Amandio "Mandy" Rodrigues

Amandio “Mandy” Rodrigues, born May 29, 1950 to Domingoes and Mathilda Rodrigues, passed away Saturday, April 27th after a life cut short by Glioblastoma.  Mandy was born in St.James Hospital in Newark, NJ, and raised in Harrison, NJ. He grew up above the family business, the Manor Bar and Grill which was the family business from 1948-2021. He played little league across the street and still remains friends with some of his teammates from the 1950s and 1960’s.

Mandy went to St. Cecilia’s HS in Kearny where he played soccer and basketball.  He always bragged about how he got to play defense against the basketball powerhouse of St. Anthony’s and held his own.  St. Cecilia’s is also where he found the love of his life, and 5 years after taking her to senior prom, he married Joan (Olawski) Rodrigues. 

Mandy worked for Bell Labs and the US Postal Service in his early professional life, but spent decades working in the family business with his parents and brother Dominick.  The Manor Bar and Grill was a staple of Harrison for nearly 70 years, and Mandy was not only part of the successful family business, but it is where he made countless life long friends.

Mandy was married to Joan (Olawski) Rodrigues in 1973, and they raised two children, Amanda and Adam, in Kearny NJ. Mandy and his daughter always played catch in front of their Kearny home, as they both were softball players, Amanda all through childhood, and Mandy for the men’s softball team the family business sponsored.  Mandy and his son Adam spent many years traveling to Florida to fish for Tarpon.  Mandy’s big catch was a 65 lb tarpon that he was so proud of.  Mandy and his wife Joan “Joanie” loved to travel on cruises and to the Caribbean islands together and with their children.  The couple spent every anniversary over their 30 years of marriage, never missing an anniversary weekend getaway.  An adventure of a lifetime for the two was their trip to Brazil where they even slept in hammocks in the Amazon Rainforest back in the 1970s.  Their pride and joy of adventure was always the vacation home they bought in Seaside Park in 1992, which has brought family together for decades and will continue to in the next generations.

Mandy loved hunting the family property in Pittstown, NJ with a group of friends, old and new.  They loved venison and the end of hunting season dinner they all shared.  An avid tennis player in his 30s and 40s, he found joy in the sport again, playing 5-6 days a week in his 60s and early 70s, with his brother Dominick and with friends, only stopping due to his illness.  Mandy was a history buff, and could tell you anything about the Civil War or WWII, even making many trips to Gettysburg with dear friends to soak in the history.  Throughout his life, Mandy traveled to many places including Alaska, where he panned for gold, the Grand Tetons of Wyoming, where he rode horses and wore an awesome cowboy hat, Austria, where he took a sleigh ride through the snow, France, where he took a boat through the various canals/rivers, Italy, where he got to enjoy Roman history and see the Colosseum and Pompeii, and Quebec City, Canada, where he enjoyed his daily croissant and baguette, just to name a few of the many adventures he had throughout his life.

Mandy will be remembered for his many “one-liners” and selflessness, always willing to give a hand to help someone move, fix something in the house, or give them a ride. Late in his illness he was asked, “How are you feeling?” and Mandy’s immediate answer was, “With my fingers.”  He always found a way to create laughter even in tough times.  He will be greatly missed.

Amandio (Mandy) Rodrigues is pre-deceased by his parents Domingos Rodrigues (1992) and Mathilda Rodrigues (2021), and his wife Joan (Olawski) Rodrigues (2003).  He is survived by his children Amanda Rodrigues and her husband Kaman Hung, Adam Rodrigues, and his wife Courtney Reinfried, his cherished and only grandchild, Elizabeth Joan Rodrigues, his brother Dominick Rodrigues, and his wife Laurie Rodrigues, his godson Alec Rodrigues and his wife Dani Rodrigues, sister-in-law Caroline (Olawski) Pinard, many nieces and nephews, countless friends, and his precious Jack Russell, Carley.

Visitation will be on Monday April 29, 2024 from 3:00pm-7:00pm and Tuesday April 30th from 9:30-11:00am followed by a service from 11:00-11:30am at Mulligan Funeral Home, 331 Cleveland Avenue Harrison, NJ 07029.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.mulliganfh.com

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be sent to The Brain Tumor Lab Support Fund at Penn
Medicine. Credit card donations can be made here: https://giving.apps.upenn.edu/fund?program=MED&fund=841207  Please note “In memory of Amandio
‘Mandy’ Rodrigues ”. For checks, please make payable to “Trustees of the University of
Pennsylvania,” noting “in memory of Amandio ‘Mandy’ Rodrigues,” and mail to Penn Medicine
Development, Attn: Sheryl Garton, 3535 Market St., Ste. 750, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

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