Latest News

Georgetowner • May 12, 2014

A Night of True Stories by and about Educators

May 9th, 2014 at 08:00 PM | $25 General Admission $10 Students K-12 $100 Event And Reception | Tel: General Inquiries: Amy Saidman; 240-888-9751 Press Inquiries: Travis Hare: 202-643-7542 | Event Website

SpeakeasyDC, Washington’s original true storytelling group (voted the “Gold Standard” of the genre by The Washington Post, and one of the top open mic nights by Washington City Paper) is celebrating Teacher Appreciation Week by giving educators the spotlight on May 9th at 8pm at the Atlas Performing Arts Center. A cast of 8 educators and students will tell their poignant, comical, and sometimes harrowing true tales from inside and outside the classroom.

Address

Atlas Performing Arts Center; 1333 H St. NE Washington, DC

86th annual Georgetown Garden Tour

May 10th, 2014 at 10:00 AM | $35 per person when purchased after May 1, 2014 | Event Website

This year’s tour will take place on Saturday May 10th and feature some of Georgetown’s most intriguing gardens, open from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Over the years, the garden tour has featured a wide variety of gardens with spacious sweeping lawns and majestic trees to intimate outside rooms.

The tour is presented each year by the Georgetown Garden Club, and is supported by the generous contributions of neighbors and local merchants; and benefits local environmental and beautification projects.

Address

Christ Church; 31st and O Streets NW,

Titans of Jewelry Design: The Tiffanys, Fabergé, Lalique, and Cartier

May 10th, 2014 at 10:00 AM | General Admission $130 | Tel: 202-633-3030 | Event Website

When we think of the pinnacle of fine jewelry, five names lead the list: Charles Lewis Tiffany, Louis Comfort Tiffany, Carl Fabergé, Rene Laliqué, and Louis-Francois Cartier. Their firms rose to prominence by creating luxurious rings, brooches, tiaras, and other extravagant and elegant baubles for monarchs and the moneyed.

Art historian Stefanie Walker provides a guide to their glittering legacies.

Address

S. Dillon Ripley Center, 1100 Jefferson Drive SW

Men Against Breast Cancer’s Celebrating All Women For Mother’s Day! Pampering The Women We Love!

May 10th, 2014 at 06:00 PM | $15 (Includes Med Spa Gift Card $50 value and one raffle ticket) | brian@menagainstbreastcancer.org | Tel: 202 495 8515 | Event Website

Please join Men Against Breast Cancer at the “Second Annual Pink & Blue Mother’s Day Pampering the Women We Love Event, hosted by the Men In Pink & Blue.

Address

L2 Lounge; 3315 Cady’s Alley Northwest (between 33rd and 34th off of M Street)

Besties & Boobies

May 10th, 2014 at 01:00 PM | $25-$40 | jasmine@otimwilliams.com | Tel: 202-286-3442 | Event Website

The Besty List, will present “Besties & Boobies,” an informative event teaching the secrets to wearing the perfect foundations & making your wardrobe shine this Spring. In addition, Besties & Boobies will donate to HopeWorks, formerly known as the Domestic Violence Center of Howard Count.

This interactive & intimate event is being sponsored by Eucalan,Essential Bodywear, LuvlyU, & Instyle Magazine’s Instyle Essentials.

Address

Helix Hotel; 1430 Rhode Island Avenue NW

Exhibition Opening: Designing for Disaster

May 11th, 2014 at 10:00 AM | $5 – $8 | Tel: 202-272-2448 | Event Website

This new exhibition showcases how regional, community, and individual actions can reduce the impact of natural hazards. The exhibition will remain open through August 2, 2015.

Address

National Building Museum; 401 F Street NW

Mother’s Day Brunch at Salamander Resort & Spa

May 11th, 2014 at 10:00 AM | $85 per adult and $35 per child | reservations@salamanderresort.com | Tel: 866.938.7370 | Event Website

On Sunday, May 11, the resort is introducing its first Mother’s Day Brunch Buffet in the Middleburg Ballroom filled with sweet and savory options for the family. Salamander is offering three seating times: 10-10:30 a.m., 1-1:30 p.m. and 3:30-4 p.m. The cost is $85 per adult and $35 per child and includes complimentary digital family portraits as well as an opportunity for children to build their own kite to fly out on the terrace.

Address

500 N. Pendleton Street Middleburg, VA 20117

Mother’s Day Brunch

May 11th, 2014 at 10:30 AM | $ 95.00 | thegrillroom.dc@capellahotels.com | Tel: 202-617-2424 | Event Website

Mother’s Day Brunch will be a relaxing and enjoyable Sunday. Mom’s will be pampered & well taken care of by the Grill Room servers, pouring Champagne or Rye punch tableside. Signature breakfast items like Belgian Waffles & French Toast will be passed around. Signature items such as beef wellington will be carved table side with seasonal sides of apple wood smoked mashed potatoes & meyer lemon & spring pea risotto. Freshly shucked oysters will be presented tableside for all to enjoy.

