Local
James Rees, former president of George Washington estate, dies at 62
Virginia resident survived by his husband
James Rees (Photo courtesy of the George Washington Estate at Mount Vernon)
James C. Rees, IV, the nationally acclaimed president and CEO of the George Washington house and estate in Mount Vernon, Va., died Sept. 9 at his home in nearby Markham, Va. He was 62.
Kirk Blandford, his partner of 29 years whom he married last year, said the cause of death was multiple system atrophy, a neurological disorder, according to the Washington Post.
Information posted on the website of the Mount Vernon Ladies Association, a non-profit organization that has owned and managed the George Washington estate since 1853, credits Rees with playing a key role in greatly expanding the estate’s mission to educate the public about the “unparalleled legacies” of the nation’s first president.
“Preserving the estate and promoting the enduring legacy of George Washington comprised the centerpiece of Jim’s life,” Barbara B. Lucas, regent of the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, said in a statement posted on the website.
“The Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association benefited beyond measure from his vision, energy and leadership,” she said.
The association says that during his term as president from 1994 to 2012, Rees “oversaw fundraising efforts totaling more than a quarter billion dollars for projects designed to bring George Washington back into the national spotlight.”
It was Rees’ vision that led to the development and opening of the “cutting-edge $60 million, 66,700-square-foot Ford Orientation and Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center buildings in 2006,” the association says in its web statement.
Rees has also been credited with leading efforts to restore and reconstruct George Washington’s Distillery & Gristmill as part of a four-acre exhibition farm site and “countless other important restorations on the 500-acre property,” the statement says.
The association’s write-up notes that before his retirement in June 2012, Rees secured $83 million out of $100 million needed to build and endow Mount Vernon’s newest addition — the Fred W. Smith National Library for the Study of George Washington. The library opened in September 2013.
Prior to becoming president of the estate Rees served as director of development and associate director beginning in 1983. The Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association write-up says that during his 29-year tenure at Mount Vernon the staff nearly doubled and the Mount Vernon endowment grew from $4 million to more than $100 million.
Rees worked previously for the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the College of William and Mary and served on the board of directors for the Fairfax County Convention and Visitors Corporation and the Piedmont Environmental Council of Virginia.
He received his undergraduate degree from the College of William and Mary and a master’s degree in public administration from George Washington University. Among the many honors and awards he received were the George Washington University President’s Medal for outstanding leadership and service and the Ann Pamela Cunningham Medal — the highest honor awarded by the Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association.
Rees is survived by his husband and life partner Kirk Blandford; a brother, George and his wife Cindy of Atlanta; and two nieces, Cameron Rees of Virginia and Courtney Rees of Germany. He was predeceased by his parents, Conway and Kitty Rees of Richmond, Va.
Memorial contributions can be made in his honor to the Multiple System Atrophy Coalition at www.multipleystematropy.org; and the James C. Rees Memorial Fund, c/o Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, P.O. Box 110, Mount Vernon, Va., 22121, 703-799-8647.
The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at [email protected].
The Comings & Goings column also invites LGBTQ college students to share their successes with us. If you have been elected to a student government position, gotten an exciting internship, or are graduating and beginning your career with a great job, let us know so we can share your success.
Congratulations to Yadiel Meléndez, on their new role as Community Associate, with the Wanda Alston Foundation. Meléndez is piloting a new role as a Community Associate at the Wanda Alston Foundation, where they support queer and trans young people in finding their footing, building independence, and experiencing a housing community where they are seen, valued, and affirmed. They are coming into this role with more than a decade of experience as a community organizer and operations specialist, supporting diverse communities through service, advocacy, and program coordination.
Previously they worked for Right Proper Brewing Shaw as a server and bartender and at Sephora, Washington, DC, and at FreshFarm, DC, in bilingual food access. They also worked freelance to build foundational structures for local queer BIPOC performance art coalitions, producing variety shows to curate space for marginalized performance artists in the community. They were a production manager for Haus of Hart Productions, a BIPOC centric performance art production. They also worked as field staff with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in Stafford, Va.
Meléndez is bilingual, Spanish and English. Their work is guided by a commitment to dignity, safety, and trauma-informed engagement, particularly within LGBTQ and BIPOC communities.
Congratulations also to Ben Rosen LICSW, on his new role as program director, with the Wanda Alston Foundation. Rosen previously worked with Fountain House’s OnRamps program, helping to build a new, innovative outreach program for individuals considered chronically homeless, and living with serious mental illness, in the Times Square area of New York. Rosen is a Psychotherapist, having worked with SG Psychotherapy, and as the psychotherapist with the Nest Community Health Center (URAM).
Rosen has a B.F.A. in Theatre Arts: Musical Theatre, Minor in Psychology (Cum Laude) from Malloy University Conservatory; and his M.S.W. in Clinical Practice with Individuals, Families, and Groups, from The Silberman School of Social Work, Hunter College, N.Y. He is independently licensed in New York and Washington, D.C.
Rehoboth Beach
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
Attendees encouraged to wear appropriate gear
Diego’s in Rehoboth Beach hosts a monthly leather happy hour. April’s edition is scheduled for Friday, April 10, 5-7 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to wear appropriate gear. The event is billed as an official event of BLUF, the free community group for men interested in leather. After happy hour, the attendees are encouraged to reconvene at Local Bootlegging Company for dinner, which allows cigar smoking. There’s no cover charge for either event.
District of Columbia
Celebrations of life planned for Sean Bartel
Two memorial events scheduled in D.C.
Two celebrations of life are planned for Sean Christopher Bartel, 48, who was found deceased on a hiking trail in Argentina on or around March 15. Bartel began his career as a television news reporter and news anchor at stations in Louisville, Ky., and Evansville, Ind., before serving as Senior Video Producer for the D.C.-based International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union from 2013 to 2024.
A memorial gathering is planned for Friday, April 10, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at the IBEW International Office (900 7th St., N.W.), according to a statement by the DC Gay Flag Football League, where Bartel was a longtime member. A celebration of life is planned that same evening, 6-8 p.m. at Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.).
Minimal version of ‘Streetcar Named Desire’ heading to Dupont Underground
Comings & Goings
An effort to increase the number of psychiatrists of color
Calendar: April 10-16
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
Cuba under pressure and without answers
Tenn. lawmakers pass transgender “watch list” bill
Vance speaks at Orbán rally in Hungary
Amendments to India’s transgender rights law criticized
