Local
Janice Moncier dies at 68
Award-winning activist, longtime D.C. resident
Janice L. ‘Jan’ Moncier
Janice L. “Jan” Moncier, a certified financial planner and longtime resident and neighborhood activist on Capitol Hill, died July 16 at the Washington Home and Community Hospices following a lengthy battle with breast cancer. She was 68.
According to information released by her partner of 33 years, Ann Norwood, the couple lived in D.C. since 1988, when they bought a Capitol Hill townhouse near Stanton Park that became their home.
“Jan’s interest in historic preservation led to a basement full of hardware, skylights, and door frames that she used to authentically restore elements of their 100-year-old Victorian row house,” according to a write-up prepared by Norwood.
“A dedicated neighborhood activist, Jan participated in neighborhood cleanups and ‘orange hat’ crime watches and advocated for years for the recent repaving of the alley behind their home,” the write-up says.
It says Moncier was born and raised in Tennessee on a small tobacco and dairy farm. She became an active member of the 4-H Club during her childhood years, pursuing many civic activities such as health, leadership and recreation projects.
She became a recognized athlete both in high school and at Wheaton College in Illinois, where she was inducted into its Hall of Fame for athletic achievement. She received a master’s degree in physical education at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
The write-up released by Norwood says Moncier went on to teach high school at U.S. Department of Defense schools in Iceland and Germany. Norwood said her partner later became a stockbroker for the E.F. Hutton Company in San Francisco. Norwood said that’s where the two met in 1981 while Norwood was completing her psychiatric residency with the U.S. Army at Letterman Army Medical Center.
The couple next moved to the Fort Hood, Texas, area where Moncier became a certified financial planner. The two moved to Washington in 1988.
In 1996, when she was first diagnosed with breast cancer, Moncier received support services from the Mautner Project, a D.C.-area lesbian health organization. The following year, after completing treatment, she became a Mautner volunteer and was recognized for her service to the group in 1999 by receiving its direct services award.
She retired from her job with the ICMA-RC retirement planning company for public-sector employees in 2008 for health reasons after her cancer returned, Norwood said.
“Jan was known for her extreme generosity, love of gardening, travel and women’s basketball; and her devotion to finding a good deal on Craigslist,” Norwood said in her write-up.
Moncier was predeceased by her parents, Mark and Bonnie Wilhoit Moncier; her sister, Sherry Rockstad; and her brother, David Moncier. She is survived by Norwood, her spouse; her brother-in-law Phil Rockstad; sister-in-law Margaret Moncier; her nephew Jonathan Moncier; and several aunts, uncles and cousins.
A memorial service is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 9, at 1 p.m. at the Hill Center on Capitol Hill at 921 Pennsylvania Ave., S.E. in D.C. The family asks that memorial contributions be made to a favorite charity in lieu of flowers.
Photos
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Gay Men’s Chorus, local drag artists have featured performance at ceremony
The 41st Helen Hayes Awards were held at The Anthem on Monday, May 19. Felicia Curry and Mike Millan served as the hosts.
A performance featuring members of the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington and local drag artists was held at the end of the first act of the program to celebrate WorldPride 2025.
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(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
District of Columbia
Laverne Cox, Reneé Rapp, Deacon Maccubbin named WorldPride grand marshals
Three LGBTQ icons to lead parade
WorldPride organizers announced Thursday that actress and trans activist Laverne Cox, powerhouse performer Reneé Rapp, and LGBTQ trailblazer Deacon Maccubbin will serve as grand marshals for this year’s WorldPride parade.
The Capital Pride Alliance, which is organizing WorldPride 2025 in Washington, D.C., revealed the honorees in a press release, noting that each has made a unique contribution to the fabric of the LGBTQ community.
Cox made history in 2014 as the first openly transgender person nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category for her role in Netflix’s “Orange Is the New Black.” She went on to win a Daytime Emmy in 2015 for her documentary “Laverne Cox Presents: The T Word,” which followed seven young trans people as they navigated coming out.
Rapp, a singer and actress who identifies as a lesbian, rose to prominence as Regina George in the Broadway musical “Mean Girls.” She reprised the role in the 2024 film adaptation and also stars in Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls,” portraying a character coming to terms with her sexuality. Rapp has released an EP, “Everything to Everyone,” and an album, “Snow Angel.” She announced her sophomore album, “Bite Me,” on May 21 and is slated to perform at the WorldPride Music Festival at the RFK Festival Grounds.
Deacon Maccubbin, widely regarded as a cornerstone of Washington’s LGBTQ+ history, helped organize D.C.’s first Gay Pride Party in 1975. The event took place outside Lambda Rising, one of the first LGBTQ bookstores in the nation, which Maccubbin founded. For his decades of advocacy and activism, he is often referred to as “the patriarch of D.C. Pride.”
“I am so honored to serve as one of the grand marshals for WorldPride this year. This has been one of the most difficult times in recent history for queer and trans people globally,” Cox said. “But in the face of all the rhetorical, legislative and physical attacks, we continue to have the courage to embrace who we truly are, to celebrate our beauty, resilience and bravery as a community. We refuse to allow fear to keep us from ourselves and each other. We remain out loud and proud.”
“Pride is everything. It is protection, it is visibility, it is intersectional. But most importantly, it is a celebration of existence and protest,” Rapp said.
The three will march down 14th Street for the WorldPride Parade in Washington on June 7.
2025 D.C. Trans Pride was held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library on Saturday, May 17. The day was filled with panel discussions, art, social events, speakers, a resource fair and the Engendered Spirit Awards. Awardees included Lyra McMillan, Pip Baitinger, Steph Niaupari and Hayden Gise. The keynote address was delivered by athlete and advocate Schuyler Bailar.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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