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11/22/2023 08:30 AMWhen people make their way to the Starlight Festival in downtown Old Saybrook on Dec. 2, in addition to the holiday merriment, attendees will have an opportunity to send veterans a holiday card thanks to Blue Star mom Susan Mariani.
On Saturday, Dec. 2, downtown Old Saybrook will host the third annual Starlight Festival. The festival is a community-wide holiday celebration featuring fun events for kids, shopping, and a tree-lighting ceremony. Amid all the fun, Susan hopes people take a minute to remember those who have served their country.
“We’ll have a table set up with markers and things so that people can make a holiday card for veterans. They’ll be delivered to the Veteran’s Hospital in West Haven and the one in Rocky Hill,” Susan explains. The table will be set up from about 1 to 4 p.m.
A Blue Star mother is someone who is a mother of a child serving in the military, not to be confused with a Gold Star mother who is the mother of a soldier who was killed. Susan has a daughter as well as a son-in-law who currently serves in the Air Force. Besides the card-making table, Susan will also be helping out with a luncheon for Blue Star and Gold Star mothers that takes place during the festival.
“I really like doing this event and to be able to do my part for the people who sign up to protect our country. The kids love it, and we get a chance to talk to the kids a bit about why it’s important to support veterans,” Susan explains.
According to Susan, the veterans who receive the cards are more than appreciative.
“The guys love them. They love to get cards even if they don’t know who they’re from, and they get a real kick out of some of the things that kids especially draw or write. Some of them do some fun stuff,” Susan says with a chuckle.
While the veterans for sure appreciate the card, Susan says it’s also apparent that people enjoy making them.
“We get people coming up to us thanking us for giving them the opportunity to do this. Some people want help but aren’t sure how, and this is something everyone can do,” Susan says.
Susan’s volunteer commitments don’t just end when the Starlight Festival ends, either. Susan is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Acton Public Library.
“I filled in for a vacancy four years ago for a member who has left, and I’ve been there since,” she says.
“We’re very active; we’re involved in a lot of things. We want the public to get the word that the library is many things to many people. It’s not just the same old library,” Susan says.
In addition to hosting a variety of events and services, the library also makes its presence known with floats and displays at town parades, Susan notes.
“We want to let the public know we’re there and what we are.”
Susan says volunteering is something that she started doing more of once she had kids, as she wanted to model the importance of helping others to them. Susan fondly remembers taking her musically inclined children to play shows for different groups to bring joy to others.
“I grew into volunteering through my kids,” says Susan.
For Susan, the act of volunteering is also a bit of good karma.
“I feel like if I work to support veterans now, if I do my part, when my kids are older, other people will do their part to support them if they need help,” says Susan.
Susan originally grew up in Pennsylvania but moved out when she had the opportunity to. She and her husband moved to Old Saybrook about eight years ago.
“We’ve been in and out of Connecticut several times, and we really liked this area. We’re really happy here. The people in this community are great,” Susan says.
Susan is retired after a career in the aerospace industry but fills her time by traveling to see her kids as well as spending time with her dogs.
“My favorite thing about Old Saybrook is the people, for sure, and the shoreline, for sure. It’s very beautiful here, very calming,” Susan says.