New Trustees Join Barrow Neurological Foundation Board

Barrow Neurological Foundation appointed new members to the Board of Trustees further strengthening the board during the challenging times brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Laurie Carson and Marne Obernauer Jr., join existing board members to provide governance in fulfilling Barrow Neurological Foundation’s mission to be the catalyst for donors’ passion to provide the means necessary for the world’s leading specialists at Barrow Neurological Institute to save lives.

“Barrow Neurological Foundation has demonstrated its resiliency and commitment through this past year which is a testament to our Board of Trustees,” says Katie Cobb, president of the Foundation. “As we move forward and emerge from the challenges of the global pandemic, it’s critical that we maintain the momentum established through their guidance and leadership. Laurie and Marne have the skills necessary, through philanthropy and investment, to make a critical impact on our collective efforts to raise and provide the funding for our world class clinicians at Barrow Neurological Institute to continue to save lives.”

Laurie Carson has been a tireless advocate for increased lung cancer research, having lost her brother and uncle to the disease. In 2000, Carson launched Steps for Breath, the first run-walk for lung cancer research and awareness in the country. In its first five years, the initiative raised $1.7 million for thoracic oncology research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Building on that success, Carson founded the Lung Cancer Research Foundation (LCRF). Additionally, she has been a board member of the Society of Memorial Sloan Kettering since 1992 serving on numerous patient care and education committees, as President from 2000 to 2003, and chairing three annual appeals. Carson also served on Memorial Sloan Kettering’s Institutional Review Board for Clinical Investigations. Prior to founding LCRF, Carson worked as a biochemistry analyst at New York Hospital and the Hospital for Special Surgery. She holds a Bachelor of Science, cum laude, from Colby-Sawyer College and a medical technologist certification, MT(ASCP), from the Princeton Medical Center.

Marne Obernauer Jr., is director and shareholder of the Breakthru Beverage Group. He was formerly vice chairman and director of Applied Graphics Technologies Inc., and chairman and CEO of Devon Group Inc. before the company merged with Applied Graphics. Obernauer spent nearly a decade as an investment officer with First National City Bank, which is now Citibank, and Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette. He is a founding member of the American Business Conference, a director of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, and a member of the Presidential Symposium at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. He is on the board of LIFT, a national organization dedicated to empowering families to break the cycle of poverty. LIFT has served more than 100,000 families since its founding in 1998. Obernauer is also part of the ownership group of the Colorado Rockies. He has a Master of Business Administration from Harvard and a bachelor’s degree from Yale.

The Board of Trustees, comprised of community members who serve on a voluntary basis, governs the Barrow Neurological Foundation. The initial appointment is for one year, with reappointment for up to three consecutive three-year terms.