Manuel O'Bryant

Manuel O'Bryant passed away peacefully at his home in Washington DC on December 21, 2017 at the age of 88. Manuel is survived by his wife Beatrice (Moore) of Washington D.C., identical twin brother, Samuel B. O’Bryant, Sr., of Brandon, FL, his children Manuel J. O’Bryant (Jeanette) of Tampa, FL; Mary Ellen Gitachu of Austin, TX, Camille O’Bryant of Atascadero, CA and their mother Joan (Patrice) O’Bryant; stepsons Roderick (Lola) Hill of Silver Spring, MD and Reginald Hill of Washington, D.C., Grandchildren, London Egemonye, Diamond Howard, Kathleen Gitachu, Drucilla Hill, Rodereeca Hill, Great Grandson Dream J. Weldon, and a host of cousins, nieces and nephews.  

Manuel is preceded in death by his daughter Kathleen O’Bryant, parents George and Elsie Joseph, brother, John D. O’Bryant, sisters Frances O’Bryant, Cora (O’Bryant) Haines and grandson, Octavius Deon Ware.

Manuel was born on May 17, 1929 in Boston, MA. He graduated from Boston English High School in 1947. Along with his twin brother Samuel, he graduated from Northeastern University, Boston, MA in 1951 with a degree in Pharmacy and later, earned a master’s in business administration from Northeastern in 1964. They were the first African-Americans to earn this graduate degree from Northeastern.

Fluent in German and Yiddish, Manuel loved to read and keep up with current events. He served in the U.S. Air Force as a registered pharmacist stationed in Germany, during the Korean War.  A former retail pharmacy owner/operator with his brother Samuel, Manuel retired from nearly three decades of service to the U.S. Department of Labor with leadership positions in Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Manuel was an early adopter of new technologies and used his computer skills to help his church and community.

Manuel and his wife, Beatrice, enjoyed traveling and playing bridge for many years. He was an active and dedicated member of the Grant A.M.E. Church when he lived in Boston, MA and later became very active in the Northeastern Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. He was a Life Member of the NAACP, Life Member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and a member of the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated.  Although he was unable to keep up with many of these activities in the last few years of his life, he will always be remembered as a person who was committed to education, civil rights and service to family, friends, his church and the community.

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