Fannie Mantel

1921 - 2013

Fannie Zimmer Mantel passed away peacefully in her home with her family by her side on October 25, 2013. She was 92 years old.
Fannie was born and raised in Poughkeepsie, New York, where she graduated from the Poughkeepsie Business Institute. After graduation she joined IBM, where she worked in the company's front office alongside Thomas Watson, Sr.
During World War II, while she worked at IBM, she loved attending dances for soldiers at the Hyde Park home of President Franklin Roosevelt, who often called the dances.
While vacationing in Seaside Heights, New Jersey, she met William Mantel, the man who would become her beloved husband, while he was on leave from active duty in the Air Force. They married shortly after World War II, lived on the Jersey Shore, and then moved their family to Vermont, which has been Fannie's home for the last 55 years. William passed away in 1988.
Fannie was an engaged member of the Newfane community and an active citizen of the state of Vermont. She served as president of the Newfane Garden Club and the Windham County Historical Society. She was a proud member of the Newfane Congregational Church, where she taught Sunday school while her children were growing up. She helped start the Newfane Kindergarten as well as Newfane's Head Start program.
She served on the Vermont Billboard Committee, which helped keep billboards out of the state, and on the board of the Vermont Hospital Association. One of her favorite activities was serving as a census-taker in 1972 in Athens, Vermont during mud season.
Fannie was a woman of many interests and talents. She loved to work in her gardens and travel with her husband. She loved being a grandmother and, in recent years, a great grandmother.
She could type more than 100 words a minute and play the piano beautifully. She never lost her sense of humor, treated everyone with kindness, and taught those around her to "Do unto others as you wish they would do unto you."
She was predeceased by her husband William B. Mantel; her son, Jeffrey Zimmer Mantel; and her only sibling, Thomas Joseph Zimmer lV. She leaves Burk and Joan Mantel of Eagle, Idaho, Laurie and Wally Mariani of Burlington, Vermont, Henriette Mantel of New York, New York, Chloe Mantel and William Taylor of Wellesley, Mass.; grandchildren, Sarah, Holly and Daniel Mariani and Paige and Grace Mantel Taylor; great-grandchildren, Gianna and Vincenzo, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.
A special thanks to Dr. Robert Backus and all the caregivers who helped so much.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be sent to Grace Cottage Hospital, the Windham County Historical Society, and the Newbrook Fire Department.
FUNERAL NOTICE: Calling hours will be at the Mantel home from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Monday, October 28. An outdoor memorial service will be held at the Mantel home at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, October 29.