Patricia Manion

On October 2nd, 2025, Patricia Ann (Mac Daniel) Manion (“Pat” to her friends and family) passed away while on vacation in Salerno, Italy after a sudden illness. Pat was born on December 18, 1950, to Francis and Norma (Glancy) Mac Daniel of Bridgeport, Connecticut. She grew up in Bridgeport, attended Notre Dame High School and graduated from University of Bridgeport with a degree in English literature. 

On August 25, 1972, Pat married Gerald Manion at St. Mary’s Shrine by the Sea in Bridgeport. They raised their son, Patrick, and daughter, Laurie, in Sandy Hook, CT where the family resided for more than 35 years. Pat was dedicated to her extended family, fostering close relationships with her parents, sisters, nieces and nephews, and cousins. Her home was often the gathering place for many family holidays and celebrations. Pat and Jerry then built a log cabin in Tolland, Mass., for their retirement years. 

Pat spent her entire 40+ year career at People’s United Bank (PUB) headquartered in Bridgeport, CT, where she started as a teller in college, rose up through the ranks in both branch and consumer lending in corporate and regional leadership roles, and then landed in leadership roles in operations where she retired as the Senior Vice President of Direct Banking and Operations. Throughout her career at PUB, she was a leader and mentor both professionally and personally and took great pride in driving numerous successful initiatives.  Pat’s friends and colleagues from PUB shaped a meaningful part of her life and she remained in touch with countless of them throughout the years. 

Pat was involved with numerous boards and philanthropic activities, most notably through her work with United Way, where she served on the board and chaired several committees, as well as volunteering with the Adopt a Family program in Newtown. 

Pat found a wonderful community of friends in retirement based at the log cabin they built at the Tunxis Club in Tolland, MA. Pat served as the Treasurer of the club for many years and took great pride in contributing her skills and talents to her community through organizing and running the finances. In retirement, she and Jerry also enjoyed years of traveling the world together exploring destinations such as Japan, New Zealand, Scotland, Paris, Austria and many more until he became ill and passed away in 2019. Pat was a devoted nurse and caretaker to Jerry during his illness. 

In her most recent years, Patricia continued her love of travel, taking trips with her friends and sisters to England, France, Croatia, New Mexico, Australia, Colorado, cousins and sisters annual weekends in Marthas Vineyard, sisters trips every year for the last 23 years, summer vacations in Boothbay Harbor, Maine, and visiting her sister and friends in Florida, and more. When she didn’t have an available travel buddy, she wasn’t afraid to join up with a group tour and hiked through Portugal and Sicily on her own, making friends in her tour group along the way. Pat was never content until her next trip was booked, and her family takes comfort that she passed doing what she loved, traveling with her family. When she was home, Pat loved attending Broadway shows, concerts at Tanglewood, playing mah-jongg and pickleball, playing word games, doing jigsaw puzzles, reading hundreds of romance novels, watching her favorite reality tv shows, taking long walks in the woods, and enjoying the latest and greatest Hallmark movies. 

She was the best sister extraordinaire and was a role model and leader of the sister's pack. She also had a legion of friends, old and new, all of whom individually and collectively played an enormous role in her enriching her life.

Pat’s true joys, however, were all about her family. She and Jerry cherished their years in Sandy Hook where Patrick and Laurie grew up. Their family time was filled with school and extracurricular activities, snow days, summer days playing in the woods, hanging with their friends, vacationing in Maine, and enjoying every season being outdoors with her children.  She and Jerry are both so proud of how Patrick and Laurie launched as adults. Her other joy was her role as beloved Amma to her grandson, Alex Manion. The two shared many special traditions and bonds, including their trips to Trader Joe’s to find the hidden cow, outdoor adventure camp together at Tunxis, exploring the tide pools in Maine, cleaning her garage on every visit, doing the “mixer dance” while making mashed potatoes, watermelon on the front porch, their hide and seek morning routine and breakfast at sunrise bagels. As well as their daily FaceTime calls. She also loved spending time with her grand dogs in Brooklyn, NY and would look forward to babysitting for Hugo and Oscar on many occasions. 

Pat was pre-deceased by her husband, Gerald Manion, and is survived by her children Patrick Manion (wife Sarah and son Alexander) of Wayne, NJ; Laurie (and husband Rob) Hadick of Brooklyn, NY; her sisters Joan (and husband Andy) Bissonnette, Laurie (and husband Al) Huebner, and Amy (and husband Mike) Gavaghan; her brother in law, Stephen Manion; her cousins and her many nieces and nephews. 

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In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Blood Cancer United or the American Brain Tumor Association.  Please visit their websites at the links below for instructions on how to make a memorial donation online or by mail and make a note in honor of Patricia Manion. 

Blood Cancer United - https://bloodcancerunited.org/get-involved/ways-to-give

American Brain Tumor Association- online at bit.ly/DonateABTA or via mail:

The American Brain Tumor Association
8550 W. Bryn Mawr Ave. #550
Chicago, IL 60631

Pat would enjoy....no, expect.....that in honor of her remarkable legacy, her celebration of life would be filled with laughter and fun and Diet Coke. Join us to bring her wishes and expectations to life. By the way, a tip.....we are somewhat concerned that the Coca Cola Company may suffer a downturn in their Diet Coke sales, so if you own their stock, please keep an eye on it....