Donna “Donnabelle” Manna, passed away on May 31, 2018 soon after being diagnosed with cancer. Donnabelle belonged to every clown organization around and we were proud to have her as a member of our Jolly Joeys Clown Alley in San Antonio, Texas. She served as our President as well as various other officer positions during the last several years. She was a giving and compassionate individual which made her a wonderful Clown. Although she was happy to clown at birthday parties and corporate events, she enjoyed clowning the most for the special needs population both young and old. Her other passion in clowning was introducing the Art of Clowning to new clowns and mentoring them along the way. This was great because she was a perfect example of a positive, caring and professional clown. For over 15 years Donnabelle volunteered her services as a clown at numerous community events. She clowned at nursing homes, hospitals and for fundraisers to benefit; Autism, Spina-Bifida, Alzheimer, Down Syndrome, ALS and many others. She was a professional clown who made significant contributions to the service of clowning as an excellent performer and mentor. She was someone who was always willing to share her time and knowledge by assisting clowns who were new to clowning.
Donnabelle’s clowning adventures were so supported by her family that many of them were a big part of our Alley as Associate Members. Her husband, Paul, son Phillip, daughters Cindy, Sharon, Barbara and Michelle and all of their families were great contributing participants at Alley events.
Donnabelle will be greatly missed by our Alley members as well as the special needs community who counted on her to bring their special needs population smiles, balloons, music and comedy antics.
We know that heaven now has a blue-haired Angel named “Donnabelle”.