Lila's Love Fest: Community celebrates the 'Life, Love, and Legacy' of Lila Lamanna
On Saturday, April 4, family, friends, and the community came together to celebrate Lila Lamanna, who was a well-loved and prominent member of the Floyd’s Dogtown Roadhouse family.
On Saturday, April 4, family, friends, and the community came together to celebrate Lila Lamanna, who was a well-loved and prominent member of the Floyd’s Dogtown Roadhouse family. The all-day event, called a "Lila Love Fest," celebrated the life, love, and legacy Lila left behind at the end of her battle with pancreatic cancer.
Lila was diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer in January. She passed away at home in the care of her partner, Travis Lyster, and her sister, Lucy Lamanna Allen, on March 13 at 45 years old.
On display at her Celebration of Life was a self-portrait Lila took in 2016. Her eyes were closed and a contented smile rested on her face. Along the outline of the wave of her long hair, she placed the printed words from a poem by poet and inter-spiritual minister Safire Rose:
She Let Go
In the space of letting go, she let it all be.
A small smile came over her face.
A light breeze blew through her.
And the sun and the moon shone forevermore…
Live performances throughout the celebration, which lasted from noon until midnight, featured members of her direct and extended family. These included collaborations with members of Music Road Co, The Alliens, Father Sun, Nyo Allen Project, John McBroom & Friends, Jordan Harman Band, The Kind, and members of Dead Reckoning. Her father, Steve Lamanna, played piano and James Din (her nephew Nyo’s grandfather) warmed up the crowd.
There were loving words and tributes shared. An altar in remembrance of Lila was lit up and decorated with flowers. The altar included a memento of her photograph and poem “She Let Go” for friends to take home. A screen slide show of photos of Lila (with her loved ones and her dog Una) lit up the stage.
While she worked as a music manager and booking coordinator for Dogtown, Lila also ran a thriving creative business, providing website designs and marketing campaigns to help entrepreneurs build their brands and bring their ideas to life. She comes from a musical family, and her sister described her as an artist, creative, organized, and authentic.
“We shared so much laughter and tears in life. I miss her physical presence every day,” she shared. “The night she transitioned out of this world, she woke up and said, ‘I’m ready. Let’s go! Go get the car!’” Lucy spoke to her, soothed her back to sleep and later realized that exchange would be their last conversation.
There was hardly a dry eye in the house when Lila’s nephew Nyo Allen and others performed a couple of Pink Floyd songs in Lila’s honor. “Fearless was her favorite song. She had it as a ring tone. So, we’re going to do it for her tonight,” Nyo said.
Another highlight was when Lila’s brother-in-law, Janiah Allen, and his brother Jamiel played flutes and were joined by their father on percussion and Kike Rodriquez from Solazo band on guitar and vocals for a haunting song about death and meeting the ancestors.
There was some good reggae, rock and roll and Grateful Dead tunes for a community that loves to dance, something Lila, as a friend and music promoter, loved to see.
Admission was open to everyone, and door tickets were on a "pay what you wish" basis. Along with ticket donations, the family has set up a Go Fund Me page to help recover costs for Lila’s care and medical expenses that are not otherwise covered
(www.gofundme.com/f/honoring-lila-support-for-travis-and-lilas-family). Any funds raised beyond what is needed will be donated to another individual suffering from pancreatic cancer and their loved ones.
The following day, members from Music Road Co posted on their Facebook page: “Last night was absolutely unforgettable. Lila truly wouldn't want us to celebrate any other way. We are so grateful to have played our hearts off last night in honor of her. So many beautiful people coming together to celebrate life. We love you guys, and we love you Lila!!”
Photos by Colleen Redman
