Buddy O’Neill Mann passed away peacefully and surrounded by family on December 28th after a brief illness. Always inquisitive about medical matters, he would want you to know that he was diagnosed with transverse myelitis in mid-November and experienced a series of infections in the weeks after from which he was never able to fully recover. He was born on January 14, 1938, in Princeton, West Virginia. Buddy attended Bluefield College and graduated from Princeton High School, Virginia Tech (then known as VPI), and North Carolina State University. He worked his entire career, beginning with a college co-op, as an electrical engineer with Bell Labs, which became AT&T, and then Lucent Technologies. The name changed; he stayed.
Buddy was a devoted family man who was home every night in time for dinner. He was a good citizen, coaching sports for his children, serving three terms on the Jamestown Town Council, and multiple years with the board of directors for the Historic Jamestown Society, among other volunteer efforts. He was a loyal and loving husband to his wife of nearly forty-nine years, Joanne, taking care of her both in the good times and through numerous challenging medical diagnoses, including the pancreatic cancer that ultimately led to her death. Together, Buddy and Joanne raised two very loved children, Scott Mann (Courtney) of Wake Forest, NC, and Rebecca Mann Rayborn (Cory) of Jamestown, NC. He was known as “Daddy B” to his three cherished grandchildren, Meredith Mann, Davis Mann, and Katherine Rayborn. He was a role model to his kids, doing the right thing even when it was tedious or unpopular. He devoted much of his retirement to medical research, genealogy, town politics, and spending time with family and friends.
Buddy was preceded in death by his wife, Joanne Barnes Mann; his parents, Rhoda and Opie Mann; brother and sister-in-law Billy and Janet Mann; sister and brother-in-law June and Bob Roberts; brother-in-law James Bailey; mother-in-law and father-in-law Mary Elizabeth and Leo Barnes; as well as beloved cats Dusty, Chris, Pepper, and Katie.
In addition to his children and grandchildren, Buddy is survived by his sister Wilma Bailey of Princeton, WV; brother-in-law and sister-in-law Michael and Carolyn Barnes of Charlottesville, VA; nieces Pamela Sage (Paul) of Princeton, WV; Terri Mann of Cape Coral, FL; Karen Keliher (Sean) of Livonia, MI; and Rita Krantz of Roanoke, VA; and nephews Steven Mann of Matthews, NC; David Mann of Cape Coral, FL; Michael Roberts (Michele) of Pfafftown, NC; Timothy Barnes (Ashley) of Falls Church, VA; and Justin Barnes (Blake) of Shipman, VA.
A celebration of life will be held on Sunday, January 13th, at 2:00pm at Hanes Lineberry Sedgefield Chapel, 6000 W. Gate City Blvd, Greensboro NC, with a reception afterwards. Graveside service will be private.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (877-272-6226, www.pancan.org) or to a charity of your choice.
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