Address

The Grill Room; at Capella Washington D.C.; 1050 31st Street NW

Busboys and Poets Presents THE ADMISSION

May 11th, 2014 at 03:00 PM | General: $35; Student/Senior: $25 | Admission@busboysandpoets.com | Tel: 202-332-6432 | Event Website

“The Admission,” Motti Lerner’s acclaimed and controversial play, is presented at Studio Theatre in workshop form by Busboys and Poets. This Israeli homage to Arthur Miller’s “All My Sons” focuses on a wounded veteran’s truth-searching mission surrounding the murder of Palestinian villagers by a unit commanded by his father 40 years earlier. After each performance, there will be open discussions with cast members & community leaders.
Address

1501 14th Street NW
Washington, DC 20005

Paulina Phelps • May 9, 2014

Why stay in Georgetown this weekend? It’s going to be another beautiful weekend, and there is no place you’ll rather be than Georgetown with great deals and events happening all weekend.

11th Annual French Market

The 11th annual French Market “one of the most anticipated shopping weekends of the year” goes on from Friday, April 25, to Saturday, April 26, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Organized by the Georgetown Business Improvement District, the market is in the Book Hill Neighborhood of Georgetown, which constitutes upper Wisconsin Avenue between P Street and Reservoir Road, and evokes a Parisian “open air market and sidewalk sale.”
For the market, vendors come from all over the Book Hill Neighborhood offering a variety of goods. With shopping deals of up to 75 percent off, a large showcasing of antique and art galleries, and plenty of delicious treats, the market has something for everyone. In addition, the market features entertainment such as live music, mimes and face painting, making it a perfect place to hangout with the family. With an assortment of over 30 vendors, some of the vendors featured include Macaron Bee, Ella Rue, Egg by Susan Lazar, and the Robert Brown Gallery.

83rd Georgetown House Tour

Want to see some Georgetown home chic? Looking for design ideas or just love houses and history? Saturday is your day. Now in its 83rd year, the Georgetown House Tour is one of the oldest house tours in the nation. Nine properties will be shown Saturday, April 26. It benefits the social programs of St. John’s Church. The tour will run 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. — along with a Parish Tea in Blake Hall at the church on Saturday between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. Ticket prices are $50 or $55. Visit www.GeorgetownHouseTour.com for details, or call 202-338-2287.

Pandora Opening Party

Starting off a weekend of great shopping, on Thursday from noon to eight, jewelry maker Pandora is holding a daylong in-store event to celebrate its opening with the help of Lucky accessories editor Meilissa Lum and local blogger Lacey Maffettone of “A Lacey Perspective.” The event will also feature treats courtesy of Olivia Macaron, and starting at 6 p.m. you can sip Champagne, while mingling with style experts. Swing by 3213 M St., NW for the fun.

Shop House Benefits for Dog Tag Bakery

Stick around Georgetown for part of Sunday afternoon and evening for another great deal benefitting both your bank account and community. Dog Tag Bakery, a non-profit and bakery business opening on Grace Street later this summer, will partner with Shop House for a deal you should not pass up. If you come to the Shop House in Georgetown at 2805 M St., NW, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. and mention “Dog Tag” receive 50 percent off your purchase with all of the proceeds donated to Dog Tag.

Georgetowner •

Cultural Leadership Breakfast featuring Jenny Bilfield

May 22nd, 2014 at 08:00 AM | Tickets $20 ($15 for George Town Club members) | richard@georgetowner.com | Tel: 202. 338.4833 | Event Website

Join us for the Georgetown Media Group’s next Cultural Leadership Breakfast featuring Jenny Bilfield, President & CEO of Washington Performing Arts. The event will take place Thursday, May 22, from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the George Town Club, 1530 Wisconsin Avenue, NW. The cost is $20 ($15 for George Town Club members). To RSVP by May 16, please email Richard@Georgetowner.com or call 202-338-4833.

Address

George Town Club; 1530 Wisconsin Avenue, NW

The Casey Trees Canopy Awards

April 24th, 2014 at 06:30 PM | Early-Bird Registration: $45; At-the-Door Registration: $55 | development@caseytrees.org | Tel: 2028857311 | Event Website

On Arbor Day Eve, the Inaugural Casey Trees Canopy Awards will honor some of the most dedicated people and projects working to restore, enhance and protect trees across the metro D.C. area.
There will be no shortage of fun throughout the night as we treat attendees to great food, drinks, live music and games. There will also be a silent auction filled with incredible items and amazing package offers. All proceeds will support Casey Trees tree planting and education initiatives across the region.

