Neil M. Goodman
Neil Michael Goodman, of Chevy Chase, Maryland and West Boothbay Harbor, Maine, died on May 8, 2023 surrounded by his wife and children.
A native of Buffalo, New York, Neil was a stalwart fan of the Buffalo Bills and the Buffalo Sabres. He attended Nichols preparatory school, honing his work ethic by washing dishes in his family’s businesses, including at the iconic Park Lane restaurant. Neil graduated from Brown University in 1979 with a degree in American History and an affinity for dry historical tomes. His friends from Brown, including his rowing teammates, were a source of adventure and support throughout his adult life.
Neil went on to law school at Columbia University, graduating in 1983. After a clerkship for Judge Frank Battisti on the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Ohio, Neil became an associate at the law firm Arnold & Porter in Washington, D.C. There, he was relentlessly pursued by a young legal assistant who would become his wife, but he stayed focused on his career, becoming a partner in 1991. Neil’s practice in international finance evolved from his role on some of the largest sovereign debt restructurings during the Latin America debt crisis, including the representation of the Ministries of Finance and Central Banks of Venezuela, Brazil, and Panama.
Neil was an avid runner, completing seven marathons including the New York Marathon, and he was a self-appointed coach for all of his children’s athletic events. His retirement in 2021 allowed time to enjoy his family, including grandson Christopher Sweeterman and his daughters’ partners David Sweeterman and John Rupp.
Neil was a naturalist who took great pleasure in exploring the country’s national parks, skiing in Telluride, and boating off the coast of Maine with his children. He tracked birds across North America, Africa, and, during the pandemic, at home in Boothbay Harbor, where an elusive Russian Steller’s Sea Eagle had resettled. Neil was honored to serve on the Board for Nature Bridge, an organization that provides environmental education opportunities for children.
Neil’s spirit is held by his surviving family, including wife Emily Whiting and their children, Caroline (Sweeterman), Charlotte, and Nathan. He is also mourned by his sister Barbara and by an extended family that includes his father-in-law, Douglas Whiting, and beloved cousins, nieces and nephews. Neil is predeceased by his parents Seymour and Marian Goodman and by his mother-in-law Charlotte Whiting.
The family will host a gathering at their home in Chevy Chase, Maryland in remembrance of Neil and a gathering in Boothbay Harbor, Maine at a later date. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Neil’s memory may be made to So Others Might Eat or to Nature Bridge.
