Anthy Manukas

Anthy K. Manukas, 100, died peacefully in her sleep early Friday morning, November 8. Many people called her “Yaya”. She was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother. Anthy will be remembered for her kindness and her love of people and animals. She was an introvert so you wouldn’t find her at a lot of social gatherings, unless she had to be there, like a wedding in her immediate family. But she genuinely loved a wide spectrum of the human race. This quality — or gift — of hers, of feeling a connection and affection to others increased as she grew older.

Born on February 17, 1924 in Chester, Pennsylvania, Anthy grew up the daughter of Krist and Ralou Koukedis, with two brothers, George and Tommy, and a sister, Nikkie. She attended Larkin Elementary school and graduated from Chester High School. After High School she did drafting work for Westinghouse and she was an opera singer. She even performed on Major Bowes Original Amateur Hour Radio Show. It was through her work as an opera singer that she met her husband, George Manukas, while she sang at a wedding at the Hotel Dupont in Wilmington, Delaware. Shortly after that she married, in 1952, and moved to the island of Saipan, where her husband George, an officer in the Army, was stationed.

After she was married, Anthy stopped the drafting work and the singing, and was a full-time housewife and mother, raising her two children, Nikki and George, Jr. Anthy’s closest friend was her sister, Nikkie, and their relationship grew and endured throughout her life. When Anthy became a grandmother — Yaya — her grandchildren, and eventually great-grandchildren, became a big focus and joy of her life.

Also important to mention, probably most important, is Anthy’s spiritual life. She loved to talk about God or Jesus or Mary or anything in the Bible. She would often say, quietly, to herself, “Thank you Jesus….thank you Jesus.” This larger, spiritual dimension of her life is what sustained her and was probably the source or reason behind the love she felt for the earth and all who live on it.

Anthy is survived by her daughter, Nikki, and her son, George (Janet), as well as her grandchildren Lisa Corbitt (Rick), Jason Corbitt (Shawn), Kristen Barstow (Tucker), Maria Masella (Zack), and Annie Manukas. And her great-grandchildren, Ethan Corbitt and Maxine Barstow. Also she is survived by her sister Nikkie Tsakataras and her nephews George Taskataras, George Koukedis, and Aris Sophocles and her niece, Leona Brownson. Anthy was preceded in death by her husband George, who died in 1982.

Calling hours for Anthy will be held at Murphy Funeral Home in Falls Church, Virginia, on Friday, November 22, between 11:00am and 1:00pm, followed by a service at National Memorial Park where she will be laid to rest.

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to St. Jude Children’s Hospital in memory of Anthy Manukas.