The Life and Work of Jim Weaver Celebrated at Business Awards Lunch


The Georgetown Business Association held its annual Leadership Awards Luncheon at Sea Catch Restaurant & Raw Bar June 19 to posthumously honor Jim Weaver of W.T. Weaver & Sons with its Lifetime Achievement Award. The Weaver family has run the Weaver Hardware business — founded in 1889 — at 1208 Wisconsin Ave., NW, for generations. Weaver’s widow Peggy Weaver accepted the award along sons Bryce and Mike Weaver and daughter Joan Weaver Inglesby.

Introduced by GBA president Riyad Said, Ward 2 councilmember Jack Evans was the first of several speakers. Evans had just arrived from the dedication of the Frederick Douglass statue at the U.S. Capitol and said, for D.C., “it’s a start.” Evans then listed a string of decade-long Georgetown successes and called Jim Weaver “a stalwart of the community.”

Bryce Weaver (James B. Weaver III) said that his father is buried at Oak Hill Cemetery on R Street and noted his parents would have celebrated their 56th wedding anniversary a few weeks ago. “It is still raw for us,” Weaver said of his father, who died at the age of 81 on April 24 of cancer after being diagnosed only months earlier. “Our father was a wonderful gentleman.”

Weaver spoke of the business community’s “grand old parades,” put together by the likes of his father, Tim Jackson of Swensen’s Ice Cream Parlor, Arnie Passman of the Hallmark Gallery, Rick Hinden of Britches men’s store and David Roffman, retired publisher of the Georgetowner newspaper. (The parades in the 1980s were dedicated to “the Star-Spangled Banner” and its author Francis Scott Key, a Georgetown resident.)

Weaver said the business award was “a consolation to our whole family” and that he accepted “for our dad and all those who passed away.”

Councilmembers Muriel Bowser, Vincent Orange and Tommy Wells also spoke of the importance of local businesses — as well as keeping D.C. business dollars in D.C. — and saluted the Weaver family.

Kate Carr, president of Cardinal Bank, a major sponsor of the event, likewise praised the Weaver family and said that her company was excited to be coming to Georgetown soon, on Wisconsin Avenue near Safeway.

GBA vice president Janine Schoonover wrapped up the meeting and reminded all that D.C. is not just the president, Congress or monuments but has businesses with “regular folks.” She also noted that the next GBA networking reception would be on July 17 at F. Scott’s.

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