.

Though six cruise lines improved their

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rankings from 2012, air pollution reduction remains an enormous oversight in the cruise industry. Ten of the 16 lines reviewed received an â&#x20AC;&#x153;Fâ&#x20AC;? in this category. Of the 16, only Disney and Princess Cruises had significant improvement. By lagging in their efforts to reduce pollution, cruise lines are contributing to high rates of respiratory diseases in the cities and towns where they dock.

Though many cruise lines tempt us with images of pristine natural views, the efforts to reduce their air and water pollution impacts are half-hearted. Many lines continue to refuse to make the necessary upgrades that would protect the ecosystems they travel through and actively work to oppose stronger shipping regulations that would protect public health and the environment.

So, while people continue to take cruise voyages, the destinations and communities that host cruise ships, our oceans and airsheds continue to suffer. The cruise industry will only shape up if cruise passengers insist on cleaner ships.

Marcie Keever is the oceans and vessels program director at Friends of the Earth. For more information, or to search by ship, line or destination, visit www.foe.org/cruise-report-card.

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EARTH DAY FEATURE

THE POWER OF ELECTRIC

THE POWER OF ELECTRIC For decades, fuel-guzzling internal combustion engine vehicles have dominated the car market.

But with the release of dozens of models across three categories of electric cars, clean and energy-efficient vehicles are becoming a popular eco-friendly option.

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HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLE (HEVs) HEVs are dual-fuel vehicles that combine a small electric battery with a standard internal combustion engine (ICE) to increase fuel efficiency by 25 percent over conventional vehicles.

The electric motor powers the car to a maximum speed of 40 mph before the ICE takes over. This gasoline-electric marriage can be used for a number of purposes such as improved fuel economy, increased power or additional auxiliary power for electronic devices and power tools.

ADVANTAGES

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Jetta Hybrid (Photo via Wikimedia Commons user Mariordo)

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PLUG-IN HYBRID ELECTRIC VEHICLE (PHEVs) PHEVs are dual-fuel cars in which both an electric motor and an ICE can propel the vehicle. The battery pack is typically larger than with a regular HEV and it is charged directly from the power grid, thus increasing the electric power to the car.There are two types of PHEV configurations: Series PHEVs, or Extended Range Electric Vehicles (EREVs), and Parallel, or Blended, PHEVs. With EREVs the wheels are turned by the electric motor and the gasoline engine is only used to generate electricity, and the vehicle can run solely on electricity until the battery runs down; the gasoline engine then takes over and generates the electricity needed to power the electric motor. Parallel PHEVs have both the engine and electric motor mechanically connected to the wheels to propel the car; electric-only operation occurs at low speeds.

Nissan Leaf (Photo via Wikimedia Commons user TTTNIS)

Chevrolet Volt (Photo via Wikimedia Commons user Mariordo)

ADVANTAGES

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BATTERY ELECTRIC VEHICLE (EVs) Also known as all-electric vehicles, these cars do not have an ICE as they run on electricity only and are propelled by an electric motor that must be plugged into an electric grid to recharge.

ADVANTAGES

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EVS ON THE MARKET

'JBU F 5PZPUB 3"7 &7 $IFWSPMFU 4QBSL &7 )POEB 'JU &7 5FTMB .PEFM 4 /JTTBO -FBG 'PSE 'PDVT &7 .JUTVCJTIJ J .J&7 TDJPO J2 &7 BOE 4NBSU GPSUXP &MFDUSJD %SJWF $POWFSUJCMF BOE $PVQF

Sources: www.fueleconomy.gov and www.tva.gov

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LIFESTYLES

Florals and airy fabrics combine to create a modern ďŹ&#x201A;ower child.

PHOTOGRAPHY: Dustin C. Lilley, www.dclimagery.com WARDROBE: Will Lawry assisted by Andy Bridges for Capital Image MAKEUP: Liz Wegrzyn, www.facesbyliz.com, mafacesbyliz@gmail.com HAIR: Kennisha Ford, www.styleseat.com/kennishaford MANICURE: Shae Jackson assisted by Makeda Janifer, www.havenbeautylounge.com FLORAL DESIGN: Sweet Root Village, www.sweetrootvillage.com MODEL: Lauren Barber for The Talent Net Model Management ASSISTANT EDITOR: Laura Wainman Photographed at River Farm in Alexandria, VA, headquarters of the American Horticultural Society

ADRIANNA PAPELL tulle and leather bodice dress ($395), Saks Fifth Avenue, 5555 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301-657-9000; TIFFANY & CO. interlocking circles pendant ($1,375) and “Rubedo” cuff ($7,900), 5481 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301-6578777; shoes model’s own.

BURBERRY flower trench coat ($2,495), Saks Fifth Avenue, 5555 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301-657-9000; TIFFANY & CO. “Rubedo” hoop earrings ($1,250), 5481 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301-657-8777.

RED VALENTINO sweet pea dress ($995), Saks Fifth Avenue, 5555 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301-6579000; TIFFANY & CO. “Atlas” sterling silver bangle ($1,650), 5481 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301-657-8777; shoes model’s own.

THE ROW “Lia” cape dress ($1,990), Hu’s Wear, 2906 M St., NW, 202-342-0202; TIFFANY & CO. “Atlas” 18k gold hinged bangle ($6,100), 5481 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301-657-8777; necklace and bracelet stylist’s own.

BRUNELLO CUCINELLI silk maxi dress ($2,375), Saks Fifth Avenue, 5555 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301657-9000; TIFFANY & CO. “Atlas” pendant ($450), 5481 Wisconsin Ave., Chevy Chase, MD 20815, 301-657-8777; bracelet and ring stylist’s own.

LIFESTYLES | TREND REPORT

EMILIO PUCCI Masai stretch-knit mini skirt ($545); saksfifthavenue.com

J. CREW Collection faux raffia pencil skirt ($425); jcrew.com

TORY BURCH Embroidered “Tory” tunic ($295); saksfifthavenue.com

GIUSEPPE ZANOTTI Patrik nubuck and leather laceup sandals ($875); net-a-porter.com

+03&) 86388)6

STELLA MCCARTNEY Franky printed satin pants ($930); net-a-porter.com

take a trip around the world this spring with these internationally-inspired pieces

BY ALISON MCLAUGHLIN

MARC JACOBS Embroidered printed taffeta dress ($1,380); saksfifthavenue.com ROCHAS Printed silk jacket ($1,785); saksfifthavenue.com

REBECCA TAYLOR Short-sleeved sparkle jacquard sweatshirt ($225); rebeccataylor.com

GIUSEPPE ZANOTTI Coline embellished suede sandals ($1,995); saksfifthavenue.com

ISSA Embellished silkcrepe dress ($1,125); net-a-porter.com

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ETRO Printed stretchcotton shorts ($450); saksfifthavenue.com

FENDI All In medium zebraprint nylon tote ($950); net-a-porter.com

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DIOR Lady 1 Signature Ring Temple Sunglasses ($385); Dior in Chevy Chase & Tysons Galleria, dior.com

REED KRAKOFF Boxer medium leather tote ($1,290); saksfifthavenue.com

DOLCE & GABBANA Embellished floralbrocade pointtoe flats ($695); barneys.com

J. CREW Vintage neon slub-cotton T-shirt ($30); jcrew.com

746-2+ +6))27

J BRAND Cotton luxe twill skinny jeans ($255); saksfifthavenue.com

Go green... literally.

KATE SPADE NEW YORK Capri garden necklace ($148); katespade.com

BY ALISON MCLAUGHLIN

BOTTEGA VENETA Intrecciato nappa leather shoulder bag ($1,350); neimanmarcus.com

JONATHAN SAUNDERS Laurel tulip-print slub cotton-blend dress ($1,335); jonathan-saunders.com AQUAZZURA Amazon cutout suede sandals ($695); neimanmarcus.com

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PETER PILOTTO MT printed stretch-silk mini dress ($1,295); saksfifthavenue.com

MICHAEL MICHAEL KORS Embellished ponte top ($110); michaelkors.com

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LIFESTYLES | LUXURY HOTEL WATCH

Rosewood’s Timeless Little Dix Bay European Royalty, Hollywood celebrities, honeymooners and families have called this five-star British Virgin Islands resort their home away from home for five decades

BY NANCY REYNOLDS BAGLEY

CELEBRATING YEARS Virgin Gorda’s 8.5 square miles of lush tropical hills, white-sand beaches, turquoise water and secluded coves were discovered by Christopher Columbus in 1493. Pirates and a few adventurers were its chief visitors until 1964, when Laurence S. Rockefeller opened Little Dix Bay on a crescent-shaped half-mile of white-sand beach protected by a reef. It became part of Rosewood Hotels & Resorts in 1983 and a number of additions and multimillion dollar renovations have been made since 2008, all in keeping with Rockefeller’s original vision of a luxury resort with “elegantly appointed accommodations that blend unobtrusively into the lush landscape.”

ACCOMMODATIONS Mere steps from the beach, the standard rooms are airy and include a private patio with a comfortable queen-sized reclining chaise longue ideal for afternoon naps or whiling away the morning with a good book.

Bathrooms include both a shower and tub.

Two- and three-bedroom houses with private pools and direct beach access are also available.

If you need a larger space, consider one of the 4,000-square-foot villas perched in the tropical hills nearby. Each has three or four bedrooms and incredible 180-degree views of neighboring islands.

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Twice-daily housekeeping was never intrusive and always kept the rooms and sheets sand-free. The staff is always present to bring cocktails, lunch, ice cream and a selection of water toys while you swim or relax on the beach.

High Season: Premium Ocean View Room: $945/night; 3-4 bedroom Villa or Beach Cottage: $4,500-$6,000/night (half rates in the off season) NO NANNY NEEDED Parents can drop off potty-trained children three years and older at Rose Bud, a complimentary daily program that runs from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The 2,500-squarefoot air-conditioned Children’s Center includes a mini-Caribbean house, pirate ship, shaded outside play area and lots of dress-up costumes. Treasure hunts, nature walks, West Indian musical instrument playing, treasure box making and other crafts are included in the program. Older kids will appreciate videos, foosball, billiards, ping-pong, books, board games and “safe” Internet access.

