Local
Comings & Goings
Nick Martin is new comms director for Rep. DelBene
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 Jeffrey Shields, FASAE, CAE on the National Business Officers Association (NBOA) of which he is president and CEO naming an award in his honor. It is the ‘Jeffrey Shields Award for Innovation Excellence in School Business Operations.’ Shields said, “After serving as president and CEO of NBOA for 10 years, I’m humbled and honored that the NBOA Board of Directors created the Jeffrey Shields Award for Innovation Excellence in School Business Operations. My sincere hope is that the award helps NBOA tell the stories of the many creative and innovative ways business officers and business operations staff strive, every single day, to be good and effective financial stewards of their school’s resources in support of their missions.”
NBOA is the only national nonprofit membership association dedicated to developing, delivering and promoting best business practices to advance independent schools. The association has grown from 23 founding member schools in 1998 to more than 1,500 member schools from the U.S., Canada, Mexico and 23 other countries around the globe. The association offers in-person programming, including the NBOA Annual Meeting and Business Officer Institute; online professional development; original research; and an award-winning magazine, Net Assets. Each offering covers timely and relevant topics for independent school business and operations professionals, including finance, accounting, tax, compliance, human resources, risk management, facilities and information technology.
Prior to joining NBOA Shields was Senior Vice President and Chief Planning Officer with the National Association of College and University Business Officers. He began his career in association management as the Assistant Director for Leadership Training at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). Jeffrey is an active member of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) and currently serves as a director of the organization. He was a member of the 2008 Class of ASAE Fellows (FASAE) and earned the Certified Association Executive (CAE) designation in 2002. He has been recognized by the Greater Washington Society of Association Executives (GWSAE) with the “Super Star” award as their active member of the year. He is a trustee for One Schoolhouse, an innovative online school offering supplemental education to independent schools. He previously served as a trustee for Georgetown Day School. He is a proud independent school parent of a 13-year-old daughter, Samantha, who is in 8th grade at the Edmund Burke School in Washington, DC. He earned his bachelor’s from Shippensburg University and his master’s from Ohio State University.
Congratulations also to Nick Martin who is the new communications director for Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-Wash.). Upon accepting the position, Martin said, “I’m beyond excited to join Congresswoman DelBene’s team. She is such a strong advocate for the LGBTQ+ community and her constituents in Washington. I cannot wait to help tell that story.”
Prior to joining DelBene’s staff, Martin was a director with Forbes Tate Partners where he helped to develop and lead communications and public affairs campaigns for national health care providers, patient advocates, trade associations, and political organizations to build engagement and action around policy priorities. He has also worked for other organizations including being Communications and Outreach Director for the Coalition to Transform Advanced Care and was an Associate Director with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. He has worked as a Field Coordinator with the Human Rights Campaign. He recently served as the Convener, Health Policy Committee for the Pete for America Campaign.
Nick earned his bachelor’s in International Affairs graduating summa cum laude from Northeastern University in Boston.
District of Columbia
Brian Footer suspends campaign for Ward 1 D.C. Council seat
Race’s third LGBTQ candidate cites family reasons for ‘stepping back’
Gay Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Brian Footer, who was one of three out LGBTQ candidates running for the open Ward 1 D.C. Council seat in the city’s June 16, 2026, Democratic primary, announced on Dec. 17 he has decided to “suspend” his campaign to focus on his family.
“After deep reflection and honest conversations with my family, I have decided to suspend my campaign for the D.C. Council,” he said in a statement. “This moment in my life requires me to be present with the people I love most and honor the responsibilities I carry both at home and in the community,” he states. “This was not an easy decision, but it is the right one for me and my family at this time.”
Footer, a longtime Ward 1 community activist and LGBTQ rights advocate, announced his candidacy for the Ward 1 Council seat in July, one month before bisexual Ward 1 community activist Aparna Raj announced her candidacy for the Council seat on Aug. 12.
Gay Ward 1 Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Miguel Trindade Deramo announced his candidacy for the Ward 1 Council seat on Nov. 18, becoming the third out LGBTQ candidate in what appeared to be an unprecedented development for a race for a single D.C. Council seat.
At least three other candidates who are not LGBTQ are running for the Ward 1 Council seat. They include Ward 1 ANC member Rashida Brown, longtime Ward 1 community activist Terry Lynch, and Jackie Reyes-Yanes, the former director of the Mayor’s Office of Community Affairs.
In his statement announcing the suspension of his candidacy, Footer said he would continue to be involved in community affairs and advocate for the issues he discussed during his campaign.
“I want to be clear: I am stepping back from the race, not the work,” he says in his statement. “Public service has always been my calling. I will continue advocating for affordability, for safer streets, for stability for small businesses, and for a government that responds to people with urgency and respect,” he wrote. “And I will continue showing up as a partner in the work of building a stronger Ward 1.”
Footer concluded by thanking and praising his campaign supporters and calling his campaign suspension a “transition,” suggesting he is not likely to resume his candidacy.
His campaign press spokesperson did not immediately respond to a question from the Washington Blade asking if Footer might later resume his campaign or if his latest action was in effect an end to his candidacy.
