Ernest Cosmo Manea (23 December 1926 – 16 October 2013) was a prominent figure in the city of

Bunbury, Western Australia Bunbury is a coastal city in the Australian state of Western Australia, approximately south of the state capital, Perth. It is the state's third most populous city after Perth and Mandurah, with a population of approximately 75,000. Located at ...

. He was the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of Bunbury from 1966 to 1972 and again from 1988 to 1997, making him the city's longest-serving mayor. He worked as a general practitioner and was a patron, board member, chairman or president of over 300 organisations.

Early life

Manea was born in

Albany, Western Australia Albany ( ; nys, Kinjarling) is a port city in the Great Southern region in the Australian state of Western Australia, southeast of Perth, the state capital. The city centre is at the northern edge of Princess Royal Harbour, which is a ...

, on 23 December 1926. He was of Irish and Greek descent. He completed secondary education by the time he was 15, having skipped several years of school.

Career

Manea studied medicine at the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...

and the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

, and then took an internship at

Royal Perth Hospital Royal Perth Hospital (RPH) is a 450-bed adult and teaching hospital located on the northeastern edge of the central business district of Perth, Western Australia. History The hospital traces its history back to the first colonial hospital, whi ...

. He moved to

, on 18 May 1952 to join a medical practice. He became a member of

South Bunbury Football Club South Bunbury Football Club is a semi-professional Australian rules football club based in South Bunbury, Western Australia. The club plays in the South West Football League. Since being founded in 1897 the club has won 45 premierships and has be ...

and became a life member when he was 30. He was the

City of Bunbury The City of Bunbury is a local government area in the South West region of Western Australia, covering an area of along the coast about south of Perth, the capital of Western Australia. The City of Bunbury is one of four local governments comp ...

's longest serving

. His first term as mayor was from 1966 to 1972 and his second term was from 1988 to 1997. He was the inaugural chairman of the

South West Development Commission The South West region is one of the nine regions of Western Australia. It has an area of 23,970 km2, and a population of about 170,000 people. Bunbury is the main city in the region. Climate The South West has a Mediterranean climate, wi ...

and served on the boards of

St John of God Hospital Bunbury St John of God Bunbury Hospital is a 145-bed private hospital providing health care to the south west of Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land are ...

, the TAB,

GWN7 GWN7 was an Australian Television broadcasting in Australia, television network serving all of Western Australia outside metropolitan Perth. It launched on 10 March 1967 as ''BTW-3'' in Bunbury, Western Australia, Bunbury. It was an affiliate ...

Landcorp Landcorp Farming Limited ("Landcorp") is a state-owned enterprise of the New Zealand government. Its brand name is Pāmu, the Te Reo Māori word 'to farm'. Its core business is pastoral farming including dairy, sheep, beef and deer, as well as ...

among others. He had an interest in

harness racing Harness racing is a form of horse racing in which the horses race at a specific gait (a trot or a pace). They usually pull a two-wheeled cart called a sulky, or spider, or chariot occupied by a driver. In Europe, and less frequently in Australi ...

which was developed while a medical student in Adelaide. He was the president of the Bunbury Trotting Club, the Western Australia Trotting Association, the

Inter Dominion :''for winners of the Inter Dominion see: Inter Dominion Pacing Championship and Inter Dominion Trotting Championship'' The Inter Dominion is a harness racing competition that has been contested since 1936 in Australia and New Zealand. It is of ...

Harness Racing Council and the International Trotting Association. He was president of South Bunbury Football Club and the Bunbury District Football Association at times. Manea lobbied for

Edith Cowan University Edith Cowan University (ECU) is a public university in Western Australia. It is named in honour of the first woman to be elected to an Parliaments of the Australian states and territories, Australian parliament, Edith Cowan, and is the only Aust ...

to establish a campus in Bunbury, and served on its board when it was created in 1986. In total, he was a patron or board member of over 300 organisations. During his career, he was approached by the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

and

National National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...

parties to try to get him to stand as a candidate for their parties in state politics, but he declined the offers. In 2002, Manea left the medical practice he had been working at since 1952 to create his own. He retired in 2010. In total, he had delivered 3,581 babies.

