When Wendy Myerberg Jachman talks about her grandfather, Edward A. Myerberg, she doesn’t initially mention that he was a prominent Baltimore real estate developer and builder.

Rather, she talks about his car, a Cadillac to be specific.

Every weekend during her childhood, her grandfather would pile Wendy, her brother, her twin sister and their three first cousins into his car to take them duckpin bowling.

“He was all about family. Family was number one,” Wendy recalls. “He was devoted to his brothers, children and grandchildren. He loved bringing the family together and making sure they had fun.”

It is a fitting memory for the woman whose family name is on one of Baltimore’s most enduring senior centers. As the Edward A. Myerberg Center prepares to celebrate its 50th anniversary, we sat down with Wendy to talk about legacy, art and community.

A Legacy Woven Close to Home

Wendy grew up in Baltimore surrounded by family and creativity. She studied textile design at Syracuse University and began her career working in New York. While still a student, she sold a wallpaper design called Cattails and Trees to F. Schumacher & Company. The sale allowed her to buy her first loom.

“I was a young mother living in Owings Mills. With my husband working my mother suggested that I start selling some of my pillows and blankets. My mother was an interior designer for my dad. She merchandised his apartments and homes that he built. And, she actually had the wallpaper I designed installed in my father’s apartment building on Park Heights Avenue.”

Soon, that small venture grew into a thriving tapestry business. Wendy created custom work for interior designers, had a showroom in New York and sold pieces in Palm Beach.

Over the years, Wendy has created large-scale tapestries for synagogues, universities, and hospitals including Bolton Street Synagogue, Duke University’s Hillel, Levindale, Johns Hopkins, Sheppard Pratt, LifeBridge and of course, The Myerberg Center. Her work has become part of the physical landscape of places where people live, learn, worship and heal.

The Story in the Tapestry

While some of her institutional commissions take years to complete and endure for generations, Wendy especially loves creating art for families. “People love when I do family pieces,” she says. “They truly become heirlooms.”

One of those heirlooms tells a story Wendy knows particularly well.

“I think my grandfather would have been thrilled to see the space just expand,” Wendy says. “As an avid reader, I think he would’ve been really happy when we added the library.”

Over 50 years, the center has evolved from a traditional senior services hub into a bustling community center featuring fitness facilities, art programs, tech classes and social clubs. Looking ahead, Wendy hopes The Myerberg continues meeting the evolving needs of the community wherever they live.

Deepening Roots in Baltimore

Wendy’s involvement with local organizations extends far beyond the center that bears her family name. She has dedicated years to fundraising, committee work and board leadership with both The Associated and the Jewish Museum of Maryland as well as health institutions and other local nonprofits.

“My dad instilled in me a passion for philanthropy,” Wendy says.

Making Things That Last

Wendy’s work as an artist and her dedication to her community share a singular thread. She creates textiles that shape architectural spaces, crafts family tapestries that preserve personal histories and helps guide community centers and cultural institutions.

Today, her studio resides in her Annapolis home. “Instead of having a studio in the house,” she explains, “the house is the studio.” Surrounded by sketches, photo albums and active commissions she continues to create.

For five decades, The Myerberg Center has carried the Myerberg legacy forward. In her own creative way, Wendy continues to do the same, stitching together family, art and community to give people meaningful places to gather, remember and connect.