Metropolitan Washington Deaf Community Center presents
the 2008 Frederick C. Schreiber Leadership Award
and 2008 Kit Schreiber Keystone Award

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Stephen Brenner
Lee Smith
Frederick C. Schreiber Honorees

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Thayer Dow
Kit Schreiber Honoree

Sunday, April 13, 2008   •   2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
(Doors open at 1 p.m.)


At Peikoff Alumni House (Ole Jim)   •   Gallaudet University
8th and Florida Ave. NE  •   Washington, DC


DONATION: $10.00 per person
Refreshments served

RSVP to Janie Golightly    email: mikjan@comcast.net
before Friday, April 4, 2008

Stephen Brenner, Lee Smith and Thayer Dow
to be honored with 2008 Schreiber Awards

The Metropolitan Washington Deaf Community Center (MWDCC) is pleased to announce three recipients who will receive the 2008 Schreiber Awards. Since 1982, the coveted Frederick C. Schreiber Leadership Award has been given in recognition of a deaf person who has, for a long time, demonstrated leadership with positive benefit to the deaf community. This year’s dual recipients will be Stephen Brenner of Potomac, MD and Lee Smith of Severn, MD.

The Kit Schreiber Keystone Award, which recognizes a deaf person who has unselfishly devoted own precious personal time to serve others behind the leadership scene, will be awarded to Thayer Dow of Alexandria, VA.

In 1982 MWDCC established the Frederick C. Schreiber Leadership Award in memory of the late Fred Schreiber who was a dynamic leader of the deaf community in the 1960’s and 1970’s. As the first Executive Director of the NAD, Fred spearheaded the movement to push the National Association of the Deaf forward, and was instrumental in the purchase of the NAD’s first building, Halex House.

In 2003, MWDCC established the Kit Schreiber Keystone Award to memorialize Fred’s wife, Kit, for her many years of quiet devotion to the work that exemplified Fred’s leadership during the early days. Kit stood by ”in good times and bad” when the movement to empower the deaf grew stronger during Fred’s tenure.

Stephen Brenner
A true “Jack-of-all-trades,” Steve’s many accomplishments are too numerous to list. He is a superb organizer when it comes to planning for various organization banquets and conferences. A successful business entrepreneur, he and wife Dorothy founded Potomac Telecom, Inc., located in Rockville Center, many years ago to offer various products: TTY's, telephone and house signalers, and other assistive devices to the deaf and hard of hearing. A long-time dedicated member of the Jewish Deaf Congress (JDC), Steve became the founder of the Washington Society of Jewish Deaf (WSJD). A guy who loves to tinker with electronic equipment, he was a true pioneer of teletypewriter distribution and repair among the deaf in the 1970’s through the 1990’s. Using his computer and photography skills, Steve also served as a volunteer in producing newsletters and directories for a number of organizations.

Lee Smith
For more than a decade, Lee has been known as a dynamic leader in the deaf community. His accomplishments are also too numerous to mention: he formed two bowling leagues in Laurel and Bowie; in 1998 he served as a board member of the Maryland Association of the Deaf and then became its president for two and a half terms; he was co-chair of the highly successful 2000 MWDCC New Year’s Eve Gala; and formed the Maryland Coalition of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, which consisted of 40 local organizations. Not one to sit still, Lee developed the newly released MDAD.TV which allows the community full access to ASL on the web.

Thayer Dow
A true "Jill-of-all-trades" when it comes to web designing and maintenance, designing event program books, printing huge congratulatory banners and the like, Thayer also has been the backbone designer of many organization event program books; also, the MWDCC web public announcements from the beginning. For many years, Thayer served as treasurer for various organizations.

Reserve Sunday, April 13th, 2 pm
MWDCC invites everyone to come and celebrate with Steve, Lee and Thayer at the Peikoff Alumni House at 2 pm on Sunday, April 13. Donation: $10 per person. So there will be ample refreshments for the large crowd expected, kindly RSVP to Janie Golightly at mikjan@comcast.net by April 4th.