For parents who wish to have a romantic dinner alone, Rosebuds offers nightly dinner and a children’s movie for a small charge. Babysitters are also available to come to your room or villa.

HELPFUL HINTS (If traveling with children) Request child-proofing of your rooms and terrace when making your reservation.

If needed, you can also request that complimentary bedrails, a non-slip bath mat, child-sized robe, slippers, beach pail/shovel, full-sized crib, baby monitors, changing table, diaper pail, baby bathtub or baby skincare products be placed in the room prior to arrival.

HELPFUL HINTS (If NOT traveling with children) Request a room or villa away from families with children.

DINING THREE RESTAURANTS ON THE PROPERTY Just steps from the beach, the main restaurant/bar/lounge, The Pavilion, is a covered but open-air space with gorgeous views of the bay. A buffet is served at every meal with an abundance of options. The quality of the food is quite good although much of the fruit and vegetables are neither local nor organic. At 4 p.m. guests can throw a cover-up over their bathing suits and enjoy daily tea with proper English scones. For a bit more formal evening dining, the Sugar Mill restaurant’s à la carte menu features

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Little Dix Bay

grilled meats and fish, ceviche, conch chowder and pastas.Young children are not permitted, so take care to drop them off first at the Rosebuds dinner and movie program.

During the day guests can order cocktails or light meals (chilled soups, salads, burgers and pizza) at the Beach Grill.

COMPLIMENTARY ACTIVITIES Sailing lessons, tennis clinics, hiking trails and snorkeling gear as well as Hobie Cats, Kayaks and paddleboards are readily available.

THE SPA Enjoy treatments accompanied by the sounds of songbirds and gentle waves crashing on the rocks below. Go early and stay after to enjoy the steam room, meditate or read by the infinity pool. The views are magnificent.

OTHER ACTIVITIES The staff can arrange private beach drops with picnic lunches and beach necessities to a number of nearby islands at a additional cost. Boat rentals and fishing charters are also available. With coral reefs surrounding the islands there are many underwater wreck sites to explore for scuba-diving expeditions right from the resort’s beach and dock.

WHAT NOT TO MISS… AND HELPFUL HINTS The Baths are enormous granite boulders strewn along the beach that form natural and dramatic tunnels and tidal pools. They are a huge tourist attraction, so if you

Beach drop and picnic

visit during major holidays engage a local guide to take you inside the park by car or boat late in the afternoon, just before the crowds leave. If time permits, stay to watch the sunset after the park closes. Bring a backpack with dry clothes, towel, snorkel gear, water/food, flashlight and outdoor water shoes suitable for climbing rocks so you can enjoy this astonishing geological wonder all by yourself.

Young pirate lovers will love a day-trip to Norman Island, said to be the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, “Treasure Island.”

GETTING THERE There are many daily flights into BVI’s Tortola’s International Airport, only a 30minute flight from San Juan, St. Martin and Antigua, or a 15-minute flight from St. Thomas. Little Dix Bay staff meet and transport you and your luggage to a large catamaran where you are checked in and served cocktails and cold drinks during the relaxing 15-minute sail.

HM Queen Elizabeth II and HRH Prince Philip at Little Dix Bay in 1966

Premium Ocean View Room (standard)

The main pool

The Children’s Center with over 2,500 sq. ft. of indoor space

LIFESTYLES | LUXURY TRAVEL

Spring Break Fever After a long, challenging winter, spring break could not have arrived any sooner for many vacationing snowbirds. This month, we put a microscope on several resorts offering family-friendly fun with sunny beaches, Segway tours, infinity pools, golf and other attractions.

BY JOHN ARUNDEL

AMELIA ISLAND PLANTATION RESORT 39 Beach Lagoon Road, Amelia Island, FL 32034, 904-261-6161 FAMILY FANTASY: Amelia Island Plantation

is a 1,385-acre resort that recently completed $85 million in upgrades and refurbishments, making it a fully loaded kiddie mecca: 20 swimming pools, a “Camp Amelia” kid’s club, Segway adventures, paddle boarding and a stocked fishing lake, all wedged between natural marshes and four miles of pristine white-sand beaches in harmony with nature.

NO BAD VIEWS: Omni’s recent purchase In addition to endless activities for kids, Amelia Island boasts 54 holes of golf at three Audubon International Certified Sanctuary courses.

OMNI HOMESTEAD RESORT 7696 Sam Snead Highway, Hot Springs, VA 24445, 540-839-1766 PRESIDENTIAL PLAYGROUND: Omni

GET PHYSICAL: The nine restaurants and

shopping village with 14 boutiques, Frenchstyle market and deli offer scant reason to leave the plantation. Burn off calories with bike and Segway tours offered by Amelia’s Wheels, or hit the greens. The resort boasts 54 holes of golf at three distinctly different Audubon International Certified Sanctuary courses. Tennis lovers have at their disposal 23 Har-Tru clay courts and Cliff Drysdaletrained tennis pros on staff. The fitness center has an indoor lap pool, two gyms and a daily schedule of Pilates, personal training and fitness classes.

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Hotels & Resorts took over in 2013 and is putting its mark on the “Resort of Presidents.” Located four hours south of Washington, the holiday hideaway has been justly famed since it opened in 1766 (22 presidents have golfed or taken in the waters there), but these days its trademark Southern hospitality is supplemented by much-needed upgrades to its 483 rooms, pool and spa.

Deluxe accommodations (including meals for four) range from $338-$399; junior suites range from $441-$502.

SOAK IN THE WATERS: Re-opened last year

since closing in 2010, the newly expanded Spa at The Homestead boasts some decadent new features, including an Aqua Thermal Suite and a year-round, adults-only Spa Garden where guests can dip into the natural hot springs or relax aching muscles in a naturally pressurized geothermal deluge shower. The river ref lexology walk offers a one-of-a-kind massage with smooth stones amid a small stream of natural spring water.

Also new are the poolside cabanas, a springfed pool and whirlpool, and Finnish-style sauna.

WORK IT OFF: While The Homestead of

yesterday still offers grits, bacon and biscuit gravy for breakfast and “cowboy steaks” for dinner, the newly rebuilt pool area set into the Allegheny Mountains is now complete with a lap pool, lazy river, water slide and

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AL L P H OTOS CO U RT E SY O F E AC H CO M PAN Y

and upgrades have made public areas more airy and sleek with a lobby offering sweeping panoramic vistas of the Atlantic Ocean. The sea views continue in all 408 guest rooms, suites and seaside villas (which are privately owned but can be booked).

Rooms range from $139 to $299 per night, depending on occupancy.

Items from hotelier Richard Kessler’s $40 million art and antiques collection decorate the Old World lobby of the Grand Bohemian Hotel .

fitness area. The championship golf course is also rated best in the state and among the top 50 in the U.S. New to the Homestead is a cardio/weight room and movement therapy rooms for yoga, cycling and other classes.

GRAND BOHEMIAN HOTEL 11 Boston Way, Asheville, NC 28803, 877-274-1242 CASTLE-LIKE: Located in picturesque

Asheville, N.C. with the lush Blue Ridge Mountains providing dramatic backdrop, the Kessler Collection’s Tudor-style property has received many accolades, including “Top U.S. Hotel” (Conde Nast Traveler) and “World’s Best Hotel” (Travel + Leisure). The 104room hotel sits at the entrance of the worldfamous Biltmore Estate, the massive European hunting lodge built at the turn of the century

by George Vanderbilt to resemble the grandest castles of Europe.

OLD WORLD STYLE: Inspired by hotel baron Richard Kessler’s European travels, the hotel features many items from his $40 million collection of fine European art and antiques. Rustic elements that evoke an Austrian hunting lodge mix with Asian

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Parents and kids alike have plenty of diversions at Omni Homestead Resprt, including a massive water slide.

columns from a palace in India and doors hand-carved in Bali. On colder days, a roaring fire in the lobby and Peppermint Schnapps greet guests, exuding hints of a romantic getaway in the faraway mountains of Kessler’s native Bavaria. Rates range from $224-$341.

MODERN SENSIBILITY: The hotel’s

beautifully landscaped garden terrace and 104 luxurious rooms and suites exude a bygone Southern atmosphere of graciousness.

Most rooms feature an antique carved desk,

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sumptuous bedding, claw-foot tub, carved bath vanity and stone flooring. Free Internet, MP3 connectivity and other modern amenities are reminders that the hotel was built in 2009. Guests enjoy a 24-hour fitness center and Poseidon Spa with an eclectic blend of traditional and Asheville-inspired spa services.

The Stag Bar & Grill offers European comfort food and a lively bar scene leading into the more formal dining room, where Chef Adam Hayes is known for integrating local ingredients and flavor into his dishes.

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LIFESTYLES | PERFECT PITCH

VIOLIN VIRTUOSO

BY PAT R I C K D. M C C OY

rammy Award-winning violinist Hilary Hahn, 34, talks about her new album, ‘The Hilary Hahn Encores,’ her musical influences and an upcoming recital at The Music Center at Strathmore.

WASHINGTON LIFE: Your new album is among your most ambitious. What was the impetus behind this recording?

HILARY HAHN I was curious what composers would do today with the idea of an encore. Over time [the encore] developed into a separate piece that reflected something about the program or just concluded the evening in a nice way. I wondered what people would do knowing that entire history, having all these decades of musical development since the most popular encores of the “old guard” were written. I wanted to ask several people to participate rather than commission one person to write an encore. I started listening to a bunch of new music to figure out who I wanted to ask and became excited about what I was hearing. I really like what I have at the moment.

WL: You will be performing the music of Mozart, Schubert and Schoenburg at Strathmore. How do you go about putting together a recital program? Why these composers in particular?

