NEWS · 4

Innocents at Risk Founder, Deborah Sigmund, Dies

BY KATE OCZYPOK

Child advocacy non-profit Innocents at Risk founder Deborah “Debbie” Sigmund passed away unexpectedly Jan. 5, leaving behind a legacy of giving back to the wider community through her tireless charity work and philanthropy.

Born in Louisville, Kentucky, she was 71 and had suffered medical problems for several years.

Innocents at Risk was Sigmund’s brainchild after she learned about human trafficking during a 2003 trip to Europe. Horrified as a mother, Sigmund felt she needed to do something. She spoke to non-profits and visited the United Nations to hear about efforts to combat human trafficking. She spoke with singer Ricky Martin and his own children’s rights non-profit The Ricky Martin Foundation. She visited Queen Silvia of Sweden who had been working on the issue since 1996.

From the U.S. State Department, Sigmund learned about the pressing need to create awareness about human trafficking and child advocacy. She gathered her circle of friends and they quickly agreed to help. As a result, Innocents at Risk was formed as a 501(c) (3) in 2005. The organization is endorsed by The State Department for efforts to save the millions of women and children trafficked annually worldwide. You can find out more about Innocents at Risk and Sigmund’s efforts at: https://www.innocentsatrisk.org/.

“Debbie was beautiful inside and out,” Kandie Stroud, president of Stroud and Associates LLC, told The Georgetowner. “Her smile lit up a room. Her generosity of spirit, her kindness and commitment to the community were boundless. She passionately supported the Washington Ballet and was a champion in the fight to prevent child trafficking. She was devoted to her children and her friends who adored her, loved a good party and never missed an opening night.”

Sigmund’s life did have some public drama, not by any fault of her own. Donald Sigmund, who was married to Deborah for 17 years until spring 2001 — they remarried later — was the target of a pipe bomb planted under the driver’s seat of his Chevy Blazer. His son Wright, then 21, ended up being the victim. He had to endure over 25 skin graft surgeries and a variety of operations. After the incident, Wright’s half-brother Prescott “Scott” Sigmund, disappeared, leaving a wife and two sons behind. He fled to Montana, living under an assumed identity. Eventually, he turned himself in to authorities after the TV show “America’s Most Wanted” broadcast his name and photo. He was sentenced to 32 years in prison for attempting to kill his father.

In addition to her tireless work with Innocents at Risk, Sigmund was a 17-year board member of the Washington Ballet. She and her husband Donald were philanthropists for the Kennedy Center for years.

Deborah Sigmund. Photo MSNBC.

Edward Weidenfeld (1943-2022)

BY KATE OCZYPOK

With a resume that is impressive for even the most seasoned of Washingtonians, Edward L. Weidenfeld worked for six presidents and founded his own law firm, Weidenfeld Law Firm, P.C. He was often seen as the living embodiment of public service, having served on positions at both the national and international levels. He passed away last week at the age of 79 from complications of Parkinson’s disease.

He received his law degree from Columbia Law School and his bachelor of science degree from the University of Wisconsin. He was also elected a lifetime member of the American Law Institute.

Weidenfeld was especially fond of President Ronald Reagan, a man he admired both personally and politically. Weidenfeld was general counsel to the Reagan 1980 presidential campaign. Sheila Rabb Weidenfeld, his wife of over 50 years, was press secretary to former first lady Betty Ford and hosted the TV show “Panorama.” The couple called Georgetown home since 1971 and lived mostly recently on Q Street.

In addition to his work with Reagan, Weidenfeld held advisory positions on the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships and the Council of the Administrative Conference of the U.S. He was co-counsel to the Democracy Project, which eventually designed the National Endowment for Democracy. Weidenfeld helped with the return of Major League Baseball to Cuba in 1999 and before that, negotiated the first free exchange between the U.S. media and the Soviet news agency. He also represented the government of South Africa following the election of President Nelson Mandela.

“Ed was a mentor to so many,” said Georgetowner publisher Sonya Bernhardt of Weidenfeld. “Often, we met for lunch at one of his favorite places, the Metropolitan Club, where he encouraged and advised me. Ed had a lot of difficult health issues but never stopped being the optimistic, positive guy he always was. And like so many, my heart is broken for him and his family.”

In his later years, Weidenfeld was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He turned to something he admittedly knew little about — medical marijuana — to relieve symptoms like tremors and anxiety. He told The Georgetowner that while he had regular medication, cannabis addressed and augmented things that medicine couldn’t treat.

He ended up founding District Cannabis along with Andras Kirschner, who founded an 80-acre organic vegetable farm in Vermont and later relocated to California to work with and train other cannabis cultivators. Weidenfeld, along with Kirschner, made it their mission to grow the cleanest, most effective medicine possible.

