In Memoriam

Hundreds pay respects to Doylestown Marine

By: EDWARD LEVENSON (Sun, May/06/2007)

Travis L. Manion was remembered Saturday as a young man who was devoted to his family, his faith, his country and the Marine Corps.

“What drove him was his spirit,” Manion's uncle, Chris Manion, said in his eulogy during a funeral Mass at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic Church in Doylestown. “Travis preached constantly by the way he lived his life.”

More than 600 mourners, including soldiers, sailors and Marines in dress uniform, filled every pew and stood along the walls of the church during the 75-minute service.

Manion, a 26-year-old first lieutenant from Doylestown, was killed by sniper fire last Sunday while on patrol in Anbar province in Iraq. The 2004 U.S. Naval Academy graduate was on his second tour of duty.

The Rev. Anthony W. Janton — chaplain at La Salle College High School, from which Manion graduated in 1999 — said in his homily that Manion's untimely death hit the community hard.

“We know that we honor a fallen hero,” Janton said. “We certainly experienced the emotion of welcoming home a hero and recognizing someone who has given their life for our country.”

Earlier in the day, hundreds of people lined up to attend the four-hour viewing at Reed and Steinbach Funeral Home in Doylestown Township. Only family members were allowed to park at the home; shuttle buses transported others from nearby Central Bucks West High School. There was an hour wait at one point, according to township police Chief Stephen White, who helped direct traffic.

Mourners expressed their grief over Manion's death.

“It's a great loss not only for the family but the whole community,” said Mariel Fitzgibbons of Doylestown, a close friend of Ryan Borek, Manion's sister.

“We hope there will be no more tragedies,” Maria Jourdan said. “Bring the boys back home.”

State police cruisers led a procession from the funeral home to the church on the other side of Doylestown. Some homes along the route were decorated with American and Marine Corps flags.

In his homily, Janton recalled an incident at La Salle when Manion rounded a blind corner in his rush to the cafeteria and literally ran into him.

“I remember how apologetic he was. You never stopped Travis on his way to the cafeteria,” he said, prompting laughter in the church.

“Travis certainly was not perfect,” Janton said. “We know he was good. We know he appreciated the honor given to him to serve his country.”

Joel Sharrat, a close friend, said in his remarks that his fellow Marine was “a young man who seemed to have the world at his fingertips.”

He said Manion was a devoted son and friend who always gave others more than he sought in return.

“He never made himself big by making others look small,” Sharrat said.

Before the service, Marine Capt. Daryl Hill recalled attending the Naval Academy with Manion.

“There are not too many guys out there like Travis. Unfortunately, he had so much more to give the world,” said Hill, who drove up from Maryland with his wife, Robyna, and 3-month-old son, Henry.

Hill, who served in Iraq and is now stationed at Marine Corps headquarters in Arlington, Va., described Manion as “somebody who would lay his life down for you. He touched the lives of so many people.”

An 11-year-old boy who never met Manion wrote a poem that he gave to the family last week.

“I really wanted to meet him, and I still do,” wrote Patrick Schumaker of Doylestown.

“When I get to heaven someday, I am going to find Travis,

And I am going to thank him, for protecting my country and for being a hero.”

Manion's father, Thomas, said he was very moved that a young boy looked up to his son.

After the service, Manion was buried in Calvary Cemetery in Conshohocken.