Carol Eggerstorfer Mancy, 1950-2012: Ex-Toledoan convivial host
Carol Eggerstorfer Mancy, 1950-2012
7/27/2012Carol Eggerstorfer Mancy, a former Toledo restaurateur who as manager in the 1970s and '80s of the Press Club of Toledo helped promote a convivial atmosphere at that downtown hot spot, died Thursday in Avow Hospice of Naples, Fla. She was 62.
The cause of death was not reported. Her recent illness was not related to breast cancer she survived nearly 20 years ago, said Chris Loop, her life partner the last 9 1/2 years. She moved to Naples in the late '90s and the couple met there, although Mr. Loop had been a Toledo radio personality and manager of political campaigns. "She's been the love of my life and the greatest thing that happened to me," Mr. Loop said. "We were as married as you can be without being married."
She was a waitress at the Press Club of Toledo when it opened in January, 1972, in the basement of the former Willard Hotel. It was her first job, and she was concerned that she wouldn't know what to do, said Larry Boyer, the Willard's general manager, who hired her.
"I tell you what, she got in there and was very personable. The members just adored her," said Mr. Boyer, who is now executive vice president of Waterford Bank of Sylvania. "She rose from a waitress to the manager of the club. She just learned. She picked things up right away."
The press club grew to about 800 members and attracted print and broadcast journalists, but also those in public relations and advertising and Toledo's top business and banking executives -- "the movers and shakers, as they liked to call themselves," said Bob McCarthy, an advertising and marketing veteran and a former Press Club president. "Each one had their likes and dislikes, and she was excellent at smoothing all those rough edges."
The club played host to press conference and political debates. She expanded the social activities so that members would want to visit at lunch and after work.
And it became "the place to be for lunch," Ms. Mancy told The Blade in 2008.
"She had natural talent and used it and did very well," Mr. Boyer said. "She was a take-charge person and had great managerial skills."
Tom Gearhart, a longtime Blade editor and writer, recalled a club filled with laughter, where the regulars became friends, and Ms. Mancy knew everyone by name.
"She was there to serve her friends, and she was beloved by all of them, guarantee it," Mr. Gearhart said. "She was just a joy to talk and trade quips with."
The Press Club moved in 1983 to C.J's Cafe, a restaurant Ms. Mancy had opened in the Gardner Building.
Ms. Mancy in the early 1990s owned Chatz Bar and Grill in West Toledo. She worked at Mancy's Steaks and, after moving to Naples, was on the wait staff and in management of restaurants.
She returned to Toledo several times a year to visit family, and she maintained her network of friends.
"She kept in touch with so many people in Toledo that sometimes, when one of us would have a conversation with her, she would know more about what was going in Toledo than we would," Mr. Gearhart said.
She grew up in Point Place and was a graduate of Central Catholic High. She was formerly married to John Eggerstorfer and John Mancy.
Surviving are her partner, Chris Loop; sons, Ryan and Jason Eggerstorfer; sisters, Pat Lees and Julie Ochs, and four grandchildren.
Arrangements in Naples and Toledo are pending, Mr. Loop said.
Contact Mark Zaborney at: mzaborney@theblade.com or 419-724-6182.