Local couple supports L+M with generous gift

To say that husband-and-wife attorneys Linda Mariani and David Neusner lead busy lives would be an understatement. Mariani is a founding partner of Mariani, Reck Lane, LLC, a New London law firm; while David is a founding partner in the Groton law firm of Embry, Neusner, Arscott & Shafner.

They are active in the community and support many local, national and international charities—from the New London chapter of the Salvation Army and the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center in which Mariani has governance roles, to Doctors Without Borders and Planned Parenthood, which Neusner actively supports.

However, when the call for philanthropic support went out from Lawrence + Memorial Hospital at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the plea hit especially close to home for Mariani.

“I literally grew up within the hospital, said Mariani, a former L+M Corporator who transitioned onto the Community Hospital Council when L+M affiliated with Yale New Haven Health System. “My dad, Dr. Roland A. Mariani, was a general surgeon who adored the hospital and, likewise, was adored by his colleagues and staff. When my mother designated him as babysitter, he would often leave my sister and me in various areas of the hospital during his rounds. We found many ways to get into trouble but, at the same time, became very close with the emergency room nurses who were like second mothers to us. This is probably not something that could happen today.”

It is that lifelong relationship with the hospital and its medical staff that prompted Mariani to respond immediately to the plea for support with a $10,000 gift. This is in addition to a generous pledge she and Neusner made several years earlier to the hospital’s Centennial Capital Campaign in support of what is now the Smilow Cancer Center in Waterford. Further, they contributed to table sponsorships at the hospital’s annual Gala and leadership-level support of L+M’s Annual Appeal. The couple have also hosted hospital functions at their New London home overlooking the mouth of the Thames River.

“David and I feel immensely connected with our local communities,” Mariani said. “Lawrence + Memorial Hospital and its subsidiaries together epitomize a - perhaps underappreciated - godsend that greatly benefits our communities by providing quality emergency and medical care right within our neighborhoods. We wanted to step up to the plate when we heard there was a vital need.”

If you are considering a gift to Lawrence + Memorial Hospital, your tax-deductible contribution helps serve patients with extraordinary care and supports the programs, services and state-of-the-art technologies that impact and save lives close to home. For more information go to lmhospital.org/donors.