Lasting Memories

Arvilla McGuire Manning
March 26, 1928-Aug. 17, 2013
Palo Alto, California
Submitted by Ed Manning

Arvilla McGuire Manning, a lifelong Bay Area resident, passed away Saturday evening following a short illness. She passed peacefully at the Stanford Hospital in the loving presence of her family. She was 85.

Born in March 1928, Arvilla McGuire grew up in Piedmont, Calif., where at a very early age, she discovered both her passion and gift for tennis. By the time she left Miss Wallace?s School for Girls and Boys and entered Anna Heads High School in Berkeley, Calif., she was ranked number one in California for her age group (14 and under). At age 18 she had made the Junior Whitman Cup team and was ranked number six in the United States, competing in the National US Championships at Forest Hills. During her attendance at UC Berkeley, she competed all over the world with her career highlighted by four appearances at Wimbledon (1949, 1951, 1952, 1953), including partnering with Althea Gibson in women?s doubles. On her tours she had the honor of meeting Pope Pius XII and was featured in Glamour Magazine and others where she was noted for her unique blend of beauty, grace, and athleticism. Along with Arthur Ashe, she was an active and prominent member of and contributor to the San Francisco Youth Tennis Foundation.

Arvilla married Edward M. Manning, Jr. in 1956 and raised two sons, Edward and Mark. They lived in San Francisco and moved to Woodside in 1965. The family joined the Menlo Country Club shortly thereafter, where following Arvilla?s first golf lesson, her husband Ed was heard whispering, ?I better start practicing.? She became an avid and accomplished golfer and a member of Cypress, one of her favorite places on earth, with the exception of perhaps Potbelly Beach, where the family spent their summers for well over a decade.

The untimely death from cancer of her husband in 1986 was a profound loss to her, and she would never remarry. But her appetite for life and the outdoors in particular was never muted. In her 60s and 70s, she would find herself on safari in Africa, diving with dolphins off the coast of Florida, swimming with sea lions in the Galapagos, and researching and swimming with Manatees a few miles north of Miami.

Arvilla spent her last years as a resident at the Vi in Palo Alto, where she was surrounded by ?such wonderful friends? from Anna Heads, Cal, and all walks of her life.

Arvilla is survived by her sons Mark and Edward, Edward?s wife Reggie and their children Dylan and Elijah. A memorial service will be held at the Vi in Palo Alto this coming Sunday, Aug. 25 at 2 p.m. Please make donations to the charity of your choice.