D.C. to Mark Centennial of Titanic Disaster
• June 18, 2012

In a city of monuments, one of Washington’s lesser known memorials will be in the spotlight this weekend, April 14-15. The Titanic Memorial at the foot of P Street, S.W., is along the Washington Channel and will be the centerpiece of Saturday’s Southwest Heritage commemoration, “Titanic 100,” beginning 7 p.m.

The story of the “unsinkable” RMS Titanic hitting an iceberg and sinking on her 1912 maiden voyage has been told many times — most recently with a new National Geographic exhibit, TV shows and an re-issuing of the 1997 film, “Titanic,” in 3-D.

The sculpture by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney was unveiled in 1931 and originally perched at the foot of New Hampshire Avenue where the Kennedy Center now stands. Whitney’s design was chosen by the Fine Arts Commission in 1914 . The image of a man with arms outstretched in self-sacrifice supposedly inspired the scene at the bow in the movie, “Titanic,” when the main characters faced forward and balanced themselves in the ocean breeze. Also, Whitney’s sculpture is said by some to resemble her brother Alfred Vanderbilt, who died in the sinking of the Lusitania during World War One in 1915. Whitney’s other sculptures in D.C. are the Aztec Fountain for the Pan-American Building at the Organization of American State and the Founder’s Memorial at the Daughters of the American Revolution’s Constitution Hall. Besides being from two of the wealthiest American families as well as an artist and arts patron, the remarkable Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney is best remembered for her founding of the Whitney Museum of Art in New York City.

The Christ-like sculpture, originally named the Woman’s Titanic Memorial, and re-erected on P Street, S.W., in 1968 honors the men of all ages and backgrounds, who gave their lives to save women and children. The etching on its plinth or base (designed by the architect of the Lincoln Memorial Henry Bacon) reads on the front:

TO THE BRAVE MEN
WHO PERISHED
IN THE WRECK
OF THE TITANIC
APRIL 15 1912
THEY GAVE THEIR
LIVES THAT WOMEN
AND CHILDREN
MIGHT BE SAVED

ERECTED BY THE
WOMEN OF AMERICA

The words on the back of the base read:

FOR THE YOUNG AND THE OLD
THE RICH AND THE POOR
THE IGNORANT AND THE LEARNED
ALL
WHO GAVE THEIR LIVES NOBLY
TO SAVE WOMEN AND CHILDREN

The Saturday commemoration includes a performance of “Nearer, My God, to Thee,” the last song played on the Titanic, at 9 p.m. The Men’s Titanic Society will hold its annual salute to those who died just after midnight, at 12:30 a.m., April 15, in front of the sculpture. For more information, visit SWDCheritage.org.

White House Correspondents’ Weekend
•

The parties before and after the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, April 28, are at least half the fun of running around town, whether to Vote Latino at the Hay Adams, NPR’s party at the Gibson Guitar Showroom, Tammy Haddad’s brunch at Mark Ein’s house on R Street (the former home of Washington Post publisher Katharine Graham), the newly launched Google party, the Time reception at the St. Regis, the Capitol File party at the Newseum or the MSNBC party at the Italian Embassy. Of course, the pre-dinner receptions at the Washington Hilton are great for checking out the scene. Just show a ticket to the guard at the escalator. And, of course, the main event itself, where the president and Jimmy Kimmel threw out jokes on the GSA, Secret Service, Mitt Romney, dogs and the media. Thank goodness for the McLaughlin Group-Thomson Reuters brunch on Sunday atop the Hay-Adams: a sunny, mellow way to recover from the parties with friends and colleagues. Yeah, it was sort of a nerd prom when “glitz meets geeks,” as one smartie observed, but it’s ours for a few days in April each year. [gallery ids="100769,123448,123441,123433,123428,123461,123420,123468,123413,123475,123405,123482,123454" nav="thumbs"]

An Impressive 57th Corcoran Ball
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Once again the Corcoran Gallery transformed into an exhibit gala of guests, dinner and dance for its 57th annual ball April 20. Under the honorary patronage of France’s Ambassador Francois Delattre and his wife Sophie and the honorary chair of artist Sam Gilliam, the ball chair Deborah de Gorter threaded the galleries with happy, art-loving partiers and patrons. [gallery ids="100771,123521,123514,123485,123508,123501,123493" nav="thumbs"]

Nobody’s Late for ‘Alice in Wonderland’ Ball
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The Mellon Auditorium glistened with red and gold as dancers celebrated the Washington Ballet’s own premiere take on Lewis Carroll’s fantasy. Guests were welcomed by Sylvia de Leon, Elizabeth Bagley and Septime Webre and treated to a dance selection of the work and performances by student dancers. [gallery ids="100772,100772,123530,123509,123530,123509,123517,123525" nav="thumbs"]

Washington Fine Properties Cup
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At Virginia’s Gold Cup races, May 5, rider Ross Geraghty and trainer Joseph Delozier are awarded the Washington Fine Properties Cup by Tom Anderson (center) along with Dana Landry, Marc Schappel and William Moody (behind), thanks to their horse, Lake Placid, owned by Irvin Naylor. This fourth race of about 2.5 miles held a purse of $25,000, of which the winner received $15,000.

