A funeral service was held Saturday, Feb. 28, in Dallas for Marcus Manny, 23, a senior and a kicker on the Tabor College football team, who was killed Feb. 22 in a one-car crash on Interstate 35 near Tonkawa, Okla.
An entourage of about 100 Tabor College football coaches, players, students and administration officials traveled to the service on chartered buses.
Manny?s jersey (No. 1) was framed and presented to the family and it was prominently displayed on the platform during the funeral.
The chapel, which seats about 200, was filled to capacity for the service, with as many as 50 additional mourners standing in the back of the sanctuary.
A campus memorial service was Thursday night, Feb. 26, in the Chapel-Auditorium. The theme of the event was ?A Celebration of Marcus? Life,? and was planned and orchestrated by his friends.
The ceremony began with students, faculty and staff filing into the Tabor College chapel to the sound of some of Manny?s favorite music and the sight of his picture projected onto the large screen.
Following a brief summary of Manny?s life by campus pastor Kevin Johnson, students read Scripture and sang a song called ?Times.?
A video commemorating Manny?s life was shown, compiled in part by his roommate, Mario Nava from Peabody.
At the beginning of the service, attendees had received small cards with the outline of a white T-shirt printed on them, the article of clothing most characteristic of Manny.
Perhaps one of the most touching parts of the night occurred when, during a time of silence and meditation, students walked to the front to drop off these white sheets of paper on which they had written their memories of Manny.
The papers were given to his family, to remind them of his legacy at Tabor. The number of people who walked to the front was a testament to the impact that Manny had on his peers.
The service concluded with the reading of more Bible passages, the singing of ?Mighty to Save,? a word from President Jules Glanzer reassuring the community of Manny?s commitment to Jesus Christ, and the benediction from Johnson.
While the official report of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol indicates Manny was wearing his seat belt, the family has confirmed that their son was text messaging on his cell phone and might have been distracted at the time of the accident.
?The Mannys have asked me to address the student body, pleading with them to stop texting while driving,? Glanzer said.
?They see this as a way for some meaning to come from Marcus?s death.?
In lieu of flowers, the Manny family is requesting donations in Marcus?s name be sent to Dallas Academy, 950 Tiffany Way, Dallas, TX, 75218 or Tabor College, 400 S. Jefferson, Hillsboro, KS 67063.
