Gone Home to Glory!

E. Mansfield Woolfolk, Jr.
October 8, 1925 - July 8, 2011

I, along with my family, have just completed an emotionally and physically exhausting two-month journey.  My father took his eternal rest on July 8th after spending 85 years and 9 months on Earth.  It was difficult saying goodbye, but I'm very happy that he is at peace.  The following are remarks that I delivered at his funeral service in Detroit, Michigan on July 22nd.

Homegoing services are much like reunions.

Often they are gatherings of family and friends who see and speak to other regularly.

Often they also are gatherings of family and friends who, for whatever reasons, haven't seen or spoken to each other in a while. 

I look out upon this gathering and I see both.

My family thanks each of you for taking time to join us in this celebration of my father's life.  This is truly a testament of how well Mansfield Woolfolk used his 85 years and 9 months on this Earth.

The last couple of years have been difficult. The last couple of months have been particularly difficult. But the last couple of weeks-- which could have been the toughest for Joey, Kathy and me-- have actually been made easier to get through because of the wonderful conversations we've had with so many of you, and others, about Dad and the relationships you each shared with him over the years.  

Some of those relationships extend back to the late 1940's when Dad was in school at Kentucky State University. 

Some extend back to the mid-1950's when Dad started his 37-year career with Detroit Public Schools.

There are friendships dating back to 1976 when we moved to Southfield and 1978 when I first entered Catholic Central High School.

And then, there are the youngest of Dad's relationships-- those forged over the last 15-years after he relocated to Las Vegas.

Over the last few weeks, individually-- and in some cases collectively-- Joey, Kathy and I have spoken with folks from just about every era of Dad's life.  The conversations produced some common threads:

Dad was considered to be a good man, a loyal friend, always willing to give of himself and his resources, extremely proud of his three children, and-- right up to his final days-- still deeply cared for our mother more than 25-years after they ended their marriage.

People I have never met have called and told me where I live and what I do, where Joey lives and what he does, where Kathy lives and what she does. Clearly, Dad was proud of his family and couldn't stop talking about us to his friends.

Dad was a retired educator but he never stopped educating. After leaving Detroit Public Schools and moving to Las Vegas-- where you might think Dad would relax and spend more time playing his beloved game of golf-- it turns out the passion to teach still ran hot in his blood.

Members of the Las Vegas 100 Black Men chapter say Dad was very active in their mentoring program and they described him as "instrumental" in helping the organization establish a charter school.  

His fraternity brothers in Alpha Phi Alpha shared similar sentiments. They spoke very highly of Dad's mentoring, not only working with young people in the community, but with the brothers in the Theta Pi Lambda chapter. They all looked up to him as an Alpha elder.

The Catholic Central Dads Club had-- and I'm sure, still has-- some very dedicated members.  I know I'm a bit biased, but I think you'd be hard pressed to find someone who was more committed to the Dad's Club or better known.  Dad got involved with the Dad's Club during my freshman year at CC.  He remained active until he moved to Las Vegas-- nine years after Joey graduated in 1986.

If you want to know where Dad picked up the nickname "Manny," look no further than the CC Dads Club.  I don't know who first called him that, but Dad loved it and embraced it.   Short of legally changing his name, he went from being Mansfield Woolfolk, to being Manny Woolfolk. 

I found, in Dad's office, a newspaper clipping from the December 13, 1993 issue of the Redford Observer. It was a column written by Steve Kowalski. In that column, Mr. Kowalski wrote that Dad and Sal Cipriano were two of his favorite people. Mr. Cipriano was another longtime, dedicated member of the CC Dads Club. 

I used to sit next to Mr. Cipriano at the scorer's table of our home basketball games during my junior and senior years when I served as the public address announcer. Dad would be at his post in the northwest corner of the gym, often on crutches, making sure fans entering the gym didn't interfere with play when action was at that end.

Kowalski mentioned my Dad's many hip surgeries, which clearly did not stop him from working the games.

The column closed with Mr. Kowalski's hope that Dad would someday join Mr. Cipriano in the Catholic League Hall of Fame.

I want to recognize Mr. Dan Wandzel, another Dads Club member and good friend of Dad's.  

And, Mr Bob Santello. I will call him CC's Athletics Director Emeritus. When I spoke with Mr. Santello last week, he told me that he never would have made it through more than 30 years as A-D without Dads Club stalwarts like Dad and Mr. Wandzel.

Mr. SantelloSantello can't-- for the life of him-- figure out how Dad got through eleven of them!

Mr. Santello, Mr. Wandzel-- thank you for being here today. I think Dad considered you brothers and it was wonderful knowing that long after I left CC, long after Joey left CC and long after Dad left Detroit, you guys remained close and in-touch.

I could go on and on with the stories, but we might be here until Christmas--- of next year.

My mother, brother, sister, cousin and I will hold on to our personal memories with Dad.  I will not lie-- there are some memories that I would love to figure out how delete from the CPU that is my brain.  

But an honest reflection tells me that every experience-- wonderful, not-so-wonderful, and every description in-between-- every experience provided a valuable lesson that helped shape us as individuals; helped us develop into responsible adults; made us a stronger woman; and cemented the bond that is OUR FAMILY.

We will miss him dearly, but we all rejoice in our faith that he is now at peace, living in his heavenly mansion.

To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.

In Dad's case, I hope the mansion is on a golf course and the Lord likes to play.

* * *

The Woolfolk Family thanks the staff and management of Silver Hills Health Care Center and Creekside Hospice for making Dad's final months as comfortable as possible.

My father rests alongside his parents at Southfield Cemetery in Southfield, Michigan.