Vazquez-Mangual, Nilda L.

Nilda L. Vazquez-Mangual, 92, beloved wife of the l ate Jesus M. Mangual, died peacefully with her family by her side on Saturday, March 5, 2021 at St. Francis Hospital, Hartford, CT. She was born to t he l ate Aurelio and Rosa Vazquez i n San Juan Puerto Rico on February 20, 1929. Nilda grew up i n Old San Juan where she met and grew up with t he l ove of her life, Jesus Mangual. They were high school sweethearts and married on June 3, 1949. In 1998 they moved to Tolland, CT to be closer t o their children and grandchildren who had since relocated to the U.S. Nilda i s survived by f i ve of her six children: J esus A. Mangual and wife Patti, of Advance, NC; Nilda M. Mangual-Adames of Fairview, TN; Jesus V. Mangual and wife Mindy, of Bluffton, SC; Ana M. Mangual-Hernandez and husband Elonto, of South Windsor, CT; Theresa Y. Mangual-Anban and husband Tamil, of Vernon, CT; her brother Aurelio Vazquez and wife Awilda, of Bayamon, PR; and her sister Rosita Vazquez and husband Joe, of Apopka, FL. She i s also survived by ten grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. Nilda was predeceased by her eldest daughter Maria Mangual-Rosa i n 1973; her brother Rafael Vazquez in 2017 and her loving husband Jesus M. Mangual in 2014.

Nilda was a hard-working woman who worked as an administrative assistant for t he Senate of Puerto Rico for many years. She was immensely proud of her family and took amazing care of them all. She would often say, “my f amily i s t he centerpiece of my l i f e”. She was strict but yet loving and compassionate with her children and always encouraged them to “reach for the stars” and achieve all t hey could i n l i f e. Everyone l oved Nilda and she could light up a room with her presence, smile, and hearty laughter. She enjoyed knitting, sewing, and cooking for her family while sharing her recipes and culinary secrets.

Words cannot express how grateful our family i s to St Francis hospital, t heir doctors, and nurses, especially Dr. Osowski, who took care of her during her final days. We also wish to thank Woodlake at Tolland and their staff for taking care of her and making her feel at home during these challenging times.

Due t o t he challenges i mposed by COVID no public viewing will be held. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Thursday, March 11, 2021, 11 a.m., at Blessed Sacrament Parish, St. Matthew Church, 111 Tolland Green, Tolland, CT. Burial at Cedar Hill Cemetery i n Hartford will be private. Ladd Turkington & Carmon Funeral Home in Vernon has care of the arrangements. The family requests that in lieu of flowers please make donations to the HVCC Food Pantry. Please visit www. carmonfuneralhome.com for online condolences.

Defensive player of the year Isaiah Whaley, UConn

Posh Alexander, St. John’s

Sixth man award

Tyler Polley, UConn

Most improved player

Julian Champagnie, St. John’s Zach Freemantle, Xavier Sportsmanship Award

Mitch Ballock, Creighton

Player, coach and freshman of the year and scholar-athlete will be announced Wednesday.