Mary Iris Manning

With her three sons by her side, Mary Iris Manning, 94 , passed away peacefully and into the arms of her Savior Jesus Christ on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Moorestown, NJ. Born in Chicago, IL, on March 4, 1931, to the late Marion Francis and Mary Alice O’Brien Leslie, Mary Iris grew up in New Orleans, LA, surrounded by a large, extended, and loving Irish-Catholic family. Mary Iris graduated from St. Mary of the Pines, an all girls’ Catholic boarding school founded in 1874, in Chatawa, MS. Led by the Sisters of Notre Dame, St. Mary of the Pines provided a spiritual, moral, intellectual, and personal formation that framed and guided Mary Iris’s faith, family life, parenting philosophy, values, and love of and selfless devotion to others. Upon graduation in 1948, Mary Iris matriculated at Loyola University in New Orleans to pursue a degree in English and journalism. When, in 1950, Mary Iris met her husband, C.D. “Larry” Manning, her academic aspirations bowed to marriage and family. Their marriage of 57 years not only provided a model for their sons to emulate but also enriched and deepened their journey together while Larry advanced his career as an executive with Ford Motor Company. Mary Iris maintained a vibrant, happy, and rewarding family life dedicating herself to raising her three sons while organizing and navigating moves to Detroit, MI; Dallas, TX; Birmingham, AL; and Moorestown, NJ, always holding fast to her New Orleans roots, family, and faith. Mary Iris enjoyed a close circle of friends in the cities where she, Larry, and their sons lived and was active in each Catholic church and parish. Among her varied and most meaningful church and civic engagements was working with Down Syndrome children under the auspices of St. Paul the Apostle Church in Dallas. No matter the setting, she was always admired as a lady of grace, elegance, commitment, and integrity. During the last decade of her husband Larry’s life as he battled cancer, Mary Iris provided him unwavering support and care. Retired life and grandparenting afforded her ample opportunity to open her homes in St. Augustine, FL and Ocean City, NJ — and to create meaningful and joyful social connections and friendships in two different communities. Lovingly remembering Mary Iris are her three sons, Daniel and his partner Julie Cordle of Burlington, NJ; David and his wife Cathy of Doylestown, PA; and Dennis and his wife Beth of Virginia Beach, VA; five grandchildren, Daniel, David, Will, Leslie, and Mary Heath, and two great-grandchildren, Sofie Kiku and Aiden. A Mass of Christian burial will be held on Tuesday, August 5, at 10:30 a.m., at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, 42 West Main Street, Moorestown, NJ, with Father Jack Bogacz officiating. The family will receive friends at the Church from 9:30 a.m., until the time of the Mass. Interment will be private. The family wishes to thank Mary Iris’s devoted health care team at The Evergreens — and her other health providers — for their professional, loving care. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made in Mary Iris's memory to the church where she and Larry were married and their sons were baptized — Saint Patrick’s Church, 724 Camp Street, New Orleans, LA 70130 or online at oldstpatricks.org.