Conrad and his first wife entertained often in their Georgetown house in the '60s, giving parties -- often liberal fund-raisers -- that offered cozy intimations of radical chic. Conrad's strategy has been diversity. Washington, DC 20007 There is, for example, the very palpable legacy of real estate developed by Morris Cafritz, including several lots and office buildings downtown. Mr. To those who thronged to the parties, the children were rarely in evidence. In 2001, the Cafritz Foundation gave $1 million toward the Cafritz Conference Center in the University Student Center. 2017-2023 Tribute Archive. ", Today, he still combats a version of that assumption, pithily summed up by one detractor in this way: "You don't have to be Albert Einstein to take money and make additional money in real estate." Calvin Cafritz Death - Calvin Cafritz, a real estate developer, businessman, and philanthropist in the District of Columbia, passed away on Thursday, January 12, 2023, at Sibley Memorial Hospital. Upon Morris Cafritz's death in 1964, he became president of the Cafritz Co.; and in the first will Gwendolyn wrote, in 1969, which included all three sons, she made Calvin an executor and left him the Foxhall Road house. Today, Calvin is foundation chairman. He left it as follows: Half to the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation. "Carter Cafritz is just a genuine nice fellow," says Raymond Carter, a former vice president of the Cafritz Co. "Conrad is more in the father's mold. "Old Washington was very antisemitic, as you know," continues Vidal, whose childhood here as the stepson of lawyer and investor Hugh D. Auchincloss and the grandson of Oklahoma Sen. Thomas Gore gave him an intimate education in Washington society. All three sons were rumored to have difficult relationships with their mother, and it was rare to find them together, bearing in unison the family standard. "I make no other provision in this will for the benefit of my children," it states, "as their financial needs are adequately provided for" by the old agreement giving them $7 million each. Calvins brother Carter passed away in 2019. . sales@governmentexecutiveconsultingservices.com, Copyright 2022 Government Executive Consulting Services. Website by Red Clay Creative, Chances are, many Washingtonians might not even realize how much real estate the Cafritz family is responsible for in the area. We welcome you to provide your thoughts and memories on our Tribute Wall. Named in the lawsuit, besides Calvin, is everyone to whom Gwendolyn Cafritz made a bequest, including her former servants and grandchildren, two nephews and an old escort. In 1971, he resigned from the company amid reports of conflict with his mother, and by the time she wrote a 1977 will, all three sons, including Calvin, had been dealt out of any inheritance. Cafritz was a tireless promoter of the city. Calvins father Morris built the now-demolished Ambassador Hotel at 14. and K Streets NW, homes next to the National Arboretum, the Greenwich Forest neighborhood in Bethesda and several office buildings downtown. Morris Cafritz is remembered more for the quantity than for the aesthetic quality of his works. Once it was built, he wasn't interested in it.". ", Gwendolyn's estate is worth at least $140 million, including both her personal holdings and a trust passed on from Morris Cafritz's will (see box, Page 32). They keep china and glassware sufficient to serve hundreds. Between 1925 and 1941, Cafritz built more than 85 apartment houses, including 15 large luxury buildings, such as the Majestic and the Hightowers on 16th Street NW and the Westchester on Cathedral Avenue NW. Obituary. But it was hard to remember, here, the titanic social ambition that had made her what she was. And other times she didn't. Late last year, Calvins wife Jane was elected to succeed her husband as the foundations president and CEO and he was named chairman emeritus. When the Duke and Duchess of Windsor came and danced downstairs in "the Club," with the dance floor lighted from below. To Edward R. Murrow, in a 1956 interview, she said that to speak of Washington cocktail parties was "unfair to Washington. His father, Morris, established one of the Washington region's leading philanthropic entities, the Morris and . This suit asks the court to overturn her will, after which, under D.C. law, her property would be divided among her sons. Perhaps one day Calvin, or Conrad, or some Cafritz now unknown, will find a way to bring together the opposite forms of ambition that thrived in this house, and give a second start to the dynasty that never was. The strange paradox of her marriage was that Morris's money enabled her to carry out her lavish social