Tamela Shawn McManes

Tamela “Tami” Shawn (Mooney) McManes sadly passed away the week of December 15th, 2025, at her home in Topeka, Kansas.

Tami was born on July 10, 1958 to Helen and Marvin Mooney in Davenport, Iowa. She grew up in Davenport, IA and also went to Van Horn High School in Independence, Missouri. She was a lifelong learner and attended the University of Missouri, Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa, IA in the 80s and Washburn University in Topeka, KS in the 00s pursuing various accounting and business degrees and also learning Spanish.

She was extremely intelligent, dedicated, and hardworking. She proudly worked for the USPS in Rock Island, Illinois in the 80s, Fairfield Aluminum Casting Co. (FALCO) in Fairfield, IA in the 90s; Jostens in Darby, Kansas in the 2000s, and finally retired from Northrop Grumman in Topeka, Kansas in 2016 after many years.

She met her husband Robert “Mac” McManes online in 1997 through a mutual interest in poetry and they were married in November of 1999. Mac wrote and published numerous books of love poems about her. They worked and did everything together, including traveling to Ireland. Her happiest and most peaceful years were with him.

She was a beautiful woman with a big, sensitive, unhealed heart. She was funny and silly and only ever wanted to be loved. She loved dogs more than most humans and was rarely without one (or two). During her last year she adopted a little cat named Gracie that she adored. She once had an entire flock of geese that protected her, but would terrorize anyone unlucky enough to pull into our driveway, including the rest of us.

She loved crossword puzzles, getting her hair and nails done, shopping, reading, and was always down for a game of Yahtzee, Scrabble or Bingo. She loved 1,000 piece puzzles would often spend Sundays patiently working away. She loved sewing, crocheting, knitting and quilting. She never met a kitchen she didn’t want to remodel or a house she didn’t leave more beautiful than she found it. She had impeccable taste in everything. She loved to garden and often worked tirelessly planting trees and various fruits and vegetables. She loved Grape Nuts, Mexican food, German chocolate cake, and Filet O’Fish sandwiches. She loved trying new recipes, though we didn’t have internet or ratings back in the 80s, so some of the recipes she tried were hilariously questionable.

She always wore cute little pajamas, and would fall asleep in her chair around 8:30 p.m. We would always wait for her to snore herself awake, where she would look around, bleary-eyed and confused, clueless she woke herself up, and eventually shuffle off to bed hours later.

She was phenomenal at creating lavish holidays. On Thanksgivings she cooked and baked enough delicious food to feed a small army. Her pumpkin pie, sweet potato casserole, acorn squash and green bean casserole were unmatched, and her recipes will live on with her oldest daughter.

As kids, we would always wake up to a truly magical Christmas. Extravagant gifts, stockings full of small gifts, oranges and nuts, and an entire counter full of Christmas cookies, fudge and divinity—recipes passed down from her own mother.

In 2005, she wanted to go on a mother/daughter trip to an amusement park in Florida. Considering she’s always been scared of heights and rollercoasters, I balked. She promised she would ride whatever rollercoaster I wanted. Once there, she kept her word and got on the biggest, baddest coaster they had (the SheiKra). I still have the park photo of her—her eyes squeezed shut with a look of terror on her too-pale face, white-knuckling the bars. She sat ramrod straight and remained completely silent while I laughed hysterically next to her. I don’t know whatever possessed her to do that, but it is one of my absolute favorite memories of my mom.

She struggled a lot her last few years. Thanks to my sister, Kelly, who could be there for her even when things were difficult. We are grateful she is now reunited with her husband and finally at peace. She will be cremated as per her wishes. Please keep my mom in your thoughts and prayers.

She is preceded in death by her husband Robert D. McManes (d. 2020), mother Helen Parker, father Marvin Mooney, grandson Arden King, grandson Liam Best, brother Michael Mooney, sister Shelia Schadt, and stepfather W.E. Parker. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to your local animal shelter in her honor.

She is survived by her two daughters: Candi (Brian) Best of Kansas City, MO and Kelly (Gabriel) Briones of Topeka, KS; four grandsons: Andrew Briones, Jack, Teddy and Johnny Best; her siblings: Jim Milam of Davenport, IA and Mickey Mooney of McCleary, WA, along with many cousins and nieces and nephews.

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