Make a Splash: Volta Park Pool Is Open
• June 8, 2012

The D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation has opened its pools for Memorial Day weekend, including Georgetown’s only public pool at Volta Park (1555 34th St., NW) — 202-645-5669.

For the weekend of June 2, outdoor pools will be open on weekends only (Fridays and Saturdays), from noon until 6 p.m., until June 17 when District Public Schools are dismissed for the summer months. After June 17, all outdoor pools will operate on a summer schedule —open six days a week and closed one day per week for cleaning and maintenance.

DPR Director Jesús Aguirre said: “While we want everyone to have a great time in the District’s pools, I would like to remind everyone that safety is key. We encourage everyone to learn how to swim and to follow all pool rules.”

Pool Schedule—General Public Swim: Monday through Friday 1 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, noon to 6 p.m.

Lap Swim—Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Closed on Monday.

For more information regarding DPR aquatic facilities, please visit DPR.DC.GOV or contact DPR’s Aquatic Office at 202-671-1289 during regular business hours. For pools updates, schedule changes and the most up-to-date summer information, be sure to follow DPR on Twitter@DCDPR.

Georgetown Village Plans June 21 Reception
•

Georgetown Village has received a $10,000 grant from Wells Fargo Bank. It was the nonprofit’s first major corporate grant, founder Sharon Lockwood said. On June 21, a private reception for Georgetown Village will be held at the home of Dr. and Mrs. Thomas P. Nigra, 3038 N Street, NW, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Georgetown Village is a nonprofit membership organization providing services and programs in the Georgetown area so older residents can live better and longer in their homes; among its services are transportation of appointments, grocery shopping, computer and cell phone help, gardening and household help.

For more information, visit www.georgetown-village.org, call 202-999-8988 or email lynn@georgetownvillage.org.

DMV at Georgetown Park Closes
•

The neighborhood’s uber-convenient office of D.C.’s Department of Motor Vehicles, located in the lower level of the Shops at Georgetown Park, closed May 19 because of the mall’s construction. (The DMV had sought a lease in Northwest D.C., but, so far, there has been no announcement on any new permanent office.) On June 4, the DMV will open a temporary service center at 301 C Street, NW For locations and hours of operations, visit DMV.DC.gov. For our part, we would like to give a special shout-out to Mrs. Rivers, who worked there and retired in November: Thank you for your optimism, assistance and advice!

Scheele’s Market Saved by Neighbors; Farewell Party for the Lees
•

Malcolm “Mike” Peabody and his neighbors successfully rescued Scheele’s Market at 29th and Dumbarton through an agreement with property owner Jordan O’Neill to pay $70,000 for improvements and other covenant details. The neighborhood group, Friends of Scheele’s, has worked to keep the store, which served the town for 118 years, operating for another 15 years and with a new shopkeeper, Dougjuk Kim.

Meanwhile, a retirement party for Shin and Kye Lee will take place on June 21, from 6 to 9 p.m., along 29th Street between Dumbarton and O Streets. The neighborhood will also welcome Kim as well as O’Neill, who lives in the second-floor apartment. The neighborhood still needs more money to complete the purchase of the covenant by June 30. Sponsors have already stepped up; more are needed, however. Come join the celebratation honoring a great neighborhood tradition. For more information or to make a donation, contact Mike Peabody at mpeabody@ptmanagement.com.

DMV to Return to Georgetown Park
•

The Georgetown office of D.C.’s Department of Motor Vehicles, formerly located in the lower level of the Shops at Georgetown Park, that closed May 19 will return to the M Street shopping mall, Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans announced at the May 30 annual awards and election meeting of the Citizens Association of Georgetown.

At the time of the DMV’s closure, it was not certain that an office would return to Georgetown. Evans said that there would be a new DMV office in the mall in less than a year, when renovations are completed, in agreement with the Georgetown Park landlord. Mayor Vincent Gray, who also addressed the meeting, called the future return of the DMV to the neighborhood as showing how the District government provides “customer service” to its citizens.

On June 4, the DMV will open a temporary service center at 301 C Street, N.W., where its Office of Adjudication Services is also located; hours of operations are Monday through Friday, 8:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. For other locations and questions, visit DMV.DC.gov.