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Paul Mannix Obituary
A full and happy life ended much too soon with the passing of Paul Eugene Mannix on February 1, 2025, after a lengthy illness. He was a gentle soul with a quick wit, a wry sense of humor and a dazzling smile that captivated everyone he met.
Paul was born to William and Mary Mannix on November 14, 1953 in Brooklyn, NY. Paul and his four siblings grew up in Brooklyn where his father taught at Erasmus Hall in Brooklyn and was later principal of Bay Ridge Evening High School. His mother Mary, was a professional singer and dancer who travelled with the USO during WW II and, after twenty years of child-rearing, joined her husband in the NY Board of Education, retiring as Principal Secretary of Francis Lewis High School. Paul followed his older siblings for the one-block walk to St. Vincent Ferrer Elementary School, where he also joined the Boy Scouts and Little League, and played bugle and trumpet in the school marching band. Paul graduated with honors from Brooklyn's Xaverian High School in 1971.
After graduating from the University of Virginia with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology in 1977, Paul moved to the D.C. area where he thrived. He displayed a great gift for getting along with all kinds of people in both his professional and personal life. His first job was with Herner & Co., a small publishing firm where he started out as an administrative assistant, moving up to editor and proof-reader before leaving in 1983 to join MCI Communications Corp. This was in the early days of the global telecommunications industry and Paul, using his burgeoning computer skills found a home with MCI Litigation Support assisting the team with administrative and technical support in their long, but ultimately successful takedown of AT&T's Bell System monopoly. Paul became a manager of MCI's legal network information services before taking a buyout in 1998 right before the Worldcom takeover of MCI.
Being "retired" at 45 made Paul the envy of his friends, but he was not one to remain idle. Eschewing the idea of another 9 to 5 office job, he embarked on a series of part-time gigs that put him in the company of interesting people taking on a variety of jobs that showcased his calm, organized manner. A quick study, he became proficient at data indexing which he successfully performed for a few different companies over the years. He even spent a couple of years working for the US Census Bureau interviewing reluctant survey participants. He was often hired by friends who valued his smart, easy-going and thoughtful presence, as a production assistant on a variety of film and video projects -- he particularly enjoyed working with the production team responsible for creating the video programs honoring the annual National Medal of Science and Technology laureats.
A flexible work schedule dovetailed nicely with Paul's abiding interest in travel, variously joining both friends and family in exploring the canals of Amsterdam and Venice, the fjords of Norway and Sweden, the Nile, the Yangtze, the Black Sea, the North Sea, and the Mediterranean. All those boats led to adventures on land, from striding along the Great Wall of China to straddling a camel alongside his equally adventurous niece on the sands of the Sahara.
Paul was an excellent chef who enjoyed cooking with and for his friends and family. He was a great fan of many types of music and had extremely eclectic tastes which veered from the cerebral jazz of "Oregon" to the folk/blues songs of Chris Smither, one of his favorite artists. He attended numerous JazzFests in New Orleans where he could indulge in his twin passions but could also be found hanging out locally with friends, at the Birchmere, Blues Alley, the 9:30 Club, Wolf Trap/The Barns, the Hamilton and more.
Paul was blessed throughout his life with a supportive family and wonderful caring friends, all of whom feel lucky to have been a part of his life. Paul is survived by his brothers, Bob and Brian (sister-in-law Susan Dudley), his sisters Judy (brother-in-law John Koot) and Eileen, his nieces, nephews, great nephews, and countless Mannix and O'Brien cousins from Salem, OR to Breezy Point, NY, and by his longtime companion and partner in life, Rachelle Raphael.
A celebration of Paul's life will be held on May 18, 2025.
Paul was born to William and Mary Mannix on November 14, 1953 in Brooklyn, NY. Paul and his four siblings grew up in Brooklyn where his father taught at Erasmus Hall in Brooklyn and was later principal of Bay Ridge Evening High School. His mother Mary, was a professional singer and dancer who travelled with the USO during WW II and, after twenty years of child-rearing, joined her husband in the NY Board of Education, retiring as Principal Secretary of Francis Lewis High School. Paul followed his older siblings for the one-block walk to St. Vincent Ferrer Elementary School, where he also joined the Boy Scouts and Little League, and played bugle and trumpet in the school marching band. Paul graduated with honors from Brooklyn's Xaverian High School in 1971.
After graduating from the University of Virginia with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology in 1977, Paul moved to the D.C. area where he thrived. He displayed a great gift for getting along with all kinds of people in both his professional and personal life. His first job was with Herner & Co., a small publishing firm where he started out as an administrative assistant, moving up to editor and proof-reader before leaving in 1983 to join MCI Communications Corp. This was in the early days of the global telecommunications industry and Paul, using his burgeoning computer skills found a home with MCI Litigation Support assisting the team with administrative and technical support in their long, but ultimately successful takedown of AT&T's Bell System monopoly. Paul became a manager of MCI's legal network information services before taking a buyout in 1998 right before the Worldcom takeover of MCI.
Being "retired" at 45 made Paul the envy of his friends, but he was not one to remain idle. Eschewing the idea of another 9 to 5 office job, he embarked on a series of part-time gigs that put him in the company of interesting people taking on a variety of jobs that showcased his calm, organized manner. A quick study, he became proficient at data indexing which he successfully performed for a few different companies over the years. He even spent a couple of years working for the US Census Bureau interviewing reluctant survey participants. He was often hired by friends who valued his smart, easy-going and thoughtful presence, as a production assistant on a variety of film and video projects -- he particularly enjoyed working with the production team responsible for creating the video programs honoring the annual National Medal of Science and Technology laureats.
A flexible work schedule dovetailed nicely with Paul's abiding interest in travel, variously joining both friends and family in exploring the canals of Amsterdam and Venice, the fjords of Norway and Sweden, the Nile, the Yangtze, the Black Sea, the North Sea, and the Mediterranean. All those boats led to adventures on land, from striding along the Great Wall of China to straddling a camel alongside his equally adventurous niece on the sands of the Sahara.
Paul was an excellent chef who enjoyed cooking with and for his friends and family. He was a great fan of many types of music and had extremely eclectic tastes which veered from the cerebral jazz of "Oregon" to the folk/blues songs of Chris Smither, one of his favorite artists. He attended numerous JazzFests in New Orleans where he could indulge in his twin passions but could also be found hanging out locally with friends, at the Birchmere, Blues Alley, the 9:30 Club, Wolf Trap/The Barns, the Hamilton and more.
Paul was blessed throughout his life with a supportive family and wonderful caring friends, all of whom feel lucky to have been a part of his life. Paul is survived by his brothers, Bob and Brian (sister-in-law Susan Dudley), his sisters Judy (brother-in-law John Koot) and Eileen, his nieces, nephews, great nephews, and countless Mannix and O'Brien cousins from Salem, OR to Breezy Point, NY, and by his longtime companion and partner in life, Rachelle Raphael.
A celebration of Paul's life will be held on May 18, 2025.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
Published by The Washington Post on May 18, 2025.
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