dreams, while the family's being Jewish also placed limits on her chances of realizing them. Once grown, the sons established limited, perfunctory contacts with their mother. Calvin's younger brothers, Conrad and Carter, are behind-the- scenes players in many business and charitable ventures players. That task was left to her closest relatives. . There are hints too that he has social ambitions on Gwendolyn's scale, if not exactly of her type. The Cafritz Foundation is also responsible for developing Art Place at Fort Totten, a huge mixed-use project in the Northeast D.C. area. He is also survived by his three children, Elliot Cafritz (Lauren), Anthony Cafritz (Pearl), and Elizabeth Peltekian(Viken); five grandchildren, Sam, Alexander, Seb, Aram, and Van; three stepchildren, Olivia Rubenstein, Irina Rubenstein, and James Speyer; and two step-grandchildren Evan and MJSpeyer. "Jews in general just didn't figure. In 1971, Mr. Cafritz resigned to form Calvin Cafritz Enterprises, with investments in aviation, communications, and Washington area real estate. Aubinoe and Edwards also designed the Cafritzes' dramatic house on Foxhall Road. Washington, DC 20006. Kateryna Pyatybratova directs the centers Cafritz Awards program. For one thing, he has a dark, avowedly cynical sense of humor. But he reached outside that circle when he finally married. Under an earlier agreement between Gwendolyn and her sons, she gave up her power to "appoint" one-quarter of the trust, meaning that $21 million -- or $7 million each -- would automatically go to her sons upon her death. But of the property over which she had control, Gwendolyn left her children only "such photographs, family mementos, and similar objects of domestic use or ornamentation as my executors, in their absolute discretion, shall determine that I would wish to have preserved for my children.". We will miss his gracious and generous presence.. ", Interviews suggest the sons will not lack for evidence to support their argument. David Kessler's top 4 tips for dealing with holiday grief. Today he shares office space and support staff with Conrad's growing interests, but for the most part pursues his own deals. Finally, there is the legacy contained in any will: The power to reward or to punish the living, to define or rearrange the narrative of a family's history. The longtime GW supporter had a unique relationship with the university and the city of Washington, D.C. Center for Excellence in Public Leadership, Honey W. Nashman Center for Civic Engagement and Public Service, GW is committed to digital accessibility. "Right at the moment he could be most charming, he does something to undercut it," says one friend. Senator Barry Goldwater . 1050 30th St. NW Through a number of different companies, he both invests in and develops all kinds of properties -- commercial, residential, retail and even industrial. In plain English, Gwendolyn Cafritz's two younger sons are contending in court that their mother was too feebleminded to write her will; document requests filed in court suggest they may try to prove she was incapacitated by alcoholism. Papers filed in court by his sons' lawyers say he was born in 1888; his gravestone says 1890, which would have made him only 14 when he started his business career. Calvin Cafritz, the eldest son of real estate developer Morris Cafritz, died last week at the age of 91. Calvin Cafritz Rockville, Maryland March 29, 1931 - January 12, 2023 Share Obituary: Tribute Wall Obituary & Events Share a memory Send Flowers Obituary An obituary is not available at this time for Calvin Cafritz. Md.-based government contractor relocates headquarters to Fairfax Co. Montgomery County, MD Files Lawsuit Against McKinsey and Company, Inc. for Companys Role in Creating Opioid Epidemic, GSA Seeks Commercial Procurement Data Solution. "I think he went along," says a longtime business associate, Irwin Altman. What do the younger sons of the celebrated Washington hostess hope to gain by waging legal war over their mother's will? Marvin LaVerne Katz, 83, of Dallas, Texas, passed away on November 22, 2019 in Dallas. He was an excellent listener and always got both the big picture and important details by asking insightful questions. Send simple, comforting meals with Home Chef. I hope they will. She appears every week on the WETA-TV arts show "Around Town." He served in these roles until 2022, when Jane Lipton Cafritz, his wife, was elected Board Chair and President and CEO. Calvin Cafritz and the Cafritz Foundation have been part of the GW Honey Nashman Center from its earliest roots in the Office of Community Service and the Neighbors Project in the 1990s through to the present, said Amy Cohen, executive director