July 22, 1969 - June 21, 2018
Hope (nee Berry) Manley passed away unexpectedly after sudden illness. Her beautiful and amazing heart, a heart that loved deeply and was deeply loved by an amazing breadth and diversity of friends and family, could not sustain her. Many strive their entire lives to leave a legacy. Hope can rest in peace knowing she made a real difference in the world.
Mother, daughter, sister, activist, and advocate, Hope's passionate intensity and drive to help the marginalized, and fierce devotion to those she loved, blazed a path of compassion from coast to coast. Recently, she began a new career in hospitality with Marriott, which she greatly enjoyed. Hope is best known for her work founding Children of Lesbians and Gays Everywhere, or COLAGE, for the LGBTQ community, and her leadership and determination interpreting and advocating for the deaf community. She spoke up, she acted up, she was a change maker.
Of all her accomplishments, none was as precious to her as her daughter, Lila Anne Manley. Lila was Hope's North Star, her proudest joy, and her reason for being.
Hope was predeceased by her father, David Berry; and grandparents, Mimi and Bobi Phillips and Mabel and Fred Berry.
Hope is survived by her mother, Karen Veronica; sister, Andrea (Berry) Benson; aunts, uncles, and cousins; Lila's father, Dion Manley; and Hope's vast community.
A celebration of Hope's life will be held at her home in Gahanna, Ohio, Friday, June 29, at 4 p.m., with her burial at Crown Hill Cemetery, Twinsburg, Ohio Tuesday, July 3, at 2 p.m. There will also be a memorial gathering at the Benedictine Grange in West Redding, Connecticut August 29, at 1 p.m. Arrangements entrusted to Schoedinger Northeast Chapel.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Hope's GoFundMe page, https://www.gofundme.com/mvc.php?route=search&term=Hope Manley, to handle final expenses and to provide for her daughter.
Hope often quoted, "Start as you wish to continue," and "Be the Change you wish to see in the world." Mission accomplished, Hope. She lived up to her name, and will be remembered and missed by all who knew her.
To share memories and leave condolences, visit, www.schoedinger.com.