Lovina Louise Mann

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our loving mother, Lovina L. Mann on Sunday, June 22, 2025. She can once again be united with our father, Jim, whom she deeply missed. Lovina was born in Portland, OR on February 3, 1933, to Florence and Terrence. She graduated from Franklin High School in 1951. She was very active in dancing as a young girl, lettered in tennis in high school, and was an accomplished skier. She attended art school at Portland State Extension Center, which is now Portland State University’s Lincoln Hall. A talented painter, she was then accepted into the Museum Art School and studied under renowned Oregon modernist artist Louis Bunce. She worked for Shell Oil Company as a key punch operator and then Georgia Pacific. In 1960 she met the love of her life, Jim. They were married in 1966. After the birth of their first child, Lovina happily became a homemaker, raising three daughters. If you asked her, they were the joy of her and Jim’s lives.

In the 1970s they moved the family to Hermiston, OR where Lovina formed many special friendships and belonged to several community organizations. She was a 4-H leader to many young girls, teaching them cooking and sewing skills. Her home was a joyful place, and all the neighborhood kids knew they were welcome anytime. She also enjoyed raising the family’s first pets, Fred, MoMo, Ci, Dee, and Princess.

The family moved back to the Portland area in the ‘80s, where Lovina continued to be active in Job’s Daughters, serving as Treasurer for many years. She also managed the fabric department for Sprouse Reitz in Hillsboro, befriending several co-workers. She enjoyed helping customers and adding to her growing fabric collection. She was always working on a new sewing project, whether it was dresses for her daughters, doll clothes, baby blankets, or costumes.

Family was the center of Lovina’s life. She assisted in caring for her elders in their final years, beginning with her mother-in-law, following with her aunt, and finally her own mother, who she was very close to. She often hosted family events and also enjoyed gardening, golfing and bowling. Lovina and Jim were active members in a local bowling league and travelled to Vegas to attend several bowling competitions. Jim and Lovina could also be seen driving around the golf course on their scooters at the annual PGA competitions.

Lovina took great pride in her grandchildren and great grandchildren. They will always have fond memories waking up in the morning to her delicious pancakes and homemade syrup. They will also say that she made the best sandwiches, and that the food always tasted better at Grandma’s. Grandma was always up for a good board or card game too.

After losing her beloved husband, Jim, Lovina moved into a retirement community. Over the past 10 years, she has formed many friendships, enjoyed creating art and playing bingo. She became family to many there.

Lovina had a special lifelong connection to her childhood friend Dorothy, who moved into the house behind her when they were 10 years old. Lovina was eating cherries at the fence line, when Dorothy came out and told her the cherries had worms. They became the best of friends from that moment on. Their birthdays were one day apart, and they discovered they were born at the same hospital. Later, their husbands were both architects and friends. There wasn’t a week that went by that Lovina and Dorothy didn’t at least talk to each other over the phone or enjoyed Facetime on their Ipads. They shared 82 years of wonderful memories.

Lovina will be missed by her brother Paul (married to Dawn); her “sister” Dorothy; daughters Michelle (married to Troy), Melissa (married to Mark) and Melinda (married to Jeremy); niece Anmarie (Michael); nephew Alex (married to Sarah); 11 grandkids James (married to Christie) and Alexandra, Aaron, Michael (married to Laurel), Matthew, Gabriel, Chriss and Terra (married to Ryan) and Bryan, Luke and John, 5 great grandkids, David, Lovina, Jonas, Mason and Mia; and three great nephews, Max, Leo and Simon.

The funeral will be held on July 7th at 12:30 pm at Skyline Memorial Gardens at 4101 NW Skyline Blvd, Portland, OR 97229 with reception following. Remembrances may be made to the American Stroke Association.