HH I usually start with a couple of pieces that my pianist and I want to work on together.

Then we think about others that may tie in and a program sort of develops out of that.

It’s really hard to say that there is a particular format to it. In this case we got interested in Schoenberg’s “Fantasie” because we had not played anything by him together. In working on all the encores by the contemporary composers, we noticed little things that they would quote from other composers without realizing it. It was just a matter of drawing things together from different directions so that there is a lot to listen to in the program, without becoming random.

WL: Many people suggest that the violin is as close to the human voice as one can get. What

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“voice” do you aim to present to your audiences when you perform?

HH I was always told to imitate the voice, listen to singers and try to be expressive like that. Toward the end of my studies, a singer I knew told me they are always told to copy violinists — so there is definitely a relationship there. When you sing, you can’t look in the mirror and see if your vocal cords are vibrating correctly. With the violin, Hilary Hahn (Photo by Michael Patrick O’Leary) you can see if your bow is straight and whether it looks right. As a violinist, you get to HH David Zinman was a mentor to me; he a point where your technique is innate and as internalized as it is for a singer. I think there is a would listen to me play the pieces that I was very direct connection between your body and working on. That started when I was 10. In the course of those sessions, I learned a lot about your instrument. To me, that is what enables a playing with an orchestra. I started working violin to sing. with Lorin Maazel when I was 15. He introduced me to my European audience through an WL: Though you were born in Lexington, Va., informal exclusive agreement with the Bavarian your musical bedrock is Baltimore. What was Radio Symphony Orchestra. It was hard for me it like to debut with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra in the very town where you trained? to take off for random weeks during school, but I would go with them on tour. I feel that it HH My parents subscribed to the Baltimore was important for my career to be able to play Symphony Orchestra when I was 4 or 5 years in these sold-out halls. I got to float in on top of old and they kept their subscription all the all of that. I worked very hard and learned a lot time I lived in Baltimore. When I first played in the course of it. with the orchestra, it was really neat to look around on stage and see all these people WL: What composer’s music best reflects your whom I had been watching from the audience personality? all that time. I actually knew the orchestra much better than I realized. When I look back I HH Different pieces mean different things at think what an unusual situation that was. David different times, so it’s hard to know what you truly identify with. There are a lot of ways to Zinman was the music director at the time, so experience how a composer writes for violin. I the way he conducted was my idea of how it should be done. It was interesting to work with like the idea of not knowing exactly who is your favorite. It’s a nice place to be. him for the first time in concert.

WL: You have often cited Zinman and conductor Lorin Maazel as two of your influences. What aspect of each has carried you throughout your career?

The Washington Performing Arts Society presents violinist Hilary Hahn with pianist Cory Smythe, April 23, 8 p.m. at The Music Center at Strathmore.

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WASHINGTON S O C I A L D I A R Y THEARC’s Wacky & Whimsical Tea Party﹐ St﹒ Jude’s Gourmet Gala﹐ Around Town and more!

Rep. Donna Edwards and Mary Lehman at the Crystal Heart Awards Gala (Photo by Tony Powell)

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AROUND TOWN

Palm Beach Splendor Diamonds and diplomats on parade at the International Red Cross Ball in Palm Beach

BY DONNA SHOR

LIVING IT UP FOR A CAUSE The International Red Cross Ball in Palm Beach, Fla. always opens with traditional pageantry, and this year, its 57th, was no exception. The traditional medals-white-tie-and-tiara dress code has relaxed into near non-existence but there still are trumpet flourishes, and the ambassadors flown down from Washington greet ball-goers in a formal receiving line, each standing by his country’s flag.

In the dining room the colors are trooped, and there is a red carpet processional as diplomats and ball dignitaries are formally announced and escorted to their tables by spitand-polish Marines. The few speeches are short, meaningful and to the point. Everyone knows the evening will help fund the many humanitarian works of the Red Cross.

Formalities finished, the fun begins, and why not? This ball is considered the highlight event of the crowded Palm Beach “social season.” Décor at the Breakers became a glamorous gold and Red Crossred background for the designer-clad crowd.

The caviar-embellished salad, lobster and filet mignon dinner was crowned by a jolly parade of waiters bearing sparkler-trimmed Baked Alaskas — ocean liner banquet style — and Peter Duchin’s orchestra’s music was danceable as always; (even though illness kept the maestro himself away.)

The ambassadors honored were Gyorgy Szapary of Hungary; Rudolf Bekink of

Mandy and Mary Ourisman

Kathryn and Leo Vecellio with Red Cross Chairman Bonnie McElveen-Hunter

the Netherlands, accompanied by his wife Gabrielle; Italy’s Claudio Bisogniero and his wife Laura Denise; and Archil Gegeshidze of Georgia with Dea Gadua.

Washington was well represented among the dignitaries, with American Red Cross Chairman Bonnie McElveen-Hunter, sliverslim in red with a magnificent brooch at her hip; Mary Ourisman (the Ambassador Chairman); Mary Mochary (Honorary Chairman); and handsomely tanned Stuart Bernstein as chief of protocol.

This year’s ball chairman was Kathryn Vecellio, notable in many ways. Here are two: first, she and her husband, construction magnate Leo Vecellio, actually live in Palm Beach, unusual in this colony that swells each winter but shrinks

Gabrielle Bekink and Nethlerlands Amb. Rudolf Bekink

in summer. More importantly, she has an amazing record of charitable works to her credit, having spearheaded more than 40 organizations, even raising $2.5 million in one night a few years ago.

Among Washingtonians attending this year were Aniko and Nash Schott. Bill and Sandy Brock, Howard and Rhonda Wilkins, Mandy Ourisman, Bob and Ellen Bennett, Wilma Bernstein, Carol Schwartz, Mike and Julia Connors, Carl Colby, Grace Bender, Dr. Ahmad and Judy Esfandiary, Maggie Shannon, Nancy Brinker, Annie Totah, Dr. Mary Frances Smoak and Bill Walde and v Dr. Paul Stern.

VIEW ALL THE PHOTOS AT WWW WASHINGTONLIFE COM

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Tea Party Chairwomen Elizabeth Engel, Jill White, Sonja DeCarlo and Leah Frelinghuysen Gabriella Robayo, Dr. Marcee White, THEARC President Edmund Fleet and Jayden White with Rielle, R.J. and Rahsaan Bernard WL SPONSORED

THEARC WACKY & WHIMSICAL TEA PARTY Ritz-Carlton | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL FUN FOR ALL: Now in its fi8h year, THEARC’S popular, familyfriendly tea helped raise funds to provide free and heavily subsidized THEARC services and classes for all local children, regardless of their family’s financial situation. This year’s carnival-like festivities captivated young and old alike with games, ribbon dances, performances by Washington Ballet@THEARC students and magicians.

Olivia Morgan and Mistress of Ceremonies Eun Yang

Anne Ashmore Hudson and Kay Kendall

VIEW ALL THE PHOTOS AT WWW WASHINGTONLIFE COM

Lucas, Paxton and Chloe Baker

Elizabeth Miller, Brenda Jacobsen and Sloane Menkes Kim and Sofia Shur

Camron Shehabi with Nicole Boxer and Sawyer Keegan

Lucy and Sarah Stettinius

Natalia Schady with Britlan and Canon Malek

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Henry Marriott and Vivian Plouffe

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Dancers from the Washington Ballet at THEARC

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OVER THE MOON

A Legendary Legacy Middleburg’s famed Foxcroft School celebrates its centenary and honors the memory of legendary founder ‘Miss Charlotte’ Noland

BY VICKY MOON

S

he was known simply as “Miss Charlotte” and in 1914 at age 32, Charlotte Haxall Noland founded Foxcroft School in Middleburg, which this year celebrates its centennial.

Miss Charlotte borrowed money to acquire the land just outside of Middleburg. The main “Brick House” is the first brick mansion erected in Loudoun County (built in 1723). The now 500-acre campus has 35 buildings (including a 60-stall stable with indoor arena), swimming pool and eight tennis courts.

An avid and admired equestrienne, Miss Charlotte, who was head of school until 1955 and then president of the board until 1961, wanted to create a place that “girls would want to come to and hate to leave because they loved it.”That has indeed been the case, for the all-girls boarding school can now boast a century of devoted and distinguished alumnae. She retired to Winter Park, Florida in 1961 and died in 1969.

One alumna who attended under Miss Charlotte’s tutelage was Rachel “Bunny” Lambert Mellon ‘29 of Upperville, who died recently at age 103. Bunny and her late husband, Paul Mellon, donated for construction of the library in 1969 named in honor of his niece Audrey Bruce Currier ’52 who died in an airplane crash in the Bermuda Triangle in 1967. Bunny designed the library courtyard and commissioned the iconic Fox and Hound sculptures by J. Clayton Bright.

As part of Foxcroft’s Centennial Celebration, the National Sporting Library & Museum in Middleburg has mounted an exhibition “Foxcroft School: The Art of Women and the Sporting Life.” There are 30 paintings and sculptures on view through August 24 on loan from alumnae and their relatives. The exhibit offers a picture of the collecting interests of these remarkable women and their role in 20th century sporting life and art.

This July, Mary Louise Leipheimer will retire as head of Foxcroft School after 25 successful

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For the Washington Performing Arts “Music in the Country” fete, hostess Danielle Bradley’s lapis blue Oscar de la Renta dress complemented the dinner tables in the orangery at “Locksley.” (Photo by Vicky Moon)

One of six children, “Miss Charlo e” Noland, founder of Foxcro School, grew up in Middleburg but never a ended college, saying she was only qualified to teach riding and the Bible. (Courtesy of Foxcro School)

years. (She began with a $2 million deficit and no endowment and leaves a $31 million endowment.) Future Foxcroft girls will welcome Catherine Smylie McGehee, who follows in mighty fine footsteps.

