By KEVIN DEVLIN
He’s a quiet, young boy, polite, and happy he’s being raised by two caring parents. His name is Ronan Manning.
Ronan, 8 is the son of Dan and Ashley Manning. He also has a younger sister named Keira. He’s in the third grade and attends the Condon Elementary School in South Boston. His favorite subject is math. He’s doing well in the classroom and someday hopes to either join the United States Army or play for the New England Patriots.
His favorite color is blue and his favorite foods are ice cream and steaks. His favorite professional athletes are Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning, and Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning. He likes the Manning brothers because Ronan shares their last name. But he also thinks it’s funny when the Manning brothers play against each other and their coaches are yelling their last names from the sidelines, obviously causing a little confusion.
In his spare time, Ronan enjoys playing video games, such as Super Mario and Minecraft. He also loves hanging out and playing with his cousins. And, he likes to read. He’s currently reading one of the books in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series written by Jeff Kinney.
Ronan is an altar server at Saint Brigid’s Church and volunteers at Saint Monica’s when they hold their annual Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, and Saint Patrick’s Day dinners for the less fortunate. As an alter server he likes lighting the candles before Mass and as a volunteer at the dinners he feels good when he helps out people in need. He helps out preparing the food and setting up the hall.
“Doing good things for people makes me feel good,” he said. “I like helping people.”
In the world of sports, Ronan keeps busy. He’s been playing baseball for four years, in the positions of second base and shortstop. He played in the South Boston Pop Warner Football Program last fall on the E team and was a safety and linebacker. He also plays hoop in the Gate of Heaven CYO house and travel leagues. In baseball, he enjoyed getting his team jersey last summer, in hoop he loves playing defense and stealing the ball, and in football, he likes tackling his opponents and keep them from scoring.
Last October, at the South Boston Neighborhood House (aka the Ollie), Ronan was elected president of the Moon Group in his age group. His slogans were help the police, make the Ollie more fun, and have more free candy for everyone. If Ronan were the president of this great country, he said that he would “give money to people who need it the most.”
His parents are proud of him – and they should be.
“Ronan is a very sincere, quiet, and dedicated child,” said his mother, Ashley. “He cares about his friends, family, and about politics … He’s a quiet force and we love him.”