Address

DOCK5 at Union Market; 1309 5th Street NE

Book Talk: John Taliaferro, “All the Great Prizes”

April 24th, 2014 at 06:00 PM | $10 | SMiraminy@savingplaces.org | Tel: 202-829-0436 x31232 | Event Website

John Taliaferro, author of “All the Great Prizes: The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt,” examines the extraordinary life of John Hay on Thursday, April 24 2014 at “Cottage Conversations” at President Lincoln’s Cottage. “Cottage Conversations” offers a relaxing evening to socialize and learn something new about our 16th president in his Washington home. The program starts with a cocktail reception, is followed by the lecture and concludes with a book signing.

Address

President Lincoln’s Cottage; 140 Rock Creek Church Road NW

Twentythirtysomething Book Club

April 24th, 2014 at 07:30 PM | Free | erika.rydberg@dc.gov | Tel: 202-727-0232 | Event Website

Are you a local D.C. reader between the ages of 21 and 35? Looking for a more casual book club experience? Then join the Georgetown Neighborhood Library for Twentythirtysomething Book Club (T.T.B.C.), a new book group for younger adults (just featured in Daily Candy -http://www.dailycandy.com/washington-dc/article/171174/Washington-DC-Events-and-Diversions).
For our April selection We’ll be discussing the book “Gulp”.

For more information and to RSVP please check out our MeetUp.com page.

Address

Breadsoda; 2233 Wisconsin Ave NW

Parisian Sidewalk Sale for the 11th Annual French Market

April 25th, 2014 at 10:00 AM

Georgetown’s 11th Annual French Market returns to the charming Book Hill neighborhood on upper Wisconsin Ave, between P Street and Reservoir Road, on Friday and Saturday, April 25th & 26th, 2014 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The two-day event will bring fashion finds from local boutiques, traditional French fare, quaint home and antique shops, and live music. The Georgetown French Market is hosted and sponsored by the Georgetown Business Improvement District (BID).

Address

Upper Wisconsin Ave, between P Street and Reservoir Road

MOMIX Botanica

April 25th, 2014 at 08:00 PM | Tel: (202) 785-9727 | Event Website

With an eclectic score ranging from birdsong to Vivaldi, Botanica shows off the endlessly renewable energy of the superb MOMIX performers, with costumes, projections, and custom-made props and puppetry adding an extra dose of fantasy to the elixir. This is dance at its most organic and inventive. The seasons will never be the same. Presented by Washington Performing Arts, GW Lisner Auditorium and CityDance.

Address

GW Lisner Auditorium (731 21st St NW Washington, DC 20052)

Happy Hour with 5×5 Artists

April 25th, 2014 at 05:30 PM | Free

Join DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities and Washington Project for the Arts in an Artist Happy Hour with 5×5 artists Nora and Eliza Morse. Hear about the world they will create for 5×5 and enjoy a free happy hour to mix and mingle with other artists.

Address

Capitol Skyline Hotel10 I (eye) street SW

Annual Christ Church Art Show and Sale

April 26th, 2014 at 11:00 AM | Free

Attend the Annual Christ Church Art Show and Sale, Saturday 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Address

Christ Church Georgetown, 31st and O Streets, NW

Oatlands Spring Gala 2014

April 26th, 2014 at 07:00 PM | Tables of 10 available at $2000. Individual tickets available at $225. | tmcneal@oatlands.org | Tel: Trish McNeal at 703-777-3174 x15 | Event Website

A wonderful evening of dining and dancing under an elegant tent on the front lawn of Oatlands’ 1804 mansion. Silent and live auctions with one-of-a-kind items and adventures. Black-tie.

Cocktails at 7 pm & Dinner at 8 pm

Address

Oatlands Historic House and Gardens; 20850 Oatlands Plantation Lane; Leesburg, VA 20175

Rueda de la Calle DC

April 26th, 2014 at 01:00 PM | FREE | frisco714@gmail.com | Tel: n/a | Event Website

Please join us for some solid Rueda de Casino dance time at Dupont Circle on Saturday, April 26th from 1:00pm – 3:00pm for Rueda de la Calle DC.

Address

Dupont at the Circle; 1604 19th St. NW

Jackson Art Center Children’s Painting Workshops

April 26th, 2014 at 03:00 PM | Free | jacksonartcenter@gmail.com | Tel: 301-654-7113 | Event Website

Georgetown’s Jackson Art Center invites families to its
Open Studios Preview Day: Two painting workshops for younger and older children, plus open artists studios to roam around. The Saturday Preview is held the day before Jackson’s main Open Studios on Sunday.
Both Open Studios events are free and open to the public. No reservations required, all materials supplied.
Address

Jackson Art Center; 3050 R Street, NW

Tango! Soul and Heart: A Celebration of Argentine Music and Dance

April 27th, 2014 at 05:00 PM | $15-$75 | choralarts@choralarts.org | Tel: 202-244-3669 | Event Website

Tango! Soul and Heart begins with two spiritual pieces. Lamentations of Jeremiah is a sacred a cappella motet by Alberto Ginastera. The centerpiece of the concert is Luis Bacalov’s Misa Tango, a mass with Tango rhythms. The second half find singers and dancers performing Tango. Experience the passion of the Tango – the soul and heart of Argentina!