Over in Millwood, Danielle and Ron Bradley hosted the Washington Performing Arts Society’s “Music in the Country Afternoon Concert” at their stately home, “Locksley,” which honored Jacqueline Badger Mars. The late afternoon gathering featured breathtaking performances in the ballroom by tenor Mario Chang, soprano María José Morales and pianist Nimrod David Pfeffer, with compositions by Chopin and Puccini.

Supporters and attendees included: Mia and Donald Glickman, Katherine and Tom Anderson, Richard Strother and Tania Pouschine, Cathy and Stephen Graham, Lena and Lennart Lundh, Jean Perin, Trevor Potter, Dana Westring, Mary B. Schwab, Michael and Nadia Stanfield and Elizabeth and William Wolf.

Meanwhile, Maria Tousimis and George Grayson took off for a long weekend in England as guests of Franny and Walter Kansteiner.They

attended the Cheltenham races as guests of Anne and Sean Clancy, whose horse, Valdez, finished fifth in The Racing Post Arkle Challenge Trophy Chase.

No sooner did Maria and George return and they were off to the American Medical Women’s Association Gala at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. Maria’s sister, Dr. Eleni Tousimis, is director of the Ourisman Breast Center at the Lombardi Cancer Center, chief of breast surgery at Georgetown University Hospital and president of the association.The evening event honored Arianna Huffington and celebrated the publication of her new book “THRIVE: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being.”

Finally, consider Liberty Hill Farm, the mountain-top retreat being offered at $1.9 million by Sheridan-MacMahon Ltd. in Middleburg. The new owner will have breathtaking 60-mile panoramic views of the Shenandoah Valley. The circa 1787 house has three bedrooms, random width pine floors, a guest cottage, barn, remnants of formal gardens, an old cemetery and spring fed-pond on 215 acres.

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Maziar Farivar and Shahab Farivar Ray and Kathy LaHood

Sanju Bansal, Charlotte Pineda Herrera and Richard Shadyac

Sarah-Marshall Thompson and Ben Thompson Aureta Thomollari, Tom Liljenquist and Erin Kilday

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John Cecchi, Micky Farivar and Kristin Rae Cecchi

ST. JUDE’S GOURMET GALA National Building Museum | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL GALLOPING GOURMETS: Gala chairmen Sanju Bansal and Charlotte Pineda, along with restaurant chairman Maziar Farivar of Peacock Café chose a Mardi Gras theme for this year’s fête, drawing more than 40 top Washington chefs to help raise critical funds for St. Jude’s, which never charges families to treat critically ill children. The delectable dishes and silent auction raised more than $550,000 for the hospital with The Source’s Sco Drewno winning the coveted Taster’s Choice award for his lobster toast.

Nicole Chedid and Lebanese Amb. Antoine Chedid

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Mandy Holcomb, Quin Woodward Pu

Annie and Mike Magruder

Courtney Jane Rosellini and Mary Hoernig

Current patient Alexis Pond

Karina Mallona, Dr. Matt Gavin and Holidae Hayes

Jeremiah Langhorn, R.J. Cooper and Bryan Tetorakis

Reina Jabbour and Sherif Abdalla

Susanna and Jack Quinn WA S H I N G T O N L I F E

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CHARITY SPOTLIGHTS

CELEBRATING YEARS OF N STREET VILLAGE — BY MELISSA MAXFIELD

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orty years ago in Washington, D.C., just as a new wave of poverty and affliction hit our city’s streets, and after the riots that followed Dr. King’s assassination, Melissa Maxfield a group of interfaith seekers came together at Luther Place Memorial Church to open their doors to those in need.

The beginnings of N Street Village were simple and humble; they invited a few who were homeless to sleep in the back of the sanctuary, and they baked potatoes for those who were hungry. This group decided they could no longer walk past the devastation they saw on their city’s streets. In opening their doors, they made a promise to their neighbors in need: “We will be there for you.”

From that simple moment and that response of compassion, N Street Village was born.

Every day since then — 24 hours a day, 365

days a year — the doors of N Street Village have remained open for thousands of women.

Whatever struggles a woman has when she arrives at the Village — whether it be homelessness, mental illness, addiction, violence and abuse, health problems, unemployment, or some combination thereof — she will find a community of hospitality, healing and hope.

When I was first introduced to N Street Village by my good friend Linda Daschle over 12 years ago, I was immediately impressed with its comprehensive services — transitional shelter, permanent supportive housing, a day center, crisis care service, employment support, and a health and wellness center.

With N Street Village’s long history of successfully addressing the needs of our city’s most vulnerable women, it was an easy decision for Comcast Corporation to begin a partnership with the Village nearly a decade ago.

Comcast and NBCUniversal give back to the communities they serve by empowering

their local partners to improve neighborhoods and create opportunities that change lives for the better. Since then, Comcast and NBCUniversal have been a steadfast supporter and sponsor of the N Street Village Annual Gala. I have been honored to serve as the gala co-chairman and proud to see the event grow each year.

N Street Village has transformed many lives, but there are still many challenges that lie ahead.

Our city continues to face a shortage of affordable housing. More women than ever come to N Street Village seeking help and a new beginning.

That’s why Comcast and NBCUniversal and I are committed to keeping our promise — to be there for the next woman who comes to N Street Village for the very first time.

We hope that you will join us.

Melissa Maxfield is the senior vice president of Federal Government Affairs for Comcast Corporation and is N Street Village’s 40th Anniversary Gala cochairman. Learn more at www.nstreetvillage.org.

MS WOMEN ON THE MOVE LUNCHEON - BY CARRIE MARRIOTT

Amy Knight (L) and Carrie Marriott (R) with actress Terri Garr at the first MS Women on the Move Luncheon (photo courtesy of MS Society)

W

e can prescribe steroids.” That was the neurologist’s response when my mother, Cindy, was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) over thirty years ago. I had just turned seven years old. No other medications were available to treat this chronic, often disabling disease that attacks the central nervous system causing numbness of the limbs, loss of mobility and vision, and paralysis. Two thirds of those diagnosed with MS are women. A decade would pass before drugs that could benefit my mom would become available. By then, mom was spending the majority of her time in a wheelchair and experiencing more negative side effects from the drugs than benefits.

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My mom was a gifted pianist, made beautiful needlepoints and crocheted baby blankets. She enjoyed riding bikes with me when I was small and had a successful career in banking. MS robbed her of those talents, yet she has persevered and maintained her sense of humor despite the very rough patches encountered over the years.

Our family’s experience of living with Multiple Sclerosis brought me to the National Capital Chapter of the MS Society over a decade ago. It was then that I was introduced to Amy Knight, when the two of us were asked to chair the first MS Women on the Move Luncheon in Washington, raising funds for medical research and support the needs of people living with MS in the area. We met in Amy’s living room as a committee of two, launching the luncheon with the help of dedicated MS Society staff.

Amy’s MS diagnosis came in 1994—a decade after my mom’s. “When I was diagnosed with primary progressive MS, there was no recommended medicine for me. It was a waitand-see approach,” Amy remembered. “Then a new guideline issued by the National MS Society encouraged people with the disease to start medication immediately after their diagnosis.”The

recent development of newer MS medications has stopped Amy’s progression. There are no new lesions on her brain, and the fatigue blackouts she experienced are a thing of the past. “I can stand for much longer periods of time. I can pick up an earring when I’ve dropped it. And I can get on the floor and kiss my dog.Walking again, though limited, is back in my life.”

This year’s luncheon marks our 10th anniversary. Over the last decade, we have raised almost $2 million dollars and hosted over 5000 women. Amy and I are again serving as chairwomen and are delighted that Ann Romney, wife of presidential candidate, Mitt Romney and New York Times best-selling author, will be joining us. Ann has been living with MS since 1998. She will be interviewed by our dear friend, Norah O’Donnell, cohost of “CBS This Morning.” The luncheon will be held on Wednesday, April 30th at the Washington Marriott Wardman Park hotel.

For more information about sponsoring or attending the MS Women on the Move Luncheon, please go to: www.WomenOnThe MoveDC.org or call 202-375-5637.

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CATHOLIC CHARITIES — BY SCOTT AND PATRICE BRICKMAN

Patrice and Scott Brickman (photo courtesy of Catholic Charities)

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t’s hard to say no to a priest. Especially Msgr.

John Enzler, the nonstop, energetic head of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington. So, when he approached us about chairing their gala, an event with more than 1,000 guests, we could only say yes. Knowing how much good Catholic Charities does for all the families in our community who are facing some form of poverty or isolation, it was an easy decision for us to get on board.

It’s often said among supporters that

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington is the best-kept secret in D.C. One of the largest social service nonprofits working in the Washingtonmetropolitan region, Catholic Charities reached more than 116,000 men, women and children last year through more than 65 programs. The services included intensive, ongoing mental health services, a wide range of shelter and housing programs, care for children and infants, lifelong services to those with a developmental disability, medical and dental clinics for the uninsured and much, much more.

But its bona fides run deeper than its size.

For instance, Catholic Charities’ Behavioral Health Program provides mental health care to some of the District’s poorest residents — and is among the highest-rated providers.

They forge relationships with clients who otherwise are often incredibly alone. During this bitter cold winter, we found comfort knowing Catholic Charities staff reported for

work even as the rest of us may have had a day off — the shelters, after all, are a critical part of the safety net. And across all of the programs, including the many that provide affordable or free food, they provide more than 5.5 million meals each year. But for us, the biggest reason to get involved is simple: Catholic Charities programs change lives.

Volunteerism has been a core tenant for both of us. We were raised with the understanding that community means taking an active role in helping. As proud parents to four beautiful children, we continue that commitment. And we know many in this prosperous region of ours do the same, giving their time, treasure and talents to many worthy organizations.

As the chairmen of the 2014 Catholic Charities Gala (April 12, Marriot Wardman Park Hotel, tickets and sponsorships CatholicCharitiesDC.org/Gala), we invite you to join us and see what has inspired such passion and commitment from us to Catholic Charities.

