Betty (Lathrop) Manning, 103, of Mooresville, North Carolina, passed away on Saturday, April 20, 2024 at S. Mitchell Mack Hospice House in Mooresville, NC. Betty was born on June 24, 1920 in the Amity community near Claremont, Illinois to Curtis and Alma (Corrie) Lathrop. She married Corwin Alfred Manning on February 22, 1947. After her marriage, she resided on a farm near Dundas, Illinois for nearly 40 years. Following the death of her husband in 1984, she retired to Olney for over 30 years and spent her last 7 years in Mooresville, North Carolina.

She is survived by her son Joe Manning (Molly) of Mooresville, North Carolina; grandson Matt Manning (Elizabeth) of Baltimore, Maryland; granddaughter Melissa (Mike) Pfaff of Charlotte, North Carolina; nieces Lynn Harrison of Aurora, Illinois and Ruth Ann McDowell (Jim Schneider) of Olney, Illinois, and nephew Gary Lathrop (Libby) of Findlay, Ohio; as well as great nephews Jay Harrison of Aurora, Illinois, Dan Harrison of Batavia, Illinois, Gregg Lathrop of Auburn, Maine, and great niece Lori (Lathrop) Montgomery of Findlay, Ohio.

Betty was preceded in death by her parents Curtis and Alma Lathrop, husband Corwin Manning, sister Wilma Lathrop, brother Kenneth Lathrop and sister-in-law Dorothea (Pierson) Lathrop.

Besides living on a farm with her husband Corwin from 1947 to 1984, Betty worked as a receptionist for the Illinois Gas Company in Olney in the 1950’s and retired with over 20 years of service from the USDA Farm Service Agency in Olney where she worked from the 1960’s until the early 1980’s.

Always enjoying an independent lifestyle, Betty was able to live in her own home in Olney and later in Mooresville up until just a few weeks ago when complications from a fall led her to spend her final days at the S. Mitchell Mack Hospice House in Mooresville, North Carolina.

Betty’s family was always extremely important in her life. She closely followed the activities of her grandchildren and great grandchildren as they have grown over the years. Likewise, she was interested in the lives of her nieces and nephews and their families over the years. Aunt Betty or Gigi (more recently to her great grandchildren) was the family historian and Matriarch for many, many years.

Betty very much enjoyed her June birthday celebrations at her niece’s home (Ann McDowell) in Olney where she had the opportunity to picnic and visit with family for several years before relocating to North Carolina in 2017.

Betty had fond memories of the Lathrop Family Reunions (1920’s- 1960’s) held in Olney City Park on the Sunday before Labor Day. She attended her first reunion when she was 3 months old in 1920. Over 100 people would frequently attend these reunions.

Betty attended Immanuel United Methodist Church in Olney for over 25 years. Memorials can be made to the church or to the Amity Cemetery in Richland County where her Great Grandfather Lathrop donated the ground where the cemetery is located. Many Lathrop family members are buried there.

A visitation will be held for family and friends from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM on Saturday, April 27, 2024 at Kistler-Patterson Funeral Home in Olney, Illinois, followed shortly after by a committal service at Crest Haven Memorial Park Hope Chapel in Claremont, Illinois. Interment to follow.

Kistler-Patterson Funeral Home, Olney, IL