UF law degree keeps this new lawyer warm
UF Law Diploma Blanket – Gaetano D’Anna
Tampa lawyer Gaetano “Guy” D’Anna didn’t think twice when his girlfriend, Kaleigh Marquis, asked for yet another peek at the diploma he earned May 15 from the University of Florida Levin College of Law.
“She was very sneaky about it,” D’Anna said. “She took it, and when I wasn’t looking, she scanned it with her phone.”
Fast-forward a month to December 8, D’Anna’s 28th birthday, and suddenly Marquis is presenting him with a custom “throw” blanket photo-adorned with the very same diploma.
“I was floored when I saw it,” D’Anna said, (possibly no pun intended.) “It’s been keeping me warm during the last few days.”
Not only was D’Anna thrilled, the gift won blanket approval — and at least one phone call from a stranger — when D’Anna posted a picture of it on social media.
D’Anna said Marquis forwarded the image to “Collage.com,” an online vender that specializes in unusual photo reproductions.
“One of the options was a throw blanket, and she’s like, ‘you know what? I’ll go with it,’” he said. “And it turned out beautifully.”
It’s a heart-warming end to a challenging year for the two sweethearts who started dating as undergraduates at the University of South Florida. Marquis is performing hospital rotations as she finishes the final year of her pharmacy studies at USF.
D’Anna endured four canceled bar exams due to the health crisis, an experience he politely describes as a “wild ride.”
Admitted to the Bar in November, D’Anna is now an associate at Satel Law, PLLC, a Tampa firm that specializes in real estate, wills, trusts, and estate planning. D’Anna worked there the summer before his third year of law school, and was enthusiastically asked to return.
“I love working for Laurie, she’s really super,” D’Anna said of Satel Law founder Laurie Satel. “I’m one of the lucky ones who graduated from law school in 2020, I have a great job.”