ART AND CULTURE TO EDUCATE CHILDREN — BY ANNIE S TOTAH

Her Imperial Majesty Empress Farah Pahlavi and Annie S. Totah (photo by Tony Powell)

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nnovative education programming can make all the difference in preparing children to become the next generation of responsible citizens. I am drawn to the National Museum of Women in the Arts not only because it is the sole museum in the world focused on supporting the creative contributions of women but also for its innovative education programming.

One of the museum’s signature programs is Art, Books, and Creativity, an initiative based on the fundamental belief that discussing and creating art engages students and supports the development of their visual and verbal

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literacy, critical thinking skills and creative problem-solving strategies. This exciting new program benefits fourth- and fifth-graders in the District’s public schools. To date, over 35,000 students have benefited from the ABC curriculum’s innovative lessons. The women’s museum has long maximized the museum’s impact on student learning by supporting teachers, particularly through its annual Teacher Institutes. By serving as a valuable resource for teachers, the museum catalyzes student learning in and through the arts.

The museum also reached some tremendous goals during its 25th-anniversary year ending last June. Exhibitions, including “Women Who Rock,” were popular with the public and brought large numbers of young people to the museum for their first visit. Under the outstanding leadership of endowment chairmen Carol and Climis Lascaris, the museum successfully completed its campaign to double its endowment to $50 million. This endowment provides the foundational funding to secure the quality and continuity of the

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museum and its programs for generations.

On Friday, April 25, the museum will celebrate its Annual Spring Gala, “Nine Thousand and Nine Hundred Nights … A Special Night to Salute You! Our Patrons, Our Members and Our Friends.” I am honored to serve as this year’s gala chairman under the honorary patronage of Her Imperial Majesty Empress Farah Pahlavi. This black-tie gala is the museum’s largest annual fundraising event, which will be attended by 400 or so guests from Washington’s diplomatic, governmental and social communities.

This year’s event, with a Mediterranean theme, includes cocktails in the galleries and a silent auction followed by dinner, dancing and entertainment. Most importantly, the gala’s proceeds support the museum’s exhibitions and educational programming, including the museum’s ABC initiative.

To learn more about NMWA’s Annual Spring Gala, go to www.nmwa.org, call 202-266-2815, or email main@nmwa.org.

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Adria Wright, Janessa Robinson and Edna Jones Thomas Motley

Gary Ford

WL EXCLUSIVE

SCREENING OF ‘JUSTICE IS A BLACK WOMAN: THE LIFE AND WORK OF CONSTANCE BAKER MOTLEY’ Bernetta Hayes and Elaine Jones

Lynn Cowan, Norma Barfield and Lauren Adkins

Carmen and Kent Amos

Amos 3 Public Charter School | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL FORGOTTEN HISTORY: On the eve of Martin Luther King Jr. Day more than 300 locals and a few Connecticut and New York guests gathered on a Saturday a8ernoon to screen an award-winning documentary about the life of civil rights heroine Judge Constance Baker Motley. Her career included nine Supreme Court wins and many “firsts” for an African American woman, such as first to be accepted at Columbia University Law School, first to be elected to the New York State Senate and first to serve as a federal judge. Guests enjoyed a personal tour of the Amos 3 school and a post-screening Q&A with producer Gary Ford, who has received more than a dozen requests to show the film across the country since the screening.

Margaret DeLorme and Sheryl Washington

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Susan Butler, Bill Tompkins and Leonade Jones with Sabrina and Jimmy McMillion

Robert and Marianne Smythe with Undine and Carl Nash Lisa Grill and Fay Arrington WL EXCLUSIVE

STUDIO THEATRE GALA

Karen and Tony Kamerick with John Bowhers

Studio Theatre | PHOTOS BY ALFREDO FLORES COME TO YOUR SENSES: For its largest fundraising event of the season, Studio Theatre goes all out to give guests a memorable evening, themed around a current production. In honor of “Tribes,” which follows a young deaf man determined to speak to his family on his own terms, the décor aimed to stimulate the senses through a combination of taste, music, rhythm and texture. Portions of the $250,000 raised will help expand the theater’s accessibility initiatives, including scheduled sign-interpreted, open-captioned and audio-described performances.

Jane and Mate Fishkin

Anne Kahoe and Chris Mills

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Craig Moe

John Spearman and Jennifer Holliday

Fred Smalls and Delegate Barbara Frush

Drs. Travis and Nicole Jasper

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CRYSTAL HEART AWARDS GALA Marriott Inn and Conference Center, Hyattsville, Md. | PHOTOS BY TONY POWELL HAVE A HEART: Supporters of the Women’s Health & Wellness Program at Laurel Regional Hospital a/ended this black-tie gala, which included a performance by Grammy Award-winning artist Jennifer Holliday. Hosted by “Amazing Race” contenders and stars of Discovery Channel’s “Untold Stories of the E.R.,” Drs. Travis and Nicole Jasper, the event raised funds for a new women’s health care facility. Guests ended the night by dancing to the sounds of local Johnnie Steele and his band.

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Dr. Rhamin Ligon and Louisette Vega

Lisa Hardesty and Evan Meyers with Barbara and Larry Bormel

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Annie Totah, Don Patron and Lizette Corro Calvin and Jane Cafritz with JoAnn Mason and John Mason WL EXCLUSIVE

Arturo and Hilda Brillembourg

ART BASEL MIAMI LAUNCH RECEPTION

Maria de la Cruz and Isabela Ernst

Residence of Arturo and Hilda Brillembourg, Miami, Fla

Anika Gaal Schott

PHOTOS BY BEN DROZ

Augustina Casas, Edgar Batista, Alix DionotMorani, Fernando Batista, and Emma Whitaker

CREATIVE CAPITAL: The District’s artistically inclined flocked to the Brillembourg’s South Beach apartment overlooking Miami Bay for an intimate kickoff to Art Basel. Among the collectors and artists was Dani Levinas, whose Institute of Contemporary Expression or ICE just won D.C.’s approval to convert historic Franklin School into a space for art.

Meryl Chertoff and Emily Chertoff VIEW ALL THE PHOTOS AT WWW WASHINGTONLIFE COM

Mera and Don Rubell

Joan and David Genser WL EXCLUSIVE

Geneva Philips and Daniella Rose

ART BASEL MIAMI RUBELL BRUNCH Michelle Rubell, Nancy Magoon and Allison Kanders

Rubell Family Collection, MIAMI, FLA PHOTOS BY BEN DROZ

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: The first official day of Art Basel Miami had the art crowd piling in to see one of the most respected international contemporary art collections at the festival. Jennifer Rubell even laid out a special brunch of soufflés on a massive table, which was also part of an art installation

Mari and Peter Shaw

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Holly Bass

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Andrew and Tiffany Speyer

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ONE-ON-ONE

American Dreamers INTERVIEW BY ANNE KIM-DANNIBALE

M

ade in the U.S.A.” is one of The Phillips Collection’s most ambitious exhibits to date with more than 200 works by 125 American artists working from 1850 to 1970.

In all, the artworks from museum founder Duncan Phillips’ private collection demonstrate the depth and breadth of American art. Art appraiser and museum board member Linda Lichtenberg Kaplan sat down with Washington Life to reflect on this seminal exhibit and her decadeslong experience as an appraiser and collector.

WASHINGTON LIFE Did you discover anything surprising during the making of ‘Made in the U.S.A.’?

LINDA LICHTENBERG KAPLAN Some of

the work on view has never seen the light of day and that’s always a pleasant surprise. I was just thrilled that finally some attention was being paid to American art.

WL: You have a small but important collection of American artists from between the two world wars which is covered in this broader exhibit. Why have you chosen to focus your collection on that brief period?

LLK: I’ve worked for 50 years in the art

world and I was always buying something.

When we moved in the mid-’80s a friend of mine said why don’t you buy fewer and better things? That made complete sense to me. I got rid of everything and began to think about this period. In my early days at the Corcoran I was asked — at 23 years old — to help edit a catalog called “A New Tradition, American Art Between the Two World Wars.” Where I went to college there was no course on American art and I

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Linda Lichtenberg Kaplan (Photo by Tony Brown)

became fascinated by all these people and their work. I borrowed $100 from my father — who thought I was nuts — to buy one little Joseph Stiller drawing. What interested me about this group of artists was that they were working at the same time, but communication wasn’t so easy and nobody really knew what anyone was doing. It’s intrigued me all these years.

WL: Why is the period in which you collect important?

LLK: It’s a time period that’s not so fashion-

able any more. I think these big-time collectors who have so much money to spend want to buy big names of contemporary artists and then all the other hedge fund people buy those names.

What drew me to the period was that it was a part of history. Why it hasn’t been so popular is an enigma. One reason is that many of the great collectors of this period have either given their work to museums or passed it down in the family, so there isn’t much available. When something is available that is of quality it goes for a very high price.

WL: You haven’t purchased anything new in five years. Why? LLK: I’m more interested in thinking about

what’s going to happen to all of this rather than amassing more. Dealers ask me all the time if I want to sell because the American art market of this period just is not there as much as it used to be. It could happen that that will change. There have been a couple of major collectors of this work, which was very popular 20 to 25 years ago, which might sell and then you’ll see more activity. That could put American art again in the mainstream, but more in the period of this exhibition, 1850-1970, rather than my little collection.

WL: But the 1850-1970 period is so prolific and diverse for American art.

LLK: Which is why the Phillips did this

show. You’re going to see more American shows popping up, maybe not of this magnitude. American artists have become popular in Europe because of this show. It’s been traveling for three years, so something may be happening now. This is a big period and I think for this particular show there are some real stars.

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WL: Who are some of those stars? What about in the art world today?

LLK: There is an early Jackson Pollock in

this show. People think of him as something very different. But Pollock and Adolph Gottleib and Rothko were doing things that were very different than what they were known for in the 1940s. I believe in collecting what isn’t popular because of the sense of discovery that is fascinating. It’s an endless treasure going through all of this.

