Obituary of Dr. Robert F. Manning

MANNING, Dr. Robert Frederick (MD) Passed away peacefully on May 30, 2016 with his family by his side. Beloved husband of Dr. Santina Malaguti and loving father of Robert (Eva), John (Jennifer), James and stepfather of Tracy (Brian). Dear brother of Sandra (Michael) of Ottawa. Proud grandfather of Grace, Ian and Nathan and uncle to Michael, Christopher and Brent. He is predeceased by his parents Harold J. and Lela (McEwan) Manning. Much loved son-in-law of the late John and Mary Malaguti. Dr. Robert F. Manning was born on the 10th of August, 1940 and raised in St.Catharines. In 1966, he graduated from Queen’s University School of Medicine in Kingston. He completed his residency at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Hamilton and then continued his post graduate studies in nephrology at the renowned Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. Upon his return to Canada, Robert accepted the challenge of preparing for and heading a new dialysis unit to be located in the Hotel Dieu Hospital in St. Catharines. The unit, a satellite of St. Joseph’s Dialysis Program in Hamilton, officially opened on January 29, 1975 with four stations in what used to be the maternity wing of the hospital. Now the Niagara region would be provided with a much needed service for kidney patients in the area, who no longer would have to travel to Hamilton or Toronto to receive care by a nephrologist and their lifesaving dialysis treatments. Robert was a man who really looked forward to coming to work every day. His work ethic was tireless, putting in a full day and on-call 24/7 in those earlier years. Many a night, he was at the hospital with an acutely ill patient and still came in to work the next day to make his rounds, socialize and joke with his hospital colleagues( which included fellow physicians, nurses, housekeepers, maintenance staff, etc) and of course his patients. In terms of his bedside manner , Robert was very sociable, always enjoyed spending time with his patients who came from all walks of life and he was genuinely interested in who they were as a person, not just their illness. His younger patients felt comfortable enough to play pranks on him and his laugh could be heard around the unit. At Christmas time, he would dress up as Santa Claus and have one of his sons’ be an elf giving a present to each patient. The most appreciated dress up day was surely Halloween, when he showed up as a big Little Bo Peep to the delight of all of us. Robert was kind and compassionate and readily gave bracing bear hugs as he shared a joke or two with those who needed it. As hard as he worked, he also loved his downtime- to garden in his rose beds or make homemade wine or play old-timers hockey and he enjoyed listening to classical music and opera. As a young boy, he had a beautiful angelic singing voice, sang in the church choir, and almost made it to the Queen’s 1953 coronation to sing but the boy he was understudy to, got over his acute illness. He enjoyed sports of all kinds and was himself an ace golfer. But beyond all that, he was foremost a physician. He took the Hippocratic Oath seriously and truly respected his patients treating them holistically, in body, mind and spirit. In 1993, Robert endured his own major medical setback, when he suffered a debilitating stroke. He courageously and with utmost determination and focus strove to reacquire the ability to not only carry out basic activities of daily living but become as independent as possible and attain his best potential for a quality life. He did so with the aid of his devoted wife Santina, his dedicated physiotherapist Cheryl and an exceptional circle of family and friends. Unable to practice medicine, he pursued his other interests. He did some travelling, became a voracious reader, enjoyed listening to his music and played one-handed golf in which he even got a hole in one. When asked by one of his golfing buddies how he managed to correct his golf swing, he replied, “all you have to do is have a stroke.” He never lost his sense of humour. Every year he presented a lecture at Queen’s University to the physiotherapy and medical students in their neurology rotation, to send a strong message that there are no boundaries on what can be accomplished if one has a disability. He also set a new goal for himself each year so that the following year he could advise them of his continual progress and achievements. Robert acknowledged the difficult reality of his situation and despite his challenges he continued to forge ahead, to create a purpose to his altered life and continued to touch the lives of others. And so, he lived a life of honour to his parents, love and support for his family and friends and service to his patients. The Apostle Paul wrote and it can be said of Dr. Robert F. Manning; “The time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith” Visitation will be held at the GEORGE DARTE FUNERAL CHAPEL, 585 Carlton St., St. Catharines on Thursday, June 2 from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. A funeral service to celebrate Robert's life will be held on Friday, June 3 at 11 a.m. in the funeral home chapel, with Pastor Peter Janssens officiating. Cremation to follow the ceremony. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Heart and Stroke or Kidney Foundation would be appreciated by the family. Special thanks to all of the nurses and support staff at Shalom Manor.