Address

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts; 2700 F Street NW

Corrie Dyke •

Women’s clothing boutique Alice and Olivia has signed a 10-year lease to make its Mid-Atlantic debut at 3303 M St., NW, EastBanc, Inc., announced April 28. The 2,400-square-foot retail space on M Street has been vacant since Qdoba Mexican Grill closed its doors in January.

The high-end apparel company is slated to open in September. According to EastBanc, Inc., the lease begins immediately and Alice and Olivia will start renovations right away.

Alice and Olivia is an upscale women’s clothing brand designed by founder Stacey Bendet, who launched the brand in 2002. The collection is full of color, florals and modern black and white pieces with an edgy flare. Bendet is best known for her bold bell bottom pants, pulling in vintage pieces to her contemporary collections.

Celebrity fans of the brand include Gwyneth Paltrow, Katy Perry, Drew Barrymore, Taylor Swift and Jamie Chung. Alice and Olivia is headquartered in New York City and is currently available at 13 free-standing boutiques in New York, California, Connecticut and Hong Kong, at more than 800 select department and specialty stores worldwide. Take a sneak peak at www.aliceandolivia.com before it hits the streets of Georgetown.
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Georgetowner •

The Georgetowner, in partnership with EagleBank, presents the Georgetown Senior Center with a check representing the proceeds of this past year’s Holiday Pop Shop. As the beneficiary, the Georgetown Senior Center received $5,000. Don’t miss its upcoming Spring Cocktail Reception on May 1. For more information visit stantonparkdc.com/georgetownseniorcenter.

Gary Tischler • May 7, 2014

It is one of the givens in the litany of American bedrock beliefs that many people dream of and aspire to be president. That anyone can become president is one of the most enduring of those beliefs.

John J. “Jack” DeGioia, when he was a mass-once-a-day high school kid in Orange, Conn., probably did not grow up dreaming of becoming president. But that’s what he is.
The 57-year-old DeGioia has been president of Georgetown University since 2001, and it’s probably a much better job than being President of the United States, given Barack Obama’s recent approval ratings and the difficulty he’s had getting things done.

DeGioia’s rise to the presidency of the nation’s oldest Catholic institution of higher learning was unprecedented when he became the first layman – the first non-priest and married man – to lead Georgetown, founded in 1789 by Jesuits while their order was banned by the pope. Although the event echoed some Jesuit and Vatican views of increasing lay participation in Catholic Church administrative roles, this seemed at the time a highly improbable result.

Nevertheless, given the nature of DeGioia’s life and career at Georgetown, it appears almost inevitable, or, as one Jesuit among the decision-makers said, “providential.”
Just listening to and watching DeGioia in the president’s office on the second floor of Healy Hall is to get a sense why this man was practically born to the job.

Smart, intellectual, pragmatic, a teacher and a data person, with 13 years of presidential experience providing the wind at his back, he can bring weight and a presence into any discussion, be it policy-centered, plan-oriented or theological.

He appears most at home with architectural schematics for yet another university physical expansion, real or in the planning stages; theological or historical discussions on Jesuit thinking and philosophy in general; presentations of economic impact studies; or the numbers behind outreach and opening up more availability of assistance and scholarships to students who are worthy and needful.

If you want to sum up DeGioia in one word, pick the first one that comes to mind. It just might be simply that he is a genuine, authentic enthusiast.

Dealing with two questioners from The Georgetowner, he is mindful, like a theater-in-the-round actor, of responding in both directions. His arms and hands fly out frequently. His really white, white shirt seems to be on fire with white, and – especially when he talks about the special nature of the university, and his place and history in it – his voice rises to the level of a man talking about his most cherished possessions and beliefs.

“When I got here in 1975, I was a freshman like all the rest,” he said. “I had help, but this is the place where I wanted to be and where I think I belonged. In my first year, I was a hall monitor in a dorm, and you got a pretty good sense of student life that way. Father [Timothy] Healy was president, and he was a man who had been tasked into making Georgetown a presence in the United States, and I think he did that.”

DeGioia was an English major. He earned a Ph.D. in philosophy and still teaches a course in philosophy. One of his influences was the great philosophy professor Wilfrid Desan. “I went to him and asked him for advice,” DeGioia recalled. “He said, ‘Learn how to write.’ ” Not bad advice for living in academia, where writing – papers, theses, books, speeches – is like inhaling.

