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Events
The Memorial Service will take place on Sunday, June 15, 2025 starting 12:30PM – 2:30PM EST at the The Sidwell Friends School, located at 3825 Wisconsin Ave, Washington, DC 20016. For those unable to attend the service in-person, you can participate remotely by viewing the live stream of the service (please scroll up to see the video).
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Obituary
The magnificent Virginia “Ginger” Wilner Newmyer died from a stroke at age 92, on Tuesday, May 13, 2025. Beloved partner of Philip Zeidman, she was the devoted mother of Elsa (Larry Forrester), Lory (Steve Cooper), and daughter-in-law Deb Jelin Newmyer. She was predeceased by her cherished son, Bobby, in 2005, and her husband, Jimmie, in 2010.
Ginger was a force of nature and a passionate advocate for a better world. Born in Philadelphia in 1932, she moved between New York and Washington, DC throughout her childhood. She is an alumna of the Nightingale-Bamford School, Smith College, Barnard College, and earned her Master’s in History from American University in 1975. Ginger was a virtuoso lecturer with the Smithsonian Institution, American University, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, and a long-running program at Politics and Prose, alongside her teaching partner, Susan Willens. She served as the Chair of the Board of The National Ballet Company, The Public Library of Washington, DC, and The SEED Foundation. Ginger also enjoyed her years on the boards of The Sidwell Friends School, Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic, and Planned Parenthood DC. She was a voracious reader, as well as an avid traveler (including leading international trips with the Smithsonian), accomplished knitter, crossword setter, conversationalist, and connector. She delighted in the ballet, theater, art, and film — but saved her greatest love, in all its glorious abundance, for her family. All who knew her are forever enriched by her presence.
Ginger is lovingly remembered by her nine grandchildren: Emma (Jaime Shaw) and Danny (Tess) Forrester, Julia (Will Kemp), James (Maria Servellon), and Anna (Allie Cislo) Cooper, and Sofi (Ben Schultz), Teddy (Cynthia), James, and Billi Newmyer. She had a deep, joyful love for her great- grandchildren: Estelle, Dylan, Ginger, Josie, and Rowan. She was also cherished by her nieces and nephews: Charlie (Jen Schwerin) Hutzler, Terry Newmyer, Tony and Alison Wilner, and Laurie Wilner Jobson (Jamie).
In Ginger’s honor, contributions may be made to Planned Parenthood DC or The Appleseed Foundation.