Harold "Hal" Manas

Harold "Hal" Manas, 81, of Knoxville, Tennessee, passed away peacefully November 5, 2025, just three weeks after the death of his beloved wife, Ann Kerr Manas. The two shared fifty years of marriage filled with love, laughter, and devotion to one another.
Born in Nashville on August 10, 1944, Hal spent his early years across the South and Midwest, living in Jackson, Tennessee; Madisonville, Kentucky; Cincinnati, Ohio; Macon, Georgia; Birmingham, Alabama; and finally Knoxville. He was Bar Mitzvah at West End Synagogue in Nashville in 1957 and later became a lifelong member of Heska Amuna Synagogue in Knoxville.
After graduating from Bearden High School in 1962, Hal joined the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves, worked for Bost Engineering Co., and earned his degree from the University of Tennessee in 1971. He began his teaching career at Fulton High School before finding his calling as an art teacher at the Tennessee School for the Deaf, where he taught for nearly three decades until his retirement in 2001. A man of many talents and interests, Hal was a skilled photographer, motorcyclist, golfer, craftsman and fly fisherman who tied his own flies. He shared his love of photography and adventure with his nephews and niece, always with humor and patience. Known for his warmth and wit, he was the "cool uncle" who told great stories and always had time for those he loved.
Hal was deeply devoted to his synagogue community, serving Heska Amuna as Chairman of the Board, Secretary of the Board of Trustees, and a member of multiple committees dedicated to the life of the congregation.
Hal and Ann had no children of their own, but they were deeply loved by their extended family. He is survived by his niece and six nephews, and the many friends, students, and colleagues whose lives he enriched.
A graveside service will be held at the new Heska Amuna Cemetery, located 1800 Glenn St., Knoxville, TN at 3:30 pm on Monday, November 17. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Heska Amuna Synagogue or the Tennessee School for the Deaf in Hal's memory. Online condolences may be made at www.rosefuneraltn.com
May his memory be for a blessing.