“To everyone who knocked on doors, hosted conversations, donated, shared encouragement, and believed in this campaign, thank you,” he says in his statement. “I am deeply grateful for every person who helped this campaign take root,” he added. “This isn’t an ending, it’s a transition. And I’m excited for the work ahead, both in Ward 1 and at home with my family.”
Longtime gay D.C. Democratic Party activist Peter Rosenstein said in a statement to the Blade, “I respect Brian Footer’s decision to end his campaign for Council. It is not easy to run a campaign in D.C. and there are many others running in Ward 1.” He added, “While not living in Ward 1, I thank Brian for all he has done and clearly will continue to do for the people in the ward.”
Local
LGBTQ, LGBTQ-friendly congregations to hold holiday services
Bet Mishpachah’s Hanukkah service to take place on Friday
LGBTQ and LGBTQ-friendly congregations in D.C. will hold services and other events throughout the holiday season.
Bet Mishpachah on Friday will hold its Sparks in the Dark Happy Hour at Spark Social on 14th Street from 5:30-7:30 p.m. It’s Chanuka Shabbat Service will begin at the Edlavitch DC Jewish Community Center (1529 16th St., N.W.) at 8 p.m.
Hanukkah began on Sunday and will end on Dec. 22.
Two gunmen on Sunday killed 15 people and injured more than two dozen others when they opened fire at a Hanukkah celebration on Sydney’s Bondi Beach.
Jake Singer-Beilin, Bet Mishpachah’s chief rabbi, in a Facebook post mourned the victims.
“We grieve for the victims and send heartfelt prayers of healing for those who were wounded,” he wrote.
“This Chanuka, our lights will shine brightly in the darkness, but our hearts will be heavy with mourning for those who were murdered on Bondi Beach while observing what should have been a joyous day,” added Singer-Beilin. “We will still celebrate our Festival of Lights and we will commit ourselves to illuminating and repairing our broken world. Let us channel the bravery of the Maccabees who found hope where there seemed to be none, and who fought to create a better future. We must do the same.”
LGBTQ Catholic group to hold annual Christmas Day Mass
Dignity Washington’s Christmas Day Mass will take place at St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church (1820 Connecticut Ave., N.W.) on Dec. 25 from 6-7 p.m. Parishioners can attend in person or watch it online via Facebook.
The Metropolitan Community Church of Washington D.C.’s Christmas Eve service will take place at the church (474 Ridge St., N.W., on Dec. 24 at 6 p.m.
St. Thomas Episcopal Church (1517 18th St., N.W.) in Dupont Circle will hold its Christmas Eve Festival Eucharist from 5-6 p.m. A Christmas Eve dinner will take place in the Parish Hall from 6-8:30 p.m. The church’s Christmas Eve Festival Eucharist will occur on Dec. 25 from 10-11 a.m.
Washington National Cathedral throughout the holiday season has a number of services and events scheduled. These include the virtual Gospel Christmas Service on Dec. 21 from 6-7:30 p.m., the Family Christmas Service on Dec. 23 from 11 a.m. to noon, the Christmas Eve Festival Holy Eucharist on Dec. 24 from 10-11:45 p.m., and the Christmas Day Festival Holy Eucharist on Dec. 25 from 11:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.
The Foundry United Methodist Church (1500 16th St., N.W.) in Dupont Circle will hold its Christmas Eve Family Service on Dec. 24 at 4:30 p.m. Its Carols and Candlelight Service will take place at 8 p.m.
Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum to celebrate Kwanzaa
The Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum (1901 Fort Place S.E.) in Anacostia will mark the first day of Kwanzaa on Dec. 26 with storytelling and drumming with Mama Ayo and Baba Ras D from noon to 2 p.m. The museum will hold a series of other events through the 6-day celebration of African American culture that ends on Jan. 1.
The Creative Suitland Arts Center (4719 Silver Hill Road) in Suitland, Md., on Friday will hold their Almost Kwanzaa: A Creative Kind of Holiday event from 6-8:30 p.m.
Maryland
Joseline Peña-Melnyk elected Md. House speaker
Family immigrated to New York City from the Dominican Republic
By PAMELA WOOD | Moments after being elected speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates Tuesday, state Del. Joseline Peña-Melnyk stood before the chamber and contemplated her unlikely journey to that moment.
Born in the Dominican Republic, the Peña family lived in a small wooden house with a leaky tin roof and no indoor plumbing. Some days, she said, there was no food to eat.
When she was 8 years old, the family immigrated to New York City, where Peña-Melnyk was dubbed “abogadito” or “little lawyer” for helping her mother and others by translating at social services offices.
The rest of this article can be read on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
Candidates should pledge to nominate LGBTQ judge to Supreme Court
Kazakh Senate approves anti-LGBTQ propaganda bill
Local, last-minute holiday gift ideas
2026 elections will bring major changes to D.C. government
Brian Footer suspends campaign for Ward 1 D.C. Council seat
PHOTOS: The Holiday Show
The best books to give this holiday season
Studio’s ‘Mother Play’ draws from lesbian playwright’s past
Far-right José Antonio Kast elected Chile’s next president