[This year’s Armory Show in New York] was just full of American and contemporary art, people like Whitfield Lovell, a young black artist who does very political and very difficult work, whom many don’t know. I think he’s major. His partner Fred Wilson is a conceptual artist and much better known as a trustee of the Whitney. There are a lot of solid things happening right aside from all this crazy other stuff that’s being bought.

Nobody knows quite what it is.

WL: There seems to be a parallel between these contemporary art shows in New York and the Phillips’ show, creating a zeitgeist of sorts.

LLK: It really is and it’s history repeating

itself. The artists in this exhibit were once young contemporary artists. Now they’re ancient and they’re dead. But they are the predecessors of what you’re seeing now.

WL: Do you have a personal favorite in this show or in your own collection?

LLK: In my personal collection, I have two.

One is a Jacob Lawrence from 1946, which is a promised gift to this museum, and an Elie Nadleman sculpture from 1919. It’s a wooden piece of a dancer and it’s absolutely sublime. It evokes folk art and it’s made in one piece with a patinated face. It’s a mess because it’s almost 100 years old. I also love my Thomas Hart Benton from 1938 of a man and a woman in a rowboat. He’s all in black and she’s in white and there’s a very ominous sky and a bridge. They are in the moonlight and you don’t know if he’s going to kill her or make love to her. We look at it every day and say, what do you think today?

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Willem de Kooning, Asheville, 1948. Oil and enamel on cardboard, 25 9/16x31 7/8in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1952 ©2014 The Willem de Kooning Foundation/Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

WL: As a collector, what advice do you have for younger art lovers?

LLK: The most important thing is to

Edward Hopper, Sunday, 1926. Oil on canvas, 29x34in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1926.

collect what you love because you’re going to look at it all the time. I’m very keen on collecting in a very focused way because it makes life easier. Maybe you’ll hone in on some period or group where you can start with lesser works. Photographs are a very good way to collect. A lot of them are not editioned. There could be five million but if you love the image, so what? Go to group exhibitions of young artists. Find the best dealers to collect from. Prints and lithographs are also a great way to collect. The cost can be astronomical, but there are a lot of dealers who sell prints that are really very nice and not very expensive. Some of them are not only by young artists but older ones who have been dedicated to the art of printmaking, which costs less. Remember that Rembrandt made prints. Just be sure you like it best.

“Made in the U.S.A.” is on view through August 31, 2014 at The Phillips Collection, 1600 21st St. NW, phillipscollection.org.

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Thomas Eakins, Miss Amelia Van Buren, c.1891. Oil on canvas, 45x32in. The Phillips Collection, Washington, D.C. Acquired 1927.

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HOME LIFE Real Estate News and Open House | To come Real Estate News and Open House I Inside Homes and My Washington

%PZEVS %RE 1EVME 6SGLI存W (IWMKR JSV 0MZMRK A fashion entrepreneur and banking executive create an eclectic modern home for their busy Georgetown family.

BY ANNE KIM-DANNIBALE PHOTOS BY TONY BROWN

HOME LIFE | INSIDE HOMES

n Alvaro and Ana Maria Roche’s art-filled 1859 Georgetown residence, children have free reign to mix it up with designer bigwigs like Castiglioni, Corbusier, Eames and Saarinen. If that means bouncing from one end of the B&B sectional all the way to the other or spilling juice on the rug during a board game, well, such is modern life — and a far cry from the hushed formal rooms that were off-limits from the Roches’ own childhoods.

“It’s a modern way of living in the sense that kids are a part of everything,” Alvaro says. “They have a beautiful playroom but most of the time they are down here. This [living] room gets used a lot.”

That suits the Roches just fine. Alvaro is the founder of Aroche, an online fashion accessories line, while Ana Maria is an executive at an international development bank — occupations that keep the Venezuelan couple quite busy. When they come home, they spend as much time as possible with their young children, Sofia Cristina and Sebastian. In keeping with their no-TV policy (with the exception of one relegated to the basement), that leaves board games, books and simple one-on-one time in the dining and living rooms before bed.

“The house is a really important meeting point,” Alvaro says. “It needs to be a shared space with the family, otherwise when would you see your kids? If there was a TV upstairs, they’d never come downstairs.”

Walking into the grand parlor, you’d never guess the residence doubles as a playground for children. The Parisborn, Europe-raised Alvaro, whose design background include studying at Bennington and Parsons and working with legendary designers Gianfranco Ferré and

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PREVIOUS PAGE, FROM TOP LEFT: An Alessi picture shelf is a playful display for family photos.

An oval marble-topped Eero Saarinen tulip table takes center stage in the dining room with Hans Wegner “Wishbone” chairs and a Castiglioni light fixture. In the corner, an antique wardrobe from Paris’ Marché aux Puces de Saint-Ouen de Clignancout hides games and books. Of the many artworks hangs a print of the “Gates” by Cristo; The new kitchen strikes a 21st-century contrast with Bertoia counter stools and fuschia lighting.

One corner of the dining room is reserved for the children, who read under a photograph of the Capitol by German photographer Thomas Kellner and another by Chinese artist Liu Bolin; In the living room, an Andries e Hiroko Van Onck for Magis side table creates a meditative corner with a sculpture by Agustin Cardenas and a William Wegman photo.

THIS PAGE, TOP: The living room features a who’s who of modern design: Arne Jacobsen egg chair, Corbusier black pony hair chair, Castiglioni floor lamp, Eero Saarinen stool, Alex Taylor Butterfly coffee table and a B&B sectional. Venezuelan painter Onofre Frias’ multilayered paintings add color to crisp white walls; The children’s playroom on the second floor; At the entry, a 1960s Victor Millán painting and Gio Ponti Superleggera side chairs.

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Matteo Thun, doesn’t hold back his aesthetic. Milanese industrial design cohabitates with the classic 19th-century architecture, ornate gilded mirrors that came with the residence and the Roche’s few antique furnishings. A renovation added a kitchen on the main floor as well as bathrooms and a massive closet in the master suite, and a remodeled basement. On the walls, Wegman photographs (an ode to the family’s beloved Weimaraner) and paintings

by Liu Bolin and Venezuelan Naïf painter Victor Millán enhance the dwelling’s charm and speak to the couple’s well-traveled backgrounds.

It’s a nod to the classics with an eye on the future that fits in with Alvaro’s business model as well. Aroche, he says, is targeted to “super active” women like his wife, who want to dress for success but are no slaves to fashion in the face of life’s realities. Nowhere is that more evident than in the hustle and bustle of Georgetown and Washington’s 24-hour clock. Remarkably, it wasn’t the vitality of the District that drew them here, it was a perfect spring day.

“I was walking around Georgetown,” he remembers.

“We were moving to Miami and I had offices and an apartment, and I told my wife ‘this is really nice,’ I could live here.”

Three weeks later Ana Maria had a job offer and they moved. “I love D.C.,” he says. “I always tell people I don’t know where I would live if not D.C.” Eighteen years, two kids and two homes later, the Roches have carved out a charming haven, a sun-filled domicile that dazzles with art and giants of modern design, but isn’t afraid to settle in for a game of Scrabble.

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HOME LIFE | OPEN HOUSE

Spring Offerings Unique, high-end properties on the market

MONTROSS

ALBATROSS LANE MONTROSS} VA

ASKING PRICE $1,825,000

This 6,800-square-foot custom-brick LISTING AGENT: waterfront property sits on a 4.3 acre Diana peninsula lot off of the Lower Potomac River Minshall, 240401-7474; Coldin Virginiasâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Northern Neck, known for its well Banker spectacular wildlife. The home has four large Residential master bedroom suites, a full spa, six and a Brokerage half bathrooms, a game room and a two car garage. It also features extensive custom stone and woodwork throughout, seven gas fireplaces, and a spectacular great room on the second level which includes a full wet bar, spiral staircase, spacious covered and outside decks and unparalleled views of the Potomac River; all protected by an undevelopable barrier island. It includes a fully protected deep-water dockage for two large boats and over 1300 feet of private waterfront.

This one-of-a-kind property comes fully furnished and is a two hour drive from downtown Washington.

MCLEAN BASIL ROAD MCLEAN} VA

ASKING PRICE $6,950,000

This newly built architectural LISTING AGENT marvel in McLean by ALM Fouad Talout, Builders spans 16,480 square feet 703-459-4141; Long & Foster on four levels and cleverly unifies Real Estate both classic and contemporary style. An environmentally conscious buyer will appreciate a state-of-the-art renewable energy system that combines solar mains, electricity and a battery backup system for worry-free continuity during power outages. Formal and informal spaces include six bedrooms, six full and five half baths, European appliances, exotic granite, a fitness room with steam and sauna, wine cellar and a sunken entertaining room that defies convention.

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HOME LIFE | OPEN HOUSE

WOODLEY PARK

WOODLEY PLACE} NW} WASHINGTON} DC ASKING PRICE Built in 1912 by the Kennedy Brothers from the design of architect $2,495,000 A.H. Sonnemann, this glorious home has been meticulously maintained LISTING AGENT: and thoughtfully updated through the years with careful attention to its Sheila original architectural and artistic detailing. With over 6,000 square feet of Mooney, interior space, the home features expansive light-filled rooms with over202-302-4321; sized windows, original millwork, moldings and doors, beautiful hardwood Beasley Real Estate floors, 10-foot ceilings and four wood-burning fireplaces with distinctive mantles. The residence is complemented by a spectacular entry foyer, formal living room, banquet-size dining room, superb chef ’s kitchen with breakfast nook, elegant master suite with sitting room and private home office, six additional bedrooms and four baths on the upper levels, covered front porch, three terraces providing tree-top views, lower level in-law apartment, attached garage, plus additional parking and outdoor area. Located in the heart of Woodley Park’s Historic District on a quiet tree-lined street, just a few blocks to fine schools, shops, restaurants, Rock Creek Park, the National Zoo and the Metro.

