Dorothy (Brown) Manning, 87, passed away on April 21, 2022, in the comfort of her Springfield home. She was born on November 30, 1934 to the late Herbert and Neta (Anderson) Brown. Childhood was not easy, having been pre-deceased by two siblings, overcoming a bout of scarlet fever, and growing up during the depression era but it helped shape the person she became.
It was in Springfield that she met the love of her life, Thomas “Tom” Manning, and they had two daughters, Ann Marie and Theresa. As was customary of the times, many years were spent at home taking care of the house and children before she rejoined the workforce as an office clerk at Serv-U Stores in Springfield.
After her retirement, Dottie and Tom enjoyed taking several trips together including the Bahamas, Florida, and Las Vegas. They even rode the rapids of the Colorado River. They both enjoyed a mutual love of gardening, growing varieties of vegetables and creating a perennial garden around their pool. Tom’s life was cut short in 2001 and Dottie had spent many of the last years of his life by his side loving and taking care of him. Without this purpose in her life, we feared that she would be taken from us as well. But Dottie courageously carved out a new life for herself and joined the East Springfield Golden Age Club, rekindling old friendships and making many new ones. She took several trips with her new friends, joined a pitch league, and enjoyed the many activities that were offered. She also loved her two B’s: the Bruins and Bingo.
Dottie showed her love for her children by baking their favorite chocolate chip cookies, playing games, taking them fishing, sledding, and generally doing whatever they asked her to. This carried over once she became a grandmother. She would don a stick and helmet and transform into “hockey grandma” or could be seen playing (and losing) video games with her grandsons. There was nothing that she wouldn’t do for her children or grandchildren.
There was nothing that we wouldn’t do for her either. During the pandemic, we tried to help by shopping, cooking, and keeping her engaged by playing Wheel of Fortune nightly over the phone and enjoying Bingo with the entire family remotely every Sunday. We treasure all these moments.
Dottie was pre-deceased by her older brother, Donald Brown, and her beloved first grandchild, Kris Juncker, Jr. She leaves behind her two daughters and sons-in-law, Ann Marie and Dale Pirnie of Springfield and Theresa and Brian Conklin of Feeding Hills, grandchildren Michael and Alexa Pirnie and Jesse and Will Conklin, Kris’ widow Jessica Juncker, Jesse’s fiancée Katie Martin, many nieces and nephews, and her dear friend Marion Rogers.
To honor last requests, the family will gather to pay their final respects privately followed by a burial at the Massachusetts Veterans Cemetery in Agawam where Dottie will be reunited with her beloved Tom.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to: Shriners Hospitals for Children or St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.