Shirlee Marie Manahan, aged 59, passed away on August 27, 2023, at home surrounded by loved ones after a three-year battle with small cell lung cancer.
She was born on January 16, 1964, in Nutley, New Jersey, to Maryanne Chimento and Anthony Ponzo. She was a long-time Pennsville, New Jersey, resident before moving to Saint Cloud, Florida, to be closer to family.
Shirlee was predeceased by her mother, Maryanne Chimento, and is survived by her beloved husband of 32 years, Michael Manahan, her daughter Angelina Gordon, her son Michael Manahan Jr, and his wife Christina.
She leaves behind her greatest treasure, four grandchildren, John Michael Gordon, Juliana Marie Gordon, Vivian Rose Manahan, and Natalie Grace Manahan. She is also survived by her father, Anthony Ponzo, her two brothers, Anthony Ponzo Jr., William Ponzo, his wife Bonnie, and their children Tyler Ponzo and Zachary Vielbig, her sister, Kristina Smith and her children Max Blake and Katie Blake.
Shirlee was the most selfless, caring, and witty person we knew. She valued family over everything, with chilled wine, her backyard pool, and a bright Lilly Pulitzer printed outfit in the Florida sun with her husband close behind. She was the matriarch of her family and leaves behind a legacy of family values, homemade Sunday dinners, and her trademark “Michael!” scream whenever she disapproved of a bad joke. She will be loved always and forever.
Services will be held beginning with a visitation at Osceola Memory Gardens 2000 13th St Saint Cloud FL on September 7, 2023 from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. followed by a Funeral Mass on September 8, 2023 at 10:30 a.m. at Saint Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Saint Cloud.