A student athlete, DeGioia started a chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and planned a first meeting. “I put up signs everywhere,” he said. “One person showed up. Guess who?”

It was coach John Thompson, who was in the early stages of turning Georgetown basketball into a national power, resulting in three Final Four appearances and an NCAA national title. That first appearance – in which the Hoyas lost a heartbreaker – captivated not only the university but the city, and changed perceptions of the role of the university in relationship to the city. In 1984, the Hoyas won it all.

Of Thompson, DeGioia said, “He has the soundest moral foundation. … You can knock that bell from every angle and it comes up true.”

Meanwhile, DeGioia, in addition to teaching, was busy. He became an assistant to President Healy and then dean of student affairs. After Healy’s retirement, he was tapped by President Leo O’Donovan, S.J., to deal with the financial problems of Georgetown’s teaching and operating hospital. By all accounts, he handled them deftly, preserving the teaching aspects while leading the transfer of operations to MedStar.

“I think I’ve been very lucky in terms of the people I’ve come in contact with here,” DeGioia said. “Every time I was tasked with something new and different, I was given the opportunity to learn more, and I took them, going to Wharton Business School, taking management courses and so on. My education never stopped.”

In 2001, when he was a senior vice president, O’Donovan was retiring. “I was advised to put in for the job,” DeGioia said. “People suggested that I interview but I never thought it was anything serious. There had never been a lay president before, and I thought people were being polite.”

The board of directors hired DeGioia, which was a “complete surprise and a complete life changer.” And a challenge.

Yet in many ways, DeGioia had already acquired the skill sets required of a modern university president, especially this one.

One quote that was prevalent at the time was, “Nobody knew more about the university except God.” Certainly, he had been involved with all aspects of the university: its physical plant, relations with the student body and community, its philosophical and religious base and its educational needs, plus the plans for outreach and expansion.
Still, it was a steep rise for the young man from a middle class background in Connecticut. He and his wife, Theresa Miller DeGioia, have a young son. Both are Georgetown alumni. At the time of his selection, one observer quipped that the university had “lost a priest but gained a father.”

Georgetown University is the oldest university in Washington. It is probably the university with the highest national and international profile in the city.

“We’re part of a rich academic community in this city,” DeGioia said. “We are all involved in responding to the growth of the city, and in managing our own growth and resources.”

Georgetown University’s relationship with the Georgetown neighborhood is a study in ironic, sometimes difficult symbiosis. There are always town-gown issues in a community with a university. Here, the relationship has been an up-and-down one. The village – which has not always been the prosperous, wealthy community that it’s perceived to be – has derived a good deal of its tony reputation from proximity to the university as well as the presence of movers and shakers, from presidents-to-be to ambassadors and cabinet holders, often Georgetown graduates.

“It’s the greatest campus in the greatest neighborhood in the City of Washington,” DeGioia said.
Yet, the growth of the university, with students living off campus and numerous construction projects, have sometimes incited opposition and anger in parts of the community.

That’s a problem DeGioia has addressed directly during the course of two different campus master plans and through a recent “peace treaty” with Georgetown residents and business groups. Its Georgetown Community Partnership is considered a model of cooperation.

Conversely, the village and city have given certain benefits to the university. DeGioia happily noted, “We can compete better on many levels nationally by saying we’re in Washington.”

Under DeGioia, the university’s vision has gone outside itself. It has expanded with locations in the city – a new downtown campus on Massachusetts Avenue, for instance – and in the world. The number of student dormitory beds has grown to 5,000-plus from 1,500. It also created a highly regarded arts center and an ambitious performance program to go with it. The university’s School of Foreign Service has a campus in Qatar.

“If we’re going to be global, it’s important that we be the strongest possible university right here in Washington,” DeGioia said.

And, now, there’s a Jesuit pope. Pope Francis is the first-ever pontiff from the Society of Jesus.

“It certainly has had an impact,” DeGioia said. “There are renewed conversations about the Jesuit spirit and philosophy and the Vatican on campus.”

DeGioia has taken a few hits. Allowing outgoing Health and Human Services Secretary Katherine Sibelius to speak on campus drew fire from church officials. His spirited, eloquent defense of Georgetown law student Sandra Fluke after she was attacked by conservative pit bull Rush Limbaugh generally drew praise.

“Every day, when I walk around the campus, I know I have the best job in the world for me,” said DeGioia, a happy-to-be-up-in-the-morning enthusiast, who will soon become the university’s longest-serving president.

“This place, this community of faith and knowledge, of students and priests. This place is special to me in ways you can’t imagine. I still love to teach. We’re expanding areas of cooperation. We’re making it possible to have more and more deserving people come here.”

