Local
Former Whitman-Walker board chair dies at 65
Jannette Williams praised for long leadership role in community
Jannette Williams
Longtime LGBT community advocate Jannette Williams, who served nearly 25 years as a volunteer and adviser for D.C.’s Whitman-Walker Health and three years as chair of the Whitman-Walker board, died June 28 at Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring, Md. She was 65.
Friends said the cause of death was cancer.
A lifelong D.C. resident, Williams worked for the federal government at the U.S. Postal Service and later at the Department of Justice, where she recently retired after 34 years of government service.
Whitman-Walker spokesperson Shawn Jain said Williams first became a volunteer at what was then called Whitman-Walker Clinic in 1991. She served on the clinic’s board from 1996 to 2010 and served as board chair from 2000 to 2002 and 2006 to 2007.
Jain said she had strong ties to the metro D.C. lesbian community; the Mautner Project for Lesbian Health, which later became a program of Whitman-Walker; Whitman-Walker’s Lesbian Resource Center and its Lesbian Services Program.
From 1994 to 1996 she served as president of Whitman-Walker’s Black Lesbian Support Group.
Among her other community involvements, Williams was a longtime supporter and volunteer for D.C.’s annual Black LGBT Pride festival and related events as well as Whitman-Walker’s annual AIDS Walk fundraising drive.
Don Blanchon, Whitman-Walker’s executive director, said Williams was instrumental in recruiting him to his leadership post at Whitman-Walker at a time when she served on the board as the LGBT community health organization was undergoing changes.
“She taught me the most important single lesson that I’ve learned during my time here, which is people from the LGBT community come to Whitman-Walker not just for services but they really come here for dignity, respect and love,” Blanchon said.
“And it’s the most powerful lesson I’ve ever learned, and I’ll never forget it,” he said.
Blanchon said Williams’ leadership role as board chair during and immediately after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks was especially helpful in guiding Whitman-Walker through a period when fundraising efforts for non-profit organizations were adversely impacted.
“She was impactful on people’s lives because she did it relationship to relationship,” Blanchon said. “She really did help individuals navigate – whether they were coming out, whether they needed care, whether they needed peer support, whatever they needed; she did it in the community at the grassroots level. And she did it one person at a time,” he said.
She was predeceased by her parents, James and Creola Williams, her brother James E. Williams Jr. and her twin sister Annette Johnson, according to information provided by family members.
Williams is survived by her son, Robert L. Williams, daughter Dedria Williams, granddaughters Sierra Smoot and Shanelle Scofield; her sisters Dianna H. Walker and Patricia W. Jones; and her cat Sugar. She was the beloved aunt to six nieces and nephews and great-aunt to nine nieces and a nephew.
A viewing is scheduled to be held Friday, July 3, at 10 a.m. at Metropolitan Community Church, 474 Ridge Rd., N.W., in D.C. A service in celebration of her life is scheduled to follow the viewing at 11 a.m.
District of Columbia
Campaign launched to elect more LGBTQ candidates to ANC seats
Capital Stonewall Democrats behind Queering ANCs effort
The Capital Stonewall Democrats, D.C.’s largest local LGBTQ political group, announced on July 7 it has launched a campaign to help elect large numbers of LGBTQ candidates to the city’s Advisory Neighborhood Commissions.
The D.C. local government is believed to be unique among U.S. cities in currently having 46 Advisory Neighborhood Commissions consisting of 345 single-member districts in neighborhoods throughout the city in which unpaid Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners are elected for two-year terms.
The commissions are charged with considering a wide range of policies and programs impacting their neighborhoods, including traffic, parking, recreation, street improvements, liquor licenses, zoning, economic development, police protection, sanitation and trash collection, and D.C.’s annual budget, according to the ANC website.
Although the ANCs do not have authority to set or reject policies or proposals, such as applications for liquor licenses, city agencies are required to give “great weight” to ANC recommendations, according to the law creating the ANCs.
Kent Boese, a gay former ANC commissioner, currently serves as executive director of the D.C. Office of ANCs.
