Obituary: Carolyn Maniatis
Author: Family of Carolyn Maniatis
Carolyn Maniatis
Family of Carolyn Maniatis
Carolyn Lorraine (Andersen) Maniatis, was born in Chicago, IL on July 24, 1937, and left this world on November 22, 2024, at Billings Clinic where she had been a resident for nearly 2 years.
Carolyn spent most of her life in the suburbs of Southwest Chicago. She married her teenage sweetheart, Jim, at 19 when he returned home from the Korean War. Jim was convinced self-employment was the way to go, and The Button Farm was hatched. They built a successful home business making political buttons and buttons for Recycled Paper Products featuring Sandra Boynton art. Carolyn quickly learned Clip Art; impressing everyone by learning “software”, which was pretty cutting-edge at the time.
After retiring, Carolyn discovered EBay and had success as a seller. Jim was on board, and off they went to many Estate Sales looking for bargains to resell on EBay.
In January of 2020, Jim passed away. In June, Carolyn embarked on another adventure. She hopped into a U-Haul with her Shih Tzu Holly, her daughter Dawn at the wheel, and moved to Winston, Montana. Carolyn enjoyed her time in Montana, the new birds at the feeder, the rugged scenery of the mountains, the people she met, but often wondered aloud why everything was so far apart. I would tell her that was what we liked about Montana!
Carolyn will be remembered as an avid gardener, crafter, and animal lover; she and Jim did their part and adopted many rescue dogs through the years.
Carolyn is survived by her daughter Dawn Reynolds of Winston and Debbie (Mike) McDonald of Tinley Park, IL. She was the adoring Grammy of Martin (Gina) McDonald, and William (Kacie) McDonald; great-grandmother to Cole, Henry and Cody; dearest sister to the late Madeline Karge; cherished aunt and friend of many.
The family would like to thank the staff of Billings Clinic, Broadwater in Townsend for the excellent care that Carolyn received in her time there. Carolyn flourished under their care; their patience, skills and professionalism contributed to contentment in her final days. They became a second family; dementia is hard to comprehend, and their support was appreciated.
Mom was a smart, unique, funny, beautiful lady who will be very missed and will live on in our memories and hearts forever.
A Memorial luncheon to celebrate Carolyn’s life will be held in the near future in Illinois.
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