You listen to him talk, the face expressive, the hands moving, and you see him as a leader, a people person, reaching out, into the world.

The other president should be so lucky to feel this good.

Robert Devaney •

She holds a position never held before at Georgetown University: spouse of the university president. She arrived as Theresa Miller from Las Vegas on a Steve Wynn scholarship to major in psychology and minor in government Georgetown. Now, she, her husband Jack and son John Thomas (“J.T,” named for his grandfathers) reside in Hillandale.

What was your best experience as a college student?

Meeting interesting and talented students from across the country and around the world, and participating in student government while studying in the nation’s capital were the best experiences one could imagine. That and an internship in the Senate prepared me to work in the office of National Service at the White House under President George H. W. Bush. And, of course, I loved watching Georgetown basketball games.

Did you find the East Coast very different?

Extremely different! It was a bit of a faster pace, but I loved it. And I must admit I didn’t know Safeways didn’t have slot machines or poker machines until my first visit to the
Social Safeway.

Do you still have family in Las Vegas?

My parents are still in Las Vegas. I have three younger brothers, two of whom went to Georgetown. Mark was in the School of Foreign Service; John was in the Business School.
The only one who didn’t go to Georgetown is Paul, who went to Carnegie Mellon to study architecture, as we don’t have an architecture program at Georgetown.

Besides being a mother, what is your main job these days?

I earned an MSW from Catholic University,
and I concentrated on children and adolescents. So, I’ve tried to stay involved in community service issues by serving on the boards of organizations like Catholic Charities and the Washington Jesuit Academy. And I love to volunteer with the students at Holy Trinity School.

How involved do you get with university projects?

As we’re the first family to serve in this role, we try to participate together in as many events as possible. My favorite ones involve the students, such as welcoming them to campus during freshman move-in day and celebrating Thanksgiving with all the undergrads and graduate students who stay in D.C. for Thanksgiving.

How did you meet Jack? When and where did you get married?

We met during my undergraduate years at Georgetown, and our first date (a couple of years after I graduated) was with his family and mine at a Georgetown basketball game in Las Vegas! We were married in 1994 (20 years in November) at Holy Trinity Church — that’s
our parish.

Will your son be going to Georgetown University?

I would love it. Although with all the Georgetown events he regularly attends, he may want to go elsewhere. I suppose I should understand, as I went across the country myself for college.

After Jack’s presidency, what else would you two like to do?

Are you kidding? The furthest I can think right now is helping J.T. prepare for high school applications!

Amos Gelb • May 5, 2014

Forget the round ball – Clipper-gate is turning into a massive game of paintball – and let’s see who gets shamed next. It is a wonderful lesson in the media, sparing no one.

Mr. Sterling, ye of “Don’t bring blacks to my game,” got this all started.

But then the alleged would-be-was-but-not-likely-to-be-anymore girlfriend (of mixed ethnicity no less) comes under the cloud of surreptitiously recording and seemingly entrapping an old man, potentially committing a felony by recording him without explicit permission (that gets into complicated state wire-tapping law and not worth the legal explication.)

Add to the list the chorus decrying the horrors of racism, including the NAACP whose local chapter had previously given Sterling an achievement award (that one was particularly delicious).

The NBA that has known Mr. Sterling has not been sterling for a long time, but it has never seen fit to call him on it except when his private malapropism threatens its very lucrative playoffs.

How about the networks, such as TMZ, that has become the racism-outing platform of record and then joined NBC in announcing an incorrect penalty minutes before the NBA commissioner announced what he had actually decided? (A media side note: David Gregory, the embattled “Meet the Press” anchor had to offer the apologies which cannot have helped his stock).

And it hardly seems the game has stopped.

How about the players and coach, whose disgust with their paymaster extended to turning their practice jerseys inside out? Rosa Parks, move over. Would it be too much to suggest that if they were that disgusted they should have not turned their shirts inside out but just turned their shirts in – as in quit – refused to play – say, “I will not take this bigot’s money”? Are they under contract? Sure. But what is the price of disgust? The legendary Doc Rivers, a player and coach role model if ever there was one, doesn’t need to worry about money. With all respect, Mr. Rivers, if there were ever a moment for you to show young men of all colors that sometimes you have to say enough, this would seem to be it.

Oh, and those fans. Can’t they just walk with their feet and their dollars? Nothing will get a Sterling sale quicker than losing money. But there seemed to be plenty of ticket-buying Clipper fans in the stands paying too much for concessions.

But it was different, I hear aficionados exclaim. It was the playoffs! So racism is only a walkable-offense during the regular season?

And then it was all safe, because the NBA banned Mr. Sterling for life.