of the center. They're not a map to follow, but simply a description of what people commonly feel. Add a photo or a video Marvin Katz was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma to Dr. Donald LaVerne Katz and Lila Maxine Katz on December 12, 1935. Mr. For better or worse, he is the son who has tried to live out both their ambitions -- to build on a scale that will make an impact on the city, and to develop a persona that will make him an actor in the capital. Calvin H. Frazier (February 16, 1915 - September 23, 1972) was an American Detroit blues and country blues guitarist, singer and songwriter. He also has three children, five grandchildren and three stepchildren. Published by The Washington Post on Jan. 22, 2023. You can still show your support by sending flowers directly to the family, or plant a tree in memory of Calvin Cafritz. "He's part of a legendary family, and he's the only one who seems interested in keeping up the legend," says one friend. ", While she cultivated the mighty, Morris looked closer to home, helping to found the Washington Community Chest, becoming an activist in local Jewish groups. He has assembled a group of about 14 local hotels, including the Georgetown Inn and One Washington Circle. The majority of this property was already owned by the Cafritz Foundation, but Gwendolyn was partial owner of many of the buildings; even a limited power to control their disposition would presumably attract men with ambitions in Washington real estate. Cafritz Calvin Cafritz Washington developer and one of the region's leading philanthropists, died Thursday morning, January 12, 2023, at Sibley Memorial Hospital, in Washington, DC. The holdings in downtown Washington include buildings in the 1700 and 1800 blocks of K Street and a parking lot at 12th and K; buildings in the 1300 and 1600 blocks of L Street; property in the 1600, 1700 and 1800 blocks of I Street. It took lawyers and IRS agents 4 years to settle the estate, which was valued in 1968 at $66 million. He has always been involved in the bread and butter real estate of housing, from building single-family homes in Prince William County to renovating apartment complexes in Alexandria; he was a major beneficiary of the Washington condo boom. If you know of an upcoming event for Calvin Cafritz, please add one. "He just wanted to build, build, build, build!" Conrad and Carter Cafritz are pursuing this stake in two ways: One is a lawsuit naming all her beneficiaries and her executors -- William P. Rogers, Martin Atlas and Riggs National Bank. He started by buying -- for $700,000, in 1922 -- the equivalent of 90 city blocks in Petworth, including the Columbia Golf Club, and ultimately built 3,000 houses there. In 1929 he also built the since-demolished Ambassador Hotel, at 14th and K streets NW, where he and his family lived until 1938. Gradually, as Gwendolyn took command of it, its character changed. a medically-induced . Even as the chaos of wartime Washington started to loosen social strictures, Washington's leading hostess, Evalyn Walsh McLean, stopped entertaining; this opening, together with a boost from Eleanor "Cissy" Patterson, publisher of the Washington Times-Herald, gave Gwendolyn her opportunity. "He's creative, he's smart, also ambitious, like his father. Click here for full story from WTOP and the Washington Business Journal. At the heart of the lawsuit is a quest to gain at least partial control over the whole empire of which Gwendolyn's estate is an integral piece, over the whole legacy that Morris Cafritz created. "Watch Washington Grow to One Million," he urged in newspaper ads of the '40s, a slogan he changed to "Watch Washington Grow to Two Million" after the 1950 census counted more than 1.4 million in the metropolitan area. Chances are, many Washingtonians might not even realize how much real estate the Cafritz family is responsible for in the area. When Morris Cafritz died in 1964, his estate was worth $66 million, mostly in the form of stock in dozens of closely held corporations he had established to manage his real estate. An old friend remembers a Fourth of July party at which one or more of the boys stood in a window above the path that led indoors from the pool to the cocktail area, throwing firecrackers down onto the guests. But he's much different from his father, in a lot of ways. In Memoriam: Calvin Cafritz. To slip out of the speedy traffic on Foxhall Road into the half-circle driveway was to slip back in time. They had a large fund-raiser for Jesse Jackson in 1988, and for Conrad's 50th birthday, Peggy gave him an enormous black-tie dinner at home. Perhaps the most remarkable member of this third generation is his daughter Julia, who dropped out of