Personal life

Manea married Claudine Beulah "Snookie" Snook, who was a nurse he met in 1952 while at Royal Perth Hospital. She gave birth to two sons. He is also the adoptive father of Syd Jackson, who was a

Stolen Generations The Stolen Generations (also known as Stolen Children) were the children of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent who were removed from their families by the Australian federal and state government agencies and church miss ...

child living at the

Roelands Aboriginal Mission Roelands Aboriginal Mission, also known as Roelands Native Mission or simply Roelands Mission, was a farm property used to house Aboriginal children from the Stolen Generations. Peter Albany Bell, following his retirement in 1928, purchased i ...

. Jackson became a talented footballer, playing for South Bunbury in the

South West Football League The South West Football League is an Australian rules football league based in the south-west of Western Australia. The league is affiliated to the West Australian Country Football League. History The idea of creating a larger league was discu ...

East Perth East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sunrise, Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from ...

in the

West Australian Football League The West Australian Football League (WAFL) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The league currently consists of ten teams, which play each other in a 20-round season usually lasting from March to September, ...

, and

Carlton Carlton may refer to: People * Carlton (name), a list of those with the given name or surname * Carlton (singer), English soul singer Carlton McCarthy * Carlton, a pen name used by Joseph Caldwell (1773–1835), American educator, Presbyterian ...

in the

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

. A book about Manea's life, ''Manea: The Story of a Remarkable Life – the tale of Dr Ern Manea's amazing exploits'' by Baden Pratt, was released in November 2012. Manea died in his sleep on 16 October 2013, aged 86. He was survived by his wife, three sons and five grandchildren. His wife Snookie died in January 2017. Bunbury Mayor David Smith paid tribute to Manea, saying "I do not believe there has been any one in my lifetime who has contributed more to Bunbury and the South West." His funeral took place at

St Patrick's Cathedral, Bunbury St Patrick's Cathedral (also referred to as Bunbury Cathedral) is a religious building which is the main place of Catholic worship in the city of Bunbury, Western Australia, and is the seat of the Bishop of the Diocese of Bunbury. The current b ...

, and he was buried at Bunbury Cemetery.

Awards and honours

Manea was one of the first recipients of the Local Government Medal. In the

1985 Australia Day Honours The 1985 Australia Day Honours were announced on 26 January 1985 by the Governor General of Australia, Sir Ninian Stephen. The Australia Day Honours are the first of the two major annual honours lists, announced on Australia Day Australia ...

, Manea was appointed as a

member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

for "service to the community of Bunbury and to local government." In the 1998 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was appointed as an

officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

for "service to the community of Bunbury, to local government, to regional planning and development, and to the advancement of the harness racing industry." In 1997, the City of Bunbury appointed Manea and his wife as Honorary Freeman of the City, the highest honour that a local government can give. They were the first people to be given the honour, and since then, it has been given two more times, to

John Castrilli Giovanni Mario "John" Castrilli (; born 22 November 1950 in Roccamandolfi, Italy), was a Liberal member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly representing the electorate of Bunbury after winning the seat in the 2005 election. He reti ...

and Loretta Castrilli in 2017. Manea Senior College, which opened in 2009 in the Bunbury suburb of College Grove, is named after Manea and his wife after he accepted an offer from Education and Training Minister

Alan Carpenter Alan John Carpenter (born 4 January 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th Premier of Western Australia, from 2006 to 2008. From Albany, Carpenter graduated from the University of Western Australia, and worked as a journ ...

in 2004 for the school to be named after him. The match between South Bunbury and Donnybrook in the South West Football League has been known as the Manea Cup since 2014.

Early life

Career

Personal life

Awards and honours

Notes

References

Further reading