GEORGETOWN 3325 Prospect Street, NW Washington, DC 20007 ASKING PRICE This 5,400-square-foot grand rowhouse has $5,250,000 been expertly crafted to incorporate the highestLISTING AGENT quality construction with timeless design. The Jonathan Taylor, house has an extensive list of features, including 202-276-3344; tall ceilings — 10 feet on the main level, 9 feet TTR Sotheby’s on upper levels — three fireplaces and digital International wiring throughout, including audio, video and Realty Internet as well as a whole-house Lutron lighting system. The heart of this house is its stunning high-end kitchen, featuring Wolf, Miele and Subzero appliances, granite counters and an adjacent family room overlooking the private terrace.

GEORGETOWN K ST~ NW} PH WASHINGTON} DC

ASKING PRICE $4,995,000

LISTING AGENT: Luxury abounds in this stunning Mark McFadGeorgetown penthouse with over den, 703-2161333; Wash4,100 square feet of interior space, ington Fine $3 million in high-end updates Properties and sweeping 180-degree views of the Potomac River from the living room, kitchen and expansive terrace. This residence features a gourmet chef ’s kitchen with a La Cornue range, grand living room and dining room, master suite with his-and-hers bathrooms and walk-in closets, a second bedroom with ensuite bathroom, maid’s room and two-and-ahalf additional bathrooms.

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HOME LIFE | INTERIOR DESIGNERS

The Right Essentials For Washington designers less is more

BY ROLAND FLAMINI

B

ad Washington interior designers, when they die, languish in a hell of garish colored walls and hideous curtains, overcrowded with furniture and bric-a-brac.

Good designers enjoy the perpetual serenity of buoyant blue or biscuit walls, an American Chippendale chest-on-chest standing alone, two winged chairs, a long sofa in a subtle offwhite shade, some choice “objets de vertu” (to quote the auction houses), a Rothko painting and a sisal rug.

That pretty well sums up the state of affairs in the decorating/design business. Talk to half a dozen of the capital’s leading practitioners of the craft and the most frequently heard words are, “eclectic,” “neutral palette,” “comfortable,” “layering,” “mixing the modern and the antique,” “editing.” Forget the Italian critic Mario Praz’s concept of design (in what used

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to be his seminal book “The House of Life”) as the accumulation of memories through collected objects.

There are still a few holdouts who still embrace the baroque; but one wonders whether Mies van der Rohe realized what he was starting back in the 1930s when he supposedly uttered what has become the current mantra: “less is more.”

Within those parameters some still succeed in putting a distinctive stamp on their work. “I am not a de-contructivist,” says architect and designer Olvia Demetriou, “but my designs are clean, rationalist. They filter down to a very clean, pure expression. These days I find myself redacting things down more and more.”

Another well-known designer, Darryl Carter, has come up with the aphorism “The New Traditional” to describe his work. In the dining

room of his Beaux Arts home on Massachusetts Avenue NW the refectory table is his design, but it’s made from reclaimed wood.

Mona Hajj calls her style “understated, comfortable and relaxed.” Aniko Gaal Schott, whose recent clients have included half a dozen Washington embassies, says “it’s exciting to put contemporary art with antiques, but for it to work the designer has to make it fit as if it always was there and had to be there.” Gaal Schott defines her style as “simplicity, with some unusual, eye-catching opulence.”

The notion of the single antique occupying the eye-catching space is often making virtue of a necessity. Debo Devonshire, by marriage a duchess and by family the last surviving Mitford sister, once told a writer that the problem of redecorating Chatsworth was that there were Old Master paintings and items of furniture with

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P H OTOS CO URT E SY O F E AC H D E S I GN E R

Clean, simple, Washington style.

Olvia Demetriou’s serene work.

significant family histories that you couldn’t confine to the basement. In other words, there’s clutter and then there’s clutter. Most clients don’t have that problem. “Washington is one of those towns where if you don’t have old money, you want to look like old money,” Demetriou says. Hence the prominent antique.

Designer David Mitchell says, “the best compliment I ever got was that I ruined a client’s social life because all she wanted to do was stay at home.” But Christopher Boutlier says the aim in hiring a designer is more often image driven — the client wants “to put out the image of who you think you are.”

A client’s social life improves because guests, greatly impressed by their surroundings, don’t want to leave.

For what it’s worth, every designer interviewed agreed that Washington clients tended to be more conservative than in New York. Clients in the Big Apple, they say, tend to be more receptive to an edgier decorative style than in lawyer-dominated Washington, are prepared to spend more money and have more art.

Whatever the reason, the decorating/ design profession is recovering nicely from the 2008 economic crisis despite the fact that the Internet and the Martha Stewarts of this world are focused on getting people to do things for themselves. In 2012, 98,509 firms nationwide generated $10 billion in revenue and another $46.3 billion in related product sales. The top 100 firms piled up $2.6 billion and fees rose 7 percent over 2011.

At the same time, The American Society of Interior Designers warned designers that wired clients “are increasingly using their

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Christopher Boutlier’s calm and inviting master bedroom for clients Jason Smith & Michael Kearns

devices to research products, check reviews and price points,” and the demands most frequently made include requests for more technology, environmentally friendly materials, larger kitchens and bathrooms, and seniorfriendly layouts.

Because data doesn’t necessarily lead to more clarity, discovering what the client wants is often still — as it always was — the designer’s first challenge. Ideally, Demetriou says, the client picks the designer, “and knows to give them the wish list and then stand back.” However, it sometimes takes “a lot of diplomacy to capture what the client wants and distill it.” Boutlier says that in trying to differentiate between “what people say they want and what they really want” he sees himself as “part therapist, part psychic.” Ultimately, he says, “it’s a relationship, and a part of it is also being graceful.”

More than a relationship it’s an interpretation.

A designer interprets a client’s vision the way a pianist’s performance interprets a composition, or an actor the words of a playwright. That the client’s vision can often be blurred and his or her instructions more than a tad indecisive doesn’t alter the fact that the designer works from what the client thinks he or she wants.

As someone put it succinctly, design answers questions; art asks questions.

Some years ago, Washington interior designer Thomas Pheasant placed a tall, upright folding screen in a house he was designing for a client. Inside the screen’s wooden frame, the panels were glass and completely transparent.

The writer who was describing it in an article for Architectural Digest noted the inherent contradiction: a screen was supposed to block

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the view.Yet somehow, he wrote, in its context, the screen worked.

More recently, Gaal Schott was making a room-to-room survey of the Turkish Embassy residence which she had been engaged to restore and re-decorate. She began to notice pieces of Sèvres china scattered in various locations.“After the fifth piece, I realized that the residence had a sizeable collection, but wasn’t treating it as such,” she recalled in a recent interview. Today, the Sèvres collection — vases, plates and figurines — has pride of place in the main reception room.

Two stories that illustrate what you’re (hopefully) getting when you engage the services of an interior decorator/designer: creative thinking and the discerning eye of the professional — and hopefully the frisson of an exciting idea you would never have dreamed of.

Aniko Gall Scho near one of her own artworks in a client’s Oakton, Va. home

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HOME LIFE | REAL ESTATE NEWS

High Stakes Sales Gerry Halpinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Virginia riverfront estate sells for a recordbreaking $19 million; 1824 R Street NW fetches over $8 million in the District

BY STAC E Y G R A Z I E R P FA R R

THE DISTRICT Former Utah governor and ambassador to China, Jon Huntsman, sold LEROY PLACE NW for $4.2 million to an undisclosed buyer.The 2012 Republican presidential contender bought the property in 2010 for $3.6 million from Wordperfect founder Bruce Bastian. The fivebedroom Kalorama Federal was built in 1911 and includes a top-of-the line gourmet kitchen, wood-paneled library, posh master bathroom with a custom fireplace and Juliet balcony overlooking a manicured garden. Exterior features include an expansive flagstone patio with a built-in grilling station and private rooftop sitting area. Beasleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jim Bell was the listing agent; Washington Fine Propertiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Mary Ehrgood was the buyerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s agent.

R STREET NW sold for $8,450,000 with the help of TTR Sothebyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Michael Rankin (who represented both sides of the transaction).

The Dupont Circle mansion, built in 1911 by noted architect Clarke Waggaman, is the product of a 2006 multimillion-dollar renovation in which two circa 1900 rowhouses were joined to create this nine-bedroom, 10,000-squarefoot stunner. The house once served as both an inn and a residence for Dr.Terry Gerace and his parents, Holly and Terence Gerace Sr. Its one-ofa-kind European architectural details, including a 19th-century reclaimed French Blonde Barr limestone foyer and 16th-century fountain, lend timeless elegance to the house, which also served for some years as the Embassy of Singapore.

Libby C. Halaby, the widow of Pan American Airways Chairman Najeeb Halaby and stepmother of Queen Noor of Jordan sold

HAWTHORNE PLACE NW for $1.1 million to Taoheed O. Elias.The five-bedroom, 2,500-square-foot Victorian in Kent was built in 1987 on a quiet cul de sac. The listing agent was Evers & Companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Guy-Didier Godat; the buyerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s agent was Central Propertiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; David Sprindzunas.

Mong Chung bought ST STREET NW

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Former 2012 Republican presidential candidate Jon Huntsman sold 2121 Leroy Place NW in Kalorama for $4.2 million to an undisclosed buyer.

in Dupont Circle from Cynthia Quarterman and Pantelis Michalopoulos for $2.9 million with

several years has served as an artistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s studio, also housed a harpsichord manufacturer in the 1970s. the help of listing agent Cathie Gill of Cathie The 6,000-square-foot property features many Gill Inc. and buyerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s agent, Kay Marklin of details from the original construction, including Chatel Real Estate Company. President Obama a brass firemanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pole and wooden lockers.TTR appointed Quarterman third administrator of Sothebyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Internationalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Michael Rankin was the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety the listing agent. Gallagher & Co. Real Estateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Administration. Michalopoulos is a partner at Andrew Goodman represented the buyer.

