RIP Bobbie Seligmann, Original Settler of Hollin Hills

Some sad news: Barbara “Bobbie” Seligmann of Recard Lane passed away on March 13, at the age of 99.

Bobbie Seligmann at home in Hollin Hills, with her original 1952 landscape plan

Bobbie was an extraordinary member of the community — an original settler who, with her husband Al, moved here in 1952 and lived most of her life here. Al was with the State Department, and they spent many years abroad, particularly in Japan. A teacher, Bobbie embraced the diplomatic life and played an important role in Asian-American relations, serving as President of organizations including the Asian American Forum, the Japan-America Women's Club in Tokyo, and others. And that involvement continued throughout her life. At a garden party she threw just a couple of years ago, her patio was so full of former ambassadors and assistant secretaries of state that you could barely turn around without knocking one over.

But most of all, Bobbie left an indelible mark on Hollin Hills, and it was just a delight to know her. She may have been the last residents to have personally known all the founders, from Robert Davenport to Charles Goodman to Barney Voigt, and she was a natural story-teller whose accounts of the early years of the community were vivid and often hilarious. Curious, charming, and with an absolutely astonishing memory, she was happy to talk about everything from geopolitics, to gardening, to art (she had a world-glass collection of modernist Japanese art and ceramics) to the latest scandal. But most of all, she was interested in people, and you sometimes felt like she’d known everyone who ever lived in Hollin Hills.

Bobbie at the eclipse party in Holln Hills, 2024

In other words, one of the most delightful and generous-hearted people you could ever hope to know. Fully alive and engaged with the world right up to the end, Bobbie seemed to embody all the best of Hollin Hills. All of us who knew her will miss her.

There will be a Celebration of Life for Bobbie on May 31 at 3:30 p.m. at the Mt. Vernon Unitarian Church.

More on Bobbie in The Washington Post obituary.