Brown University four years ago with a classmate to found a band named Pussy Galore. At the same time, he and Tompkins had the foresight to buy the land now known as Pentagon City. The most famous of these was the Cafritz Building, at 1625 I; ballyhooed in 1950 as the first "park-at-your-desk" building, it had ramps rising 10 stories at the building's core. He is a leading supporter of the Global India Fund, and the Ukapav Indian-American Scholarship Foundation. Her husband, along with her parents, was buried in Washington Hebrew Cemetery, in Southeast, in a nicely landscaped, square plot designed for four under a monumental headstone reading CAFRITZ. He will always be remembered and loved by our team and the thousands of people whose lives he touched for his humility, kindness and willingness to go above and beyond in service of our great city and community.. Distinguished D.C. Government Employees Recognized at Cafritz Awards Gala, Office of Communications & Marketing The mission of the foundation is improving the quality of life for all Washington, D.C., metropolitan-area residents, Boerstling said. Morris had one vision, and Gwendolyn another; whoever now gains control might offer still a third. The foundation's board of trustees consisted of Gwendolyn Cafritz and the two men who would become her executors -- Atlas and William P. Rogers, her attorney. "Lots of times she could drink and she knew exactly what she was doing. Small grants went to 15 more Jewish charities, and the rest to such local charities as boys clubs and hospital funds. The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation is already, with its more than $220 million in assets, the largest source of private funds earmarked for the District of Columbia. All three had become local real estate developers, successful, if less spectacular, emulators of their father. January 12, 2023 The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation, the charitable organization Calvin Cafritz had led since 1989, confirmed his passing and provided a copy of his obituary, which didnt disclose cause of death. "With so-called friends all around her, she was a very lonely woman," says Dowling. The D.C. community is better for his engagement and we will miss him terribly.. . Carter appears something of a cipher even to old family associates. Calvin Cafritz, a native and longtime resident of Washington, DC, was born March 29, 1931, as the eldest son of Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz. Home But in the end, her siege of Washington society outlasted most of those limits. Echovita Inc is a registered trademark. "He's always very, very protective of the Cafritz name, as if it were his own. I just make speeches.". Conrad has six children -- three adopted sons, who were Jennifer's by a first marriage; two daughters with Jennifer; and, with Peggy, 5-year-old Zachary. Information and advice to help you cope with the death of someone important to you. She also made bequests of $100,000 each to 10 of her 13 grandchildren -- excluding the children Conrad adopted, to whom he has remained a committed father. Perhaps as a result, he works hard, with much of Morris's old drive. To Martin Atlas, she left $50,000 and a Chagall painting. Money -- to be sure. . She could no longer make an entrance, of course. Calvin Cafritz, a successful businessman, was involved in real estate for more than fifty years. Your email address will not be published. The judge's decision, though in favor of Conrad and Carter Cafritz, is of little. His father, one of Washington's leading commercial and residential builders from the early 1920's to the 1960's, distinguished himself as an outstanding civic leader known for generosity. ", Other documents filed in court indicate that the sons will argue their mother was incapacitated by alcoholism. It was an invitation to stroll around the house and remember: When Gwen Cafritz, with her 19-inch waist and Balmain gowns, her raven hair and regal air, had won constant publicity for her parties -- 22 to dinner, with toasts over champagne, and enormous receptions like this one each spring and fall. Expand the Memories and Condolences form. The foundation, which Calvin led for over 30 years (after his mother Gwendolyn died in 1988), focuses on programs in the arts and humanities. Mr. Cafritz began his career with Cafritz Construction Company in 1947. Asked in 1954 why all her sons bore two-syllable names beginning with "C," she replied, "Morris names all children, horses, dogs, apartment houses and everything around here. What kind of arrangement is appropriate, where should you send it, and when should you send an alternative?
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