“We are launching the most ambitious hyperlocal LGBTQ+ candidate pipeline initiative in the country,” said Stevie McCarty, the Capital Stonewall Democrats president, in a July 7 statement that announced the Queering ANCs campaign.
“As an ANC member, I know firsthand how these seats shape our neighborhoods, from housing and public safety to sanitation,” McCarty says in the statement. “I’m proud to lead this effort to ensure more LGBTQ+ Washingtonians see themselves as leaders in their communities,” he said.
The ANC Rainbow Caucus, which was created by LGBTQ ANC members, shows on its website that there are currently 38 caucus members consisting of elected LGBTQ ANC commissioners serving in the current 2025-2026 two-year term.
The website shows there are LGBTQ commissioners who are caucus members in each of the city’s eight wards, with six in Ward 1, eight in Ward 2, one in Ward 3, six in Ward 4, five in Ward 5, three in Ward 6, eight in Ward 7, and one in Ward 8.
The Washington Blade couldn’t immediately determine how many of them will be running for re-election in D.C.’s general election in November. But McCarty said Capital Stonewall Democrats hopes to recruit many more LGBTQ candidates to run for ANC seats.
The D.C. Board of Elections website shows the deadline for filing 25 required petition signatures to be placed on the ballot is Aug. 5.
A Queering ANCs website launched this week by Capital Stonewall Democrats provides details on how to run for an ANC seat and offers help for those interested in running.
“Think of someone in your building, neighborhood, friend group, community organization, or professional network who cares deeply about D.C. and would make a strong leader,” McCarty says in his statement. “Send them QueeringANCs.org and personally ask them to consider running,” he said.
The website can be accessed at QueeringANCs.org.
Baltimore
Ron Singer, owner of popular Mount Vernon gay bar Leon’s, dies
66-year-old’s funeral to take place Friday
By CAYLA HARRIS | Ron Singer, the owner of Baltimore’s popular gay bar Leon’s Backroom, died Tuesday, the venue announced in a social media post. He was 66.
“For more than 20 years, Ron made Leon’s a place so many people were proud to call home,” the post reads. “He will be deeply missed.”
The Mount Vernon bar, typically open from 4 p.m. to 2 a.m. daily, is still open Thursday, but doors will close at midnight so staff can attend his funeral Friday morning. Services are scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. at Sol Levinson’s Chapel.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
District of Columbia
Mary’s House founder, CEO retires
Dr. Imani Woody played leading role in opening DC’s first home for LGBTQ seniors
The board of directors for Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC’s first official home dedicated to providing affordable housing for LGBTQ seniors, announced on July 7 that its founding president and CEO, Dr. Imani Woody, has retired.
Woody, who holds a PhD in Human Services, is credited with playing a leading role over many years in arranging both city and private funding needed to construct and operate the Mary’s House three-story building located at 401 Anacostia Road, S.E., in the city’s Fort Dupont neighborhood.
The house, which opened in March 2025, with a grand opening ceremony held in May 2025, includes 15 single-occupancy residential units and more than 5,000 square feet of shared communal living space.
“It is with profound gratitude and hearts full of celebration that the board of directors of Mary’s House for Older Adults, DC (MHFOA) announces the retirement of our visionary founder, Dr. Imani Woody, from her role as president and CEO,” the Mary’s House board says in a statement.
“Dr. Woody’s journey with Mary’s House began with her vision and a kitchen table gathering of women with a bold, urgent, and loving vision: to create safe, affirming, affordable housing for LGBTQ/SGL older adults in Washington, DC,” the statement says.
It adds, “What started as a dream has grown into DC’s first affordable LGBTQ+/SGL affirming communal living space for adults 60 and over, a 15-room community residence at 401 Anacostia Road in Southeast Washington.”
The statement says Woody will continue to serve on Mary’s House board.
“The board will be sharing information about the leadership transition process in the coming weeks,” the statement continues. “We are committed to honoring Dr. Woody’s legacy by ensuring Mary’s House continues to thrive and grow in faithful service to LGBTQ/SGL elders experiencing housing insecurity and isolation.”
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