“All of that, I suppose, that’s not bad for a guy that grew up in a small town in the Midwest, in Akron,” Weidenfeld told the Georgetowner’s late Gary Tischler in 2019.

Ed Weidenfeld. Family photo.

NEWS BYTES

BY PEGGY SANDS

MIDBLOCK CROSSWALK COMING TO M STREET

The long block of shops on both sides of 3200 M St. NW between Wisconsin Ave. and Potomac Street has long been a frequent site of dangerous jaywalking between four lanes of moving and parked cars. Now the DC Department of Transportation is planning to establish a cross walk about mid-block.

GEORGETOWN VILLAGE HAS MOVED TO LARGE NEW HOME ON 35TH STREET

to a large, accessible multi-room meeting and operational center at the former Fillmore School at 1801 35th Street. “The move to this fabulous area to spend time, socialize and relax is thanks to the generosity of the S&R Evermay Foundation and the assistance of our community,” Georgetown Village organizers wrote. An open house is being planned once furnishings and the move of the village’s medical equipment lending center is complete.

FREE BUS SERVICE IN D.C. TO BEGIN IN JULY

The plan for free bus service for any D.C. residents and visitors who initiate their rides in the District seems to be on track for summer 2023. Trips originating outside D.C. will still require a fare, and the Circulator bus system run by the DC Department of Transportation will continue to charge one dollar.

DUKE ELLINGTON SCHOOL ARTS BOARD CONTESTS FULL CONTROL BY BOWSER ADMINISTRATION

2023 will see the finalization of a dispute in the five-year round of contract negotiations between DC Public Schools and the board of trustees of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts on 35th and R St. NW. DCPS Chancellor Lewis Ferebee announced in 2022 that DCPS planned to assume total control of the dual academic/arts school, managed since its founding as two semi-autonomous entities. between DC Public Schools and the board of trustees of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts on 35th and R St. NW. DCPS Chancellor Lewis Ferebee announced in 2022 that DCPS planned to assume total control of the dual academic/arts school, managed since its founding as two semi-autonomous entities.

The Year of the Georgetown Renaissance

BY JOE STERNLIEB, GEORGETOWN BID CEO & PRESIDENT

It has been a bright start to 2023, as our 8th edition of Georgetown GLOW continues to light up the commercial district through January 22. Visit georgetownglowdc.com for a map and walk the 0.7 mile loop to see all five light art installations – from a 16-foot tall series of illuminated tubes that cascade down a building’s façade to create the effect of a waterfall, to six gigantic butterflies illuminating a historic church lawn, and a series of swings suspended from three glowing cloud structures in an alleyway.

Georgetown French Market, another BID signature event, will be returning April 28-30 for its 20th anniversary. Save the date for the popular open-air market in Book Hill. That same week, Georgetown Heritage will also host its second annual C&O Canal celebration and fundraiser; stay tuned for ticket information, and more details on upcoming boat programming.

We’re looking forward to another very active year on the leasing front, following 35 openings in 2022 – 10 more than the previous year. In the next three months, we expect Alkova, Maman, Tiachi Bubble Tea, GlossLab, Blank Street Coffee, Van Leeuwen Ice Cream, Everbody, and Hitched to all open. District Doughnut will also reopen in a new location on M Street, in the original sweetgreen building.

As you’ve likely observed, Georgetown is experiencing a true restaurant renaissance. Washingtonian recently named Georgetown the “in” neighborhood for dining in 2023, and several restaurant experts said Georgetown was their favorite neighborhood to eat in over the past year. The buzz is thanks, in part, to Stephen Starr and Nancy Silverton’s plans for an Italian market and restaurant in the former Dean & DeLuca space that is expected to open at the end of the year, as well the recent openings of Levantine café Yellow, and L’Avant-Garde, among other foodie favorites.

Newsworthy restaurant and retail openings have contributed to an increase in visitors, as Georgetown welcomed 12.7 million people in 2022 – a 6% increase over 2021. One of the ways we can continue comfortably accommodating Georgetown visitors, employees and residents alike is through our streatery and sidewalk extension program (otherwise known as the Georgetown Decks), which will continue to run through 2023. DDOT is also kicking off an access and circulation study, which will pave the way for longer-term improvements to Georgetown’s public space.

If we’ve learned anything over the past couple of years, it’s to expect the unexpected. That being said, we’re as excited as we’ve ever been about Georgetown’s evolution, and the momentum we have for the year ahead. We look forward to seeing everyone in Georgetown, and our continued partnership with so many of you.

For more on upcoming events and commercial district news, visit georgetowndc.com and sign up for our weekly BIDness newsletter.