She graduated from Classen High School and from the University of Oklahoma with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. There she met her husband, Richard Manning, whose fraternity house, Sigma Phi Epsilon, was across the street from her Alpha Delta Pi sorority house. They married on June 30, 1951.
She was a past president of: Alpha Delta Pi Alumnae, DAR, Oklahoma Hospitality Club, OKC Republican Women, and Redbud Women and Alliance Francaise. She was involved in Art League, Freedoms Foundation, Chamber of Commerce, International Visitors Council, and a proud member of the Cherokee Nation.
Phyllis took a dance class at the YMCA in 1972, which sparked her lifelong love of Middle Eastern Dance. She chose Soraya as her dance name. She taught the “Jewels of the Nile” dance troupe and loved to perform at events across Oklahoma. She also published a magazine, Mirage, for four years. In 1978, she danced at the opening of the King Tut exhibit in New Orleans. She also danced in a Japanese dance troupe. She enjoyed social events and spending time with family and friends. Phyllis and Richard loved to travel. Her favorite destination was Egypt. They enjoyed 65 years of marriage before his death in 2017.
She is survived by her daughter Michele Hawkins and husband John; son Mark Manning and wife Shelley; son Phil Manning and wife Eden; grandchildren: Hilary Clay and husband Michael, Sheridan McKelvy and husband John, Lauren Wheat and husband Jamie, Phillip Manning, Mercedes Manning and fiancé Danny Rivera, and Samantha Manning; great-grandchildren: Spencer McKelvy, Henry Clay, Claire McKelvy, William Clay and Crosby Wheat.