But the funny thing about the media today is that there is nowhere to hide. There is no impunity anymore, even when there is a lifetime ban to hide behind. There is just a large magnifying glass looking for hypocrisy, plenty of which Mr. Sterling’s mouth seems to have lured into the open.

It makes one pine for the simpler times of OJ. Bring on the vitriol for that one.

Georgetowner •

Cultural Leadership Breakfast featuring Jenny Bilfield

May 22nd, 2014 at 08:00 AM | Tickets $20 ($15 for George Town Club members) | richard@georgetowner.com | Tel: 202. 338.4833 | Event Website

Join us for the Georgetown Media Group’s next Cultural Leadership Breakfast featuring Jenny Bilfield, President & CEO of Washington Performing Arts. The event will take place Thursday, May 22, from 8 to 9:30 a.m. at the George Town Club, 1530 Wisconsin Avenue, NW. The cost is $20 ($15 for George Town Club members). To RSVP by May 16, please email Richard@Georgetowner.com or call 202-338-4833.

Address

The George Town Club; 1530 Wisconsin Ave., NW

A performance titled “Moovance”

May 1st, 2014 at 08:00 PM | General Admission: $15 | Event Website

Moovance is a choreographic duo interpreted by Amine Boussa and Jeanne Azoulay that addresses questions of identity and that peculiar feeling of being torn between two different cultures, specifically for the French-Algerian. It is not solely about the couple’s interaction; it captures the connections, progress and intimacy intrinsic to the duality of two human beings.

Address

Gallaudet University, Elstad Auditorium – 800 Florida Ave., NE

Spring Art Walk: Book Hill Galleries

May 2nd, 2014 at 06:00 PM | Free | neptunebrowngalleries@gmail.com | Tel: 2023380353 | Event Website

The Georgetown Galleries on Book Hill invite you to our Spring Season Art Walk, Friday, May 2nd, 2014, from 6-8pm. Each of the six galleries will launch a fine art exhibition and host an evening stroll in one of the most beautiful parts of the city. Start the spring with a night of art, fun and refreshments while supporting the arts in DC!

Address

1662 33rd St., NW

Opening Reception: Relativity

May 2nd, 2014 at 06:00 PM | FREE | gallery@callowayart.com | Tel: 202-965-4601 | Event Website

Daniel Calder and Colin Taylor share a strong, expressive approach to laying down their paint, and while they also share a predilection for colors that are bright but nuanced, the similarities end there – the shapes they create are quite distinct.

Address

Susan Calloway Fine Arts, 1643 Wisconsin Ave., NW

Landon School’s 61st Azalea Garden Festival

May 2nd, 2014 at 10:00 AM | free | Tel: 301-320-3200 | Event Website

Join in the festivities at Landon School’s 61st Azalea Garden Festival, Friday, May 2 through Sunday, May 4.

Tour the beautiful two-and-half acre Perkins Garden, shop at over 60 specialty boutiques, purchase beautiful plants, listen to live music, enjoy delicious food, frolic at the FunLand carnival, and race in Mark’s Run 5K or 1-Mile Fun Run 8 a.m. on Sunday, May 4. Parking and admission are free.

Address

6101 Wilson Lane, Bethesda, Md. 20817

Neptune Fine Art presents: Jeff Chyatte, Straight from the Studio

May 2nd, 2014 at 12:00 PM | Free | neptunebrowngalleries@gmail.com | Tel: 2023380353 | Event Website

Neptune Fine Art is pleased to present the latest five outdoor sculptures from the studio of Jeff Chyatte.

These incredibly precise geometric aluminum totems merge the systems of our tech generation with complicated engineering of a fine craftsman. Welded by hand in aluminum and polished to perfection, each one rises from the garden with complex majesty.

Address

1662 33rd Street, NW

A performance titled “Un Petit Pas de Deux sur ses Pas”

May 2nd, 2014 at 08:00 PM | General Admission: $15 | Event Website

Choreographed to music of the famous burlesque actor Andre Bourvil, “Un Petit Pas de Deux sur ses Pas” (A Little Pas de Deux on his Footsteps) is a dynamic and witty piece that revisits different styles of dance, from waltz to ballet to hip hop, while maintaining humorous interaction with the audience.

Address

Lycée Rochambeau – 9600 Forest Rd, Bethesda, Md.

The Third Annual Running of the Chihuahuas

May 3rd, 2014 at 12:00 PM | 0.00 | charlotte@ontaponline.com | Tel: 703-465-0500 | Event Website

Kick off Cinco de Mayo with On Tap Magazine, Corona, Cantina Marina & The Wharf at the Third Annual Running of the Chihuahuas for Charity!

What: Chihuahua races, food trucks, beer stand, dog contests, a family friendly FREE event!

When: Saturday, May 3, 2014 | 12 pm to 3 pm (rain date: May 10)

Where: SW Waterfront, DC- between 6th and 7th Streets.

