News

Dorothy Managan, WWII nurse and active retiree, dies at age 100

By Lightning Reports, Published: June 13, 2023

Dorothy Tonjes Managan, an Army nurse during World War II and a resident of Hendersonville for the past 38 years, died peacefully Saturday, May 27, at Carolina Village. She had turned 100 years old on Jan. 5.

Managan had been honored many times for her Army service, where she achieved the rank of second lieutenant before her discharge.As recently as March, members of the N.C. Nurse Honor Guardc nurses told Managan she was their hero. “No, I want to honor you," Managan responded. "It is your smile and your hands who are doing the work directed by God, and who carry on. I honor you.”

A native of Flushing, New York, Mrs. Managan had resided in Knoxville, Tennessee; Wheaton, Illinois; South Euclid, Ohio; Glen Ellyn, IL; and Cleveland, Ohio before moving to Hendersonville in 1985, Shuler Funeral Home obituary said.

She graduated from Mineola High School in Mineola, New York (1941), the Medical College of Virginia, School of Nursing (1944), received a BS in Nursing from Western Reserve University (1949) and a Master’s Degree in Community Health from Northern Illinois University (1973). She was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the US Army Nurse Corps and stationed at Fort Lewis, Tacoma, Washington, during World War II (1945-1946). She later served as a Public Health Nurse with the DuPage County Health Department in Illinois, from which she retired in 1981. She was an active member of Hendersonville Presbyterian church and served the community in a variety of roles, including with Four Seasons Hospice, Carolina Village Independent Living Services, P.E.O. Chapter B – O, and Daughters of the American Revolution.

Mrs. Managan was the daughter of the late Arthur Enoch and Ella Melvina Salt Tonjes. She was also preceded in death by her husbands, William Warren Managan (1948-1983) and H. Alan McKean (2003-2007); and a brother, Arthur E. Tonjes (1974).

Surviving are her children Arthur William Managan, Frances Managan Mapes (Jeffrey), William Henry Managan, III (Margaret), Robert Alan Managan (Jayne), and Patricia Managan Calvert (Kenneth); grandchildren: Katrina Star Managan, Kimberly Mapes Zentz, Allison Mapes McIntyre, Karen Elizabeth Grosvenor, Ellen Johanna Martin, Megan Rita Managan, Rebecca Ann Managan, William Henry Managan, IV, Julie Managan Hogan, Laura Frances Payne, Claire Michelle Managan, Scott Leonard Calvert, and Craig Warren Calvert; and 17 great-grandchildren.

A memorial service was scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday, June 15,  at Hendersonville Presbyterian Church.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to: Hendersonville Presbyterian Church, 699 N. Grove Street Hendersonville, NC 28792 or Four Seasons—Elizabeth House, 211 N. Main Street, Hendersonville, NC 28792.

Shuler Funeral Home was honored to assist Mrs. Managan’s family with her arrangements.