Albert "Abbie" John Manns

Abbie Manns cared deeply for local history and sat on the board of the Mifflin Township Historical Society, where he worked to archive and digitize records from Homestead Cemetery.

Before cancer sidelined him, he was creating a database of everyone buried in the cemetery, which opened in 1886.

“He would have still been up there today working if he could be,” said his wife, Mary Lou Manns.

Albert John “Abbie” Manns of West Mifflin died Friday, Oct. 7, 2016. He was 71.

Mr. Manns was born Aug. 3, 1945, the son of the late Albert and Pauline Manns.

He and his wife met in high school but went their separate ways after graduation. She went to college, and he went to work and then the Navy. Stationed in Norfolk, Va., Mr. Manns served two tours of duty in Vietnam.

He was aboard the USS Du Pont on Aug. 28, 1967, stationed off the shore of the Demilitarized Zone, when enemy fire struck the destroyer.

“Thankfully, he wasn’t in his bunk,” his wife said. “If he was, he would have gotten killed.”

The high school sweethearts got back together a few years before Mr. Manns’ military commitment was up, his wife said. They were married for 46 years.

“He was a very, very good family man,” she said.

Ethan Manns of Pittsburgh said his father, a locksmith and retired tool and die maker for General Motors, made sure to pass along his handyman skills.

“He was very active in teaching me how to do things for myself: Carpentry, plumbing, electrical work. He made sure to take time to teach me so that I wouldn’t be lost in the world,” he said.

Mr. Manns also urged his children to pursue their passions.

“He always encouraged us to do whatever we liked, what would make us happy,” his son said. “When we got jobs and careers, he encouraged us to be the best we could be at it.”

He never got down on them, though, Ethan Manns said.

“He really encouraged you to keep moving, keep going forward,” he said. “He always said, ‘This too shall pass.’ ”

In addition to his wife and son, Mr. Manns is survived by daughters Heather Manns of West Mifflin and Sarah Burns of Ellwood City, sister Paula Niedoba of Unity and brother Gregor Manns of Irwin.

A blessing service will be held at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11, at Maloy-Schleifer Funeral Home, 915 Kennedy Drive, Duquesne.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Mifflin Township Historical Society.