Why: A benefit event for animal charities and DC’s funniest Cinco celebration!

Address

600 Water St SW, Washington, DC 20024

DDOT to Host May 3 Meeting on the D.C. Circulator System at Wisconsin & M

May 3rd, 2014 at 03:00 PM | Event Website

The District Department of Transportation has been holding six pop-up meetings to solicit feedback from current and future riders on the D.C. Circulator bus system. Attend one of the meetings to provide feedback on the current system as well as future routes and extensions. The feedback from the meetings will be incorporated into the 2014 D.C. Circulator Transit Development Plan Update.

This weekend, the meeting will be noon to 3 p.m. on May 3 in a Circulator bus near the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and M Street, NW. The bus will be parked “just one door down from the Apple store,” said Reggie Sanders of DDOT.

A survey to gather feedback on the D.C. Circulator is at www.dccirculator.com. Each participant will be entered to win a $50 SmarTrip card with a winner randomly selected after the survey closes on May 9.

Address

Intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and M Street, NW

Andrew Wyeth: Looking Out, Looking In

May 4th, 2014 at 10:00 AM | Passes are not required for this exhibition | e-bond@nga.gov | Tel: (202) 737-4215 | Event Website

Andrew Wyeth’s fascination with windows is explored for the first time in an exhibition on view at the National Gallery of Art, its sole venue, from May 4 through November 30, 2014. Andrew Wyeth: Looking Out, Looking In will present some 60 tempera paintings, watercolors, and drawings that stand out from among 300 or more works of art by Wyeth depicting windows in figureless compositions. Inspired by the gift of Wyeth’s first and one of his most important paintings on the theme—Wind from the Sea (1947), donated to the Gallery in 2009— the exhibition will include several works from private collections that have never been on public view.

Address

National Gallery of Art; 6th and Constitution Ave NW

Chanticleer

May 4th, 2014 at 05:00 PM | Tickets: $40.00 each | sam@stjohnsgeorgetown.org | Tel: 202-338-1796 | Event Website

The Georgetown Concert Series presents Chanticleer.
Called “the world’s reigning male chorus” by The New Yorker magazine, the GRAMMY® award-winning ensemble. Praised for their “tonal luxuriance and crisply etched clarity,”. Chanticleer is known around the world as “an orchestra of voices” for the seamless blend of its twelve male voices ranging from countertenor to bass and its original interpretations of vocal literature, from Renaissance to jazz, and from gospel to venturesome new music.

Address

St. John’s Episcopal Church; Georgetown Parish; 3240 O St., NW

Robert Devaney •

Albrecht Gero Muth, convicted Jan. 16 of killing his 91-year-old wife Viola Herms Drath in August 2011 in their Q Street home in Georgetown, was given a 50-year prison sentence by Judge Russell F. Canan of D.C. Superior Court April 30. The prosecutors were seeking a life sentence.

Canan said he found the evidence against Muth “overwhelming” and scoffed at his hunger strikes in the hospital, where Muth remained during the trial and the sentencing and participated via videoconference.

Muth’s lawyer Dana Page spoke on his behalf, reading a statement that claimed Muth was innocent and that his wife was killed by Iranian agents.

“For the rest of his life, Muth won’t be able to masquerade as a military officer or member of a royal family while subjecting his wife to intolerable abuse,” U.S. Attorney Ronald Machen, Jr. said. “He will be a federal inmate paying the price for his brutal crime.”

Drath was found dead in the third-floor bathroom of her home on Q Street on Aug. 12, 2011, after being strangled and beaten.

Medical examiners determined Drath’s death to be a homicide – and not a result of falling, as Muth first contended. There had been not forced entry into the house. He was arrested a few days later on P Street, after being locked out of the house and wandering around the neighborhood and sleeping in nearby Montrose Park.

A veteran journalist and married previously to an Army colonel, Drath married Muth in 1990. The couple was known around town for their dinner parties with a mix of political, diplomatic, military and media VIPs. Drath was 44 years older than Muth.

Prosecutors argued that Muth showed a pattern of abuse against his wife and was motivated by money, saying he had no steady job and was not included in Drath’s will. “He was a good little con man,” prosecutor Glenn Kirschner told the jury.

During trial testimony, Drath’s daughters, Connie and Francesca (from her first marriage), talked about Muth’s money arrangements with his wife and of his emails to them about items he wanted upon her death.

Seen around Georgetown in faux military garb, the cigar-smoking Muth was perceived by neighbors and shopkeepers as an oddball. He said that he was a member of the Iraqi Army — which the Iraqi government denied. Muth went so far as to have arranged a 2010 ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery for Iraqi Liberation Day. He was also known around government and foundation lobbying circles as Count Albi of the EPG (Eminent Persons Group).