Holiday Gala & Volunteer Appreciation

Congratulations to our Ethel Siegelman and Don Marrell Award Winners for 2009

Ethel Siegelman Award: Regina Kurtz, ASID

Don Marrell Award: Standards of Excellence (Jarrod Galm accepted the award on bahalf of Standards of Excellence)

About our Awards

The Don Marrell Award

Don Marrel owned and operated La Jolla Lighting for over thirty years
and was one of our earliest Industry Partner Members. As far back as
those of us who knew him can remember, Don and his staff were always
there to support our chapter and members with unparalleled generosity.
Working tirelessly, he gave both time and treasure whenever called upon..
To honor his memory and acknowledge his outstanding contributions to
our chapter and our industry, an award was established in his name to
acknowledge other Industry Partner members, who like Don give
outstanding service to our chapter and to the profession.

The Ethel Siegelman Award
By Charlotte S. Jensen, FASID, CID

The ETHEL SIEGELMAN AWARD was created in 1993
to honor San Diego ASID designers for their
outstanding service to the chapter and to the community.
The award is named for Ethel Siegelman, who in
1975 was the first San Diego Chapter president of the
newly formed American Society of Interior Designers.
My first memory of Ethel was at the chapter meeting in
late 1975 where she handed over the gavel to her successor, Walter Nelson,
ASID. It is my great pleasure to have known her and worked with her on
various chapter projects. The first recipient of this award was Ethel, posthumously.
I was honored to be selected as the second recipient in 1994.

Ethel Siegelman was a pioneer in the interior design profession in San Diego.
She started her career in design as the head of the Wallcovering Division at
Frazee’s in Mission Valley. Wanting a more comprehensive design challenge,
she took correspondence courses in interior design at the age of 47. She
then joined VJ Lloyds furniture store in El Cajon. She became the top
performing interior designer within her first two years at Lloyds. At the age
of 60, when most people are thinking of retirement, Ethel felt a still greater
challenge lay ahead. She started her own interior design firm, Ethel Siegelman
Interiors, and left her detractors in the dust who said “you can’t do that –
you are too old!”. Ethel continued her business until the age of 72, when she
decided it was finally time to retire and relax.

Ethel not only worked hard within her profession and for the profession, she
was very involved in the community. The San Diego Historical Society was a
great beneficiary of her talents and energy. Ethel and Walter Nelson were
early pioneers in the development of the San Diego Designers Showcase
home tours. Initially in 1974, it was to raise money for the restoration of the
Villa Montezuma’s second floor gallery. In successive years the home tours
became a major source of income for the San Diego Historical Society.

One of Ethel’s other great contributions to the profession of interior design
is her daughter BJ. BJ Peterson became an interior designer with Cannell &
Chaffin in Los Angeles. Cannell’s was the pre-eminent interior design firm in
the nation. BJ continued her mother’s passion for the profession and professionalism
in the design industry through her work with the LA Chapter and
on a national and international level. BJ was elected president of the
American Society of Interior Designers in 1994. BJ continues her design work
with her own firm Peterson/Arce Design Group located in Los Angeles.

ASID established the Ethel Siegelman Library on the ground floor of their
headquarters in Washington, DC. The library is a resource available to all
interested interior designers and students. It houses books, CD’s and DVD’s
on interior design and professional practices. Anyone wishing to make a
contribution in either literary or monetary form in Ethel’s memory should
contact the ASID Foundation at (202) 675-2365.