Jonathan Silver, Melissa Moss

Location: Melissa Moss and Jonathan Silver Residence, Georgetown

WL EXCLUSIVE- Photos by Betsy Spruill Clarke

Bountiful Fare: Investment advisor Melissa Moss and venture capitalist Jonathan Silver invited pals for margaritas, “poison apple” martinis, and other dual seasonal offerings that included Design Cuisine’s summery lobster rolls, burgers, fries and oh-so autumnal shepherd’s pies and butternut ravioli. Catch-Up Time: Guests from the political, media, and financial worlds reconnected over tales of vacations past and work projects to come. Among them: Reps. John Dingell and Henry Waxman, John Podesta, David and Katherine Bradley, and George and Liz Stevens.

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Hosts David and Katherine Bradley with Mary Haft

Photos by Luke Christopher

Hosts David and Katherine Bradley with Mary Haft at a celebration for her new book, Nantucket: Portrait of an American Town.

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What We've Learned About Giving: "Be Wary if you hear of a program or idea that is too good to be true. There are no 'silver bullets' that can fix entrenched social problems with one, swift, inexpensive intervention. The real solutions generally come at a problem from multiple approaches, and they take time, money, copious talent, and long-term commitment." - David and Katherine Bradley

When Warren Buffett’s staggering donation of $36.1 billion was added to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s coffers (which already had $30 billion), many proclaimed this to be a new golden age of philanthropy, harkening back to the days of the Rockefeller, Mellon, and Carnegie endowments of countless worthy causes across a broad spectrum of American life. Yet, just a few years later, we are in an economic recession with the contributions of wealthy local residents now shrinking. Some generous donors were hard hit by the Madoff scandal, many others have had major losses in real estate or because of the stock market’s broad decline. As the local supply of capital has fallen for both individuals and private foundations, the need for philanthropy has correspondingly increased. Plus, much giving was directed towards political campaigns in 2008, with many charitable contributions taking a backseat to the historic election. But the tide will turn again.

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In a city where influence is everything, these one hundred individuals rise to the top. Some are wealthy, but many are not. They represent a wide variety of professional fields, from faith to finance; but they all share two common traits: They work outside the federal government and hold sway inside the Beltway.

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Top Row: President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, Rahm Emanuel, Bob Woodward, Teresa Heinz Kerry, John Kerry, Don Graham, Adrian and Michelle Fenty, Vice President Joseph Biden and Jill Biden. Second row: Rep. Barney Frank, Desirée Rogers, Victoria and Sen. Ted Kennedy, Valerie Jarrett, Timothy Geithner, Eric Holder and Sharon Malone, Peter Orzsag, Jane Stanton Hitchcock. Third row: Sen. Mark Warner, Alexandra Wentworth and George Stephanopolous, Justice Antonin Scalia, Elizabeth and George Stevens, Salem Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Queen Noor, Robert Duvall, Roger Sant. Fourth row: Katharine Weymouth, Justice Stephen Breyer, Sheila Johnson, Plácido Domingo, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Amb. Pierre Vimont, Ted and Annette Lerner, Sen. Harry Reid.

Big changes are always in store when a new president takes office. The “out-with-the-old, in-with-the-new” transition of power is even more historic when a change of party occurs (check) and especially when a two-term presidency ends (double check). Barack and Michelle Obama are also younger than their predecessors (they were born at the end of the Baby Boom era; the Bushes at its very beginning), and, most relevant of all, are the first African-Americans to occupy the White House.

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Amy Goldson and Vernon Jordan

Location: David and Katherine Bradley Residence

Photos by Kyle Samperton

A SPELLBINDER’S SPEECHES: Vernon Jordan confounded expectations when he vowed to become a lawyer after hearing Thurgood Marshall speak. Years later, the wheel came full circle when he spoke at Marshall’s funeral. Since his own career has featured many important speeches, it was only fitting that friends would celebrate their collection in Make It Plain: Standing Up and Speaking Out – especially since the author promised to sign a gratis copy for every guest. AN ADMIRING CROWD: Given the Jordans’ social cachet, it wasn’t surprising that the crowd invited by co-hosts David and Katherine Bradley and Jim Johnson and Maxine Isaacs was a notably diverse mix.

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Writers Amiri Baraka and Joseph O'Neill

Location: Folger Shakespeare Library

Photos by Tony Powell

SIZZLING START: Usually a genteel affair with readings by noted authors on a special topic, this year’s “Promises, Promises” theme inspired novelist Terry McMillan and poet Amiri Baraka to seize the spotlight with attacks on the GOP presidential ticket. SETTLING DOWN: Christopher Buckley and other participants defused the situation with less dyspeptic contributions that were later reinforced by digestion-soothin Champagne-and-peach-glazed poussin, parsnip potato mash and coconut cake timbale. G-LITERATI: Sen. Patrick Leahy, David and Katherine Bradley, Lisa Pumphrey, Lucky Roosevelt, Connie Carter, Lolo Sarnoff and Cynthia Howar.

WL tips its hat to the areas biggest philanthropists and donors.

