Sidney Silver, Washington Attorney Who Helped Launch Holocaust Memorial Museum, Dies at 91

Sidney “Sid” Silver, a Washington attorney and lifelong Jewish leader who helped shape both the business landscape and Jewish institutional life in the nation’s capital, died July 9. He was 91.

A proud Zionist, dedicated family man and founding partner of the law firm Silver, Freedman & Taff, Silver was known as much for his keen legal and business mind as for his unwavering optimism, generosity and love of Jewish life. His career spanned more than six decades, during which he served as a trusted advisor to some of the region’s most iconic businesses and helped shape institutions central to Jewish Washington.

“He was extraordinarily proud of his Jewish heritage,” said his son, David Silver, one of five children. “Most of his philanthropy focused on Jewish causes. He didn’t just talk about values, he lived them.”

Born in Hartford, Connecticut, in 1934 and raised in Atlantic City, New Jersey, Silver was the eldest of three children. His parents ran a boarding house and later a wholesale paper goods business serving the city’s hotels. Silver’s early jobs hawking newspapers on the boardwalk and helping in the family warehouse instilled in him a lifelong work ethic and sense of purpose.

After serving stateside in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, Silver earned a degree in economics and accounting from Lehigh University on the GI Bill and earned tuition for his MBA by teaching economics there. He then moved to Washington, D.C., with his wife Peggy and two children in tow, attending Georgetown University Law School at night while working as a CPA by day.

Silver launched his legal career with a specialty in tax law and later expanded into corporate law, estate planning and mergers and acquisitions. Beginning in the late 1960s, Silver, Freedman & Taff quickly became one of the region’s premier business law firms. He developed lasting relationships with clients like Clyde’s Restaurant Group, Britches of Georgetown and Rowe Furniture, many of which considered Silver a key to their success.

“He was more than just their lawyer,” David Silver said. “He was a phenomenal businessman. Clients relied on his strategic insight just as much as his legal advice.”

Silver’s legacy also includes helping to guide numerous startups from their earliest stages through acquisition. “He had a knack for seeing multiple moves ahead,” said his daughter Lisa Silver. She remembers that her father had a gift for structuring businesses so they could grow and took great joy in mentoring others.

Silver’s deep connection to Jewish life ran through every part of his work and service. A founder of Congregation Nevey Shalom in Bowie, Silver later moved to Bethesda and became a member of Adas Israel Congregation for over 50 years.

Among his most lasting contributions to the Jewish community was his role in transforming the Jewish Historical Society of Greater Washington into the Lillian and Albert Small Capital Jewish Museum. Silver served as president of the Historical Society and was instrumental in brokering the real estate deal that secured the museum’s permanent home in downtown D.C.

“He believed it was essential to preserve and celebrate Jewish history in Washington,” said his daughter Beth Lipset. “That project meant the world to him.”

Silver and his wife also hosted early high-donor fundraisers at their Middleburg farm for the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, raising millions of dollars and bringing people together through a shared commitment to remembrance.

“He lived his values through action,” Lipset said. “He didn’t just write a check — he gave his time, his mind and his home.”

Though he worked long hours, Silver made sure to be fully present for his family whenever they needed him. “He could be in a meeting with the most important client,” Lisa Silver said, “but if one of his children called, he’d pick up. Always. That meant everything to us.”

“Zeyde” adored his 12 grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren, and was famously known for taking them for walks on the boardwalk to buy ice cream and showing them how to ride the waves in Ventnor, New Jersey, where he had bought a beach house in 1972.

“He taught us to end even the hardest days with something joyful,” said Lisa Silver, who is legally blind and remembers her father reading her school assignments late into the night. “Nothing was ever too much for him.”

Silver’s optimism defined him. “His glass didn’t just feel half full — it overflowed,” Lipset said. “He truly believed life was to be lived with joy and gratitude.”

That joy extended to his marriage. He and Peggy were married more than 70 years and were inseparable. “They were fun,” Lipset said. “Always up for a party, always hosting one. They really loved life — and each other.”

Silver’s commitment to Israel was deep and enduring. He visited the country several times and supported family members in the Maccabiah Games. He and Peggy also contributed time and funds to Jewish National Fund and other Israel organizations.

“He was a staunch Zionist who believed in Israel’s security and its future,” Beth said.

Silver was a member of the Woodmont Country Club and the Middleburg Tennis Club, competing in tournaments into his 80s. He was also an avid Yankees and Redskins fan. He attended the Redskins’ Super Bowl victory in 1992 — his first and only Super Bowl, a highlight he never stopped talking about.

“He was larger than life,” David Singer said. “Smart, loyal, driven, deeply ethical — and always kind. He believed in doing what was right, even if it wasn’t popular.”

Silver’s impact is felt across Washington’s legal, business and Jewish communities — and, most enduringly, in the values he instilled in his children and grandchildren.

“He taught us how to live,” Lipset said. “With purpose, with love and always with a smile.”

Ellen Braunstein is a freelance writer.