Mike and Heidi Slocumb bought Steptoe & Johnsonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Washington office where he is the head of the Telecom, Internet & Media DUMBARTON STREET NW for $2.2 million Group.The classic, five-bedroom detached 19th- from the estate of Frank Lorson. Lorson was a century brick-and-stone residence features former chief deputy clerk of the Supreme Court. dramatic entertaining space with two-story Mr. Slocumb is the founder of the Mike Slocumb windows and a new gourmet kitchen with wine law firm, a personal injury practice with offices storage. Other amenities include master suite in several states. The five-bedroom Victorian in Georgetownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s East Village was built in 1875 and with spa, sitting room and in-law suite.

Michael Abbenante purchased is currently under renovation. It features 12R STREET NW from Craig A. Kraft for foot ceilings, bedrooms with a private second$2,288,000. Abbenante is a senior financial level sleeping porch and an intimate rear garden. advisor for Merrill Lynch. Kraft is an artist and Coldwell Bankerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s James Lardner was the listing sculptor. The unique five-bedroom residence agent. Continental Propertiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Susannah Moss was built in 1884 and put into service in 1885 was the buyerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s agent.

Wieslaw and Barbara Malachowski as Engine House Number Seven one month prior to the dedication of the Washington purchased TRACY PLACE NW from Monument. The property, which for the past Roy Pfautch for $2,485,000. Wieslaw is the

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HOME LIFE | REAL ESTATE NEWS

The former Embassy of Singapore at 1824 R Street NW, which once held the title as the most expensive listing in the District, sold for $8,450,000 to an undisclosed buyer.

CEO of Falcon Construction. Pfautch is an international political affairs consultant who now lives mostly in Japan and St. Louis, Mo. Robert Hryniewicki and William F.X. Moody of Washington Fine Properties were the listing agents. Mrs. Malachowski, a Long & Foster Real Estate agent, acted as the buyerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s agent. The Kalorama stone manor boasts five bedrooms, seven baths, formal entertaining spaces and a center island kitchen opening to a family room and sunroom.

million from John and Geraldine York. Mr. Kande is an executive at PRTM Management Consultants, an economic advisory firm. Mr.York is founder and managing partner of Georgetown Capital.The five-bedroom stone Colonial sits on a half-acre lot and was meticulously renovated with a new master bedroom suite, his-and-hers baths and a new kitchen.The award-winning yard features a gazebo. Washington Fine Propertiesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; William Gossett was the listing agent; Long & Fosterâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Elizabeth Hitt represented the buyer.

MARYLAND VIRGINIA Mohamed and Virginie Kande bought EAST BOULEVARD in Alexandria, ELMWOOD ROAD in Chevy Chase for $3.3 once part of George Washingtonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mount

Vernon estate, has sold for $18.6 million to an undisclosed buyer, making it the highest sale price in the Washington area in more than two-and-a-half years. Gerry Halpin, the owner of the 16.5-acre estate, is the founder of West Group Management LLC, which developed much of the original Tysons Corner. River View Estate includes more than 380 feet of Potomac River waterfront, a 6,000-square-foot circa 1914 main house and a guest house. It was the highest sale in the history of TTR Sothebyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s International â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s local affiliate. Heather Corey and Theresa Sullivan Twiford of the Alexandria office handled the transaction. The last residential sale to exceed this price locally was in July 2011, when the â&#x20AC;&#x153;Evermayâ&#x20AC;? estate at 1621 28th Street NW in Georgetown sold to Sucampo Pharmaceuticals founders Ryuji Ueno and Sachiko Kuno.

Doug Mcginn bought ND ROAD NORTH in Arlington for $2,081,000 from Alan Rogers, a retired Air Force major general who now advises the Kogod School of Business at American University. The five-bedroom 1940 house in Country Club Hills was recently renovated to include every imaginable top-ofthe-line amenity. Long & Fostersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Karen Close was the listing agent; RE/MAXâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jeffrey Beall was the buyerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s agent.

PROPERTY LINES THREE-IN-ONE: Macalester Limited is selling - ST STREET NW in Georgetownâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s East Village for $5,850,000.

The five-bedroom, five-level, 6,713-square-foot Federal-style house was renovated to be a combination of three 19th-century rowhouses.

The property boasts one of the largest private gardens in Georgetown and includes a 43-foot swimming pool. RE/MAX 100â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Herbert Riggs is the listing agent.

HISTORIC CHANGES?: After plans to turn the historic Patterson Mansion on Dupont Circle into a boutique hotel fell through due to lack of support from the Historic Preservation Board, the property is now being considered for 90 furnished micro-units. Real estate developer SB-Urban is in talks to purchase the property which is currently listed for $26 million with

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TTR Sothebyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s. The 36,000-square-foot, fourstory white marble-and-brick residence at

DUPONT CIRCLE NW had been home to the Washington Club since 1951.

DESIGN HOUSE DROPS PRICE:

FOXHALL ROAD NW, last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s D.C. Design House, is on the market for a cool $12.9 million, a $2 million drop from the original listing price of $14.9 million. The eight-bedroom Contemporary in Berkley was built by GTM Architects and Gibson Builders in 2013 and features gourmet and catering kitchens, an in-law suite and library. The Washington D.C. Design House began in 2008 as a way for local designers in the Metro area to show off their talents and raise funds for Childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s National Medical Center. Coldwell Bankerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Marty Apel is the listing agent.

COOKEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S ROW MANSION ON MARKET: Greg and Kristin Muhlner have listed Q STREET NW for $5,450,000. The property was built for Washingtonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first territorial governor, Henry D. Cooke, a Civil War profiteer who was also a Republicanminded newspaper editor, president of the First Washington National Bank and a railroad executive. The Muhlners bought the home in 2008 for $2.2 million. Mr. Muhlner is a senior executive for EMC Corporation and a former U.S. Navy Seal. Mrs. Muhlner is currently a private consultant and former CEO of McLean-based Rollstream Inc. Nancy Taylor Bubes of Washington Fine Properties is the listing agent.

Send real estate news to Stacey Grazier Pfarr at editorial@washingtonlife.com.

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MY WASHINGTON Kathleen Matthews, executive vice president and chief global communications and public affairs officer, Marriott International Inc.

HOW MANY MARRIOTT HOTELS HAVE YOU VISITED? Bill Marriott visits 200-300 hotels a year.

In my first year in the job I clocked about 100. Since then, I’ve stopped competing with him. But I’ve visited more than half of the countries where Marriott operates and at least 50 markets in the U.S. With 4,000 hotels worldwide, I still have a lot to visit.

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WHAT DO YOU LIKE BEST ABOUT THE HOSPITALITY BUSINESS? There is nothing better, after being on the road, than climbing into a sumptuous hotel bed with crisp white sheets and a big fluffy duvet, or discovering a new destination with the comfort of having a lovely hotel as your home base. But mostly, I am inspired by the opportunity the hospitality industry creates. In Haiti, we are building a Marriott that will help that country recover from disaster. In Rwanda, we have recruited young women to train in our Dubai hotels in anticipation of a Marriott opening in Kigali.

And in the U.S., for every 30 overseas visitors to the U.S., we create one new job for a person who is eager to serve their world.

WHAT’S THE SCOOP ON THE NEW MARRIOTT MARQUIS SCHEDULED TO OPEN IN MAY NEXT TO THE CONVENTION CENTER? For a company that was launched in Washington, D.C. in 1927 as a single A&W root beer stand and later became the revered Hot Shoppes, it’s a wonderful milestone to be opening our 4,000th property here. We have added more than 1,175 new hotel rooms (and 600 new

jobs) and will provide the same brilliant hosting and opportunity that J. Willard and Alice Marriott created in their first restaurants all those years ago.

WHAT’S NEXT? I love visiting new places. Last year, I traveled to Botswana, Namibia, Bali, Myanmar and Saudi Arabia for the first time.

This year … maybe Bhutan!

MY TOP SPOTS As empty nesters, Chris and I eat out a lot. In my Chevy Chase neighborhood, we often go to (1) Arucola (5334 Connecticut Ave. NW); (2) La Ferme, (7101 Brookville Rd.); (3) Parthenon (5510 Connecticut Ave. NW), our Greek version of Cheers!; and (4) Comet Ping Pong (5037 Connecticut Ave. NW) . But I’m falling in love with (5) Le Diplomate (1601 14th St. NW) because it reminds me of Les Deux Magots or Le Grand Colbert in Paris.

I like to trek through the Western Ridge and Valley Trails in the northern section of (6) Rock Creek Park. Long hikes have prepared me to climb Kilimanjaro and Machu Picchu with girlfriends the past few years.

If I could steal two paintings for my home they would be Pierre Bonnard’s “The Open Window” and Richard Diebenkorn’s “Girl with a Plant” from the (7) Phillips Collection.

Our favorite date night activity is seeing a movie at the (8) Avalon Theatre (5612 Connecticut Ave. NW) or at (9) Landmark Bethesda Row (7235 Woodmont Ave.), where there’s always a great indie film.

I go to (10) Politics & Prose (5015 Connecticut Ave. NW) because I still love hard-bound books and the idea of an independent book store where you can browse, get recommendations and meet authors To really relax, I get a scalp massage, wash and blow-dry at (11) George at the Four Seasons (2828 Pennsylvania Ave. NW).

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K AT H L E E N M AT T H E W S A N D C O M E T P I N G P O N G P H OTO S C O U R T E S Y O F E AC H C O M PA N Y. A L L OT H E R S F I L E .

WHAT HAS CHANGED THE MOST SINCE YOU LEFT TELEVISION FOR MARRIOTT EIGHT YEARS AGO? I knew I’d be collecting a lot more frequent flyer miles in my new job, given Marriott’s footprint in 72 countries. But I had no idea I’d be such a global nomad. After visiting more than 30 countries (some of them many times,) I hit my limit of extra passport pages and had to get a new super-sized passport this year! But I love the globe-trotting.