While charity famously depends on left hands not knowing what their right-side partners do, we’ve nonetheless chosen to pay tribute to some of the more generously-handed givers in Washington. There are different reasons for inclusion on this (by no means comprehensive) rundown of big-time donors: some, like the Rockefellers and Mellons, are notable for amounts given over a long period of time; others leave lasting legacies in the form of museums, concert halls, and other university buildings. The men and women on this list are notable for their commitment to causes, involvement on multiple levels of local charity, and largeness of spirit.

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John Legend

Location: Washington Convention Center
WL SPONSORED - Photos by Tony Powell

THE EVENT: Fight For Children’s “Back to School with the Stars” benefit rocked this year thanks to a knock-out performance from Grammy winner John Legend. THE SCENE: 800 partygoers received a $100 certificate to the website www.donorschoose.org to support a micro-financed school project – such as buying art supplies for a class room in the District. Three schools: Strong John Thomson Elementary School, E.L. Haynes Public Charter School, and San Miguel School received the $100,000 Fight For Children’s Quality Schools Initiative Award. By the end of the night, over $1.5 million was raised to support Washington schools. THE GUESTS: Joe Robert, Jr., Mayor Adrian and Michelle Fenty, Katherine and David Bradley, Jim Kimsey, and Roger and Vicki Sant.

Brian Dailey with Shela and Art Collins

Location: The Phillips Collection and Anderson House

WL SPONSORED – Photos by Kyle Samperton and Tony Powell

THE EVENT: A perennial favorite among Washington society figures, this year’s Phillips Gala was “Bal des Canotiers,” the Boater’s Ball, and the decadent French theme was on display in every gallery of the museum. The evening also served as an informal going-away party for museum Director Jay Gates, who will retire this year. Gates oversaw a five year, 30,000-foot expansion of the Phillips, including the construction of a garden and an auditorium. THE SCENE: Lobster and veal were served at tables topped with five foot-tall topiaries. Dessert and dancing were held at the Anderson House. THE GUESTS: Justice Alito and Martha Ann Alito, Mayor Adrian Fenty and Michelle Fenty, Linda Douglass, and Sidney and Rep. Jane Harman, David and Katherine Bradley, and Dan and Rhoda Glickman.

Power, above all, is influence. New York Fashion week bloggers tell Americans with authority that this is the year of the [insert arbitrary skirt length], and America purchases accordingly. The Washington socialite-hostess gathers the ripe fruit of political, economic, and cultural orchards and serves it up as one fabulous cherry bombe at a charity fundraiser or a private soiree with Cabinet secretaries and other major political players. Two men shake hands in the U.S. Senate and a bill passes – or doesn’t. The influence to effect change, be it in the minds or actions of one’s fellow man, is simultaneously the most ephemeral quantity (how does one qualify or rate it?) and the biggest driving force on our planet.

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Who has it… and who gives it away.

By Beth Farnstrom

Robert and Marion Rosenthal

“I go to Washington – if only to be near my money,” comedian Bob Hope once quipped. But forget about taxes pouring into federal coffers: With cash to flash, members of Washington’s growing mega-millionaire’s club (50 Million Plus) like to show their green in perhaps, sometimes ritzy, but mainly philanthropic ways.

Buy a baseball team? No problem. Accessorize with megawatt Hollywood stars Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes? Ditto. Underwrite productions at the Kennedy Center? Done.

Washington’s wealth – sparked by the dotcom boom of the ’90s and fueled by the ever-rising real estate and stock markets – has “put a lot of money in people’s pockets and created a new level of wealth in Washington,” says developer Ed Asher of the Chevy Chase Land Company. While ten Washingtonians made the latest Forbes 400 list with fortunes in the billions, wealth is spread far and wide these days. Fortunes have been built on the backs of new technology, media, sports, real estate, government contracts and, of course, Washington’s original industry: politics. In just three years, the number of Washington area families with liquid assets (that is, not counting residential property and 401Ks) grew a whopping 60 percent, from 88,000 in 2003 to 140,000 in 2006. Similarly, in a slightly higher stratosphere, those with $5 million plus in liquid assets grew 53 percent, from 15,000 to 23,000 families, according to Phoenix Marketing International.

Where the money goes, the charity flows and, yes, luxury follows, and how!

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Peter Barris, Ted Leonsis, Joe Robert, Thomas Hale Boggs Jr., Walter Isaacson, Tom Friedman David Rubenstein Bob Woodward, Placido Domnigo, Katherine Bradley,

By Ann Geracimos

Some men, and some women, are born with power, to paraphrase the old adage, while others have it thrust upon them. This seldom is the case these days. The majority of people on Washington Life’s selective list of the most powerful have earned their status the hard way. They would be first to admit that a sense of power is in the eyes of the beholder—that projection often is the key to how power is best applied.

Such a concept was part of the infamous list entrepreneur Bill Regardie contrived someyears ago to define the term and its relevance to the Washington scene. His “rules” perversely eliminated anyone drawing a government paycheck, which at canceling theidea that titles automatically confer prestige. (They often do so, but empty suits are all too common a sight among posturing strutters in our public office.) Another Regardierule stated that wealth doesn’t necessarily beget power, which means that many hoping to claim advantages based on inheritance or a talent for acquisitiveness have to prove otherwise. Money is easy; it’s power that is hard — hard to get and relatively easy to lose.

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