Manuela Testolini is a businesswoman, author, and wife of Eric Benet. Her dating history is interesting as it brought her to the A-List of Hollywood famous personalities. With her late husband, Prince, she gained popularity. Her current marriage to Benet, Halle Berry’s ex-husband has made her a household name.
Apart from moving among Hollywood’s known names, the beautiful Manujela is a businesswoman and charity worker.
Many will confuse her good looks for someone in the modeling business, well don’t worry, there are many facts about her that will prove otherwise.
Who Is Manuela Testolini?
Born in Toronto, Canada on 19 September 1976, Manuela Testolini currently stays in the United States of America.
She traces her ancestry to Egypt on her mother’s side and Italy on her father’s side. Manuela is currently 48 years old.
As a child, she regularly visited Egypt to see her extended family.
Manuela attended college at York University and graduated with a degree in Law and Sociology.
She currently puts some of her sociology training as a charity worker after years of leaving the legal profession. Manuela is deeply involved in charity work building schools in less developed countries like Haiti and Malawi.
Manuela is a practicing Jehovah’s witness.
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Her Marriage To Eric Benet
She started dating eric Benet in 2009. At first, Benet was not aware of her previous divorce till they had been together for two months.
He only learned after her first marriage to Price after challenging her complicated divorce. This did not stop him from dating him.
Benet was married to Halle Berry in the past. Berry even adopted his daughter India who had lost her mother in a car accident when she was 15 months old.
They moved their relationship to the next level when they tied the knot on 31 July 2011. They are still married and waxing strong with no rumors of any scandal.
7 Other Interesting Facts About Manuela Testolini
1. She Started Her Career As A Lawyer
When she started out, it was as a lawyer. But because she was not happily working within the legal system, she took some time off.
2. How Did She Start Charity Work?
Working in a homeless shelter as a volunteer made her realize where she needed to put her energy. She started charity work with many non-profit organizations.
Among these organizations are
Free arts Minnesota
Young Women’s Empowerment Network
Love4One Another
3. Manuela Testolini Children
She and Benet welcomed their first child, Lucia Bella Benet on 21 December 2011. In July Of 2014, they welcomed yet another bundle of joy, Amoura Lynn Benet.
Manuela has a stepdaughter from Benet’s side. At the time of their marriage, Benet was already a father to 20-year-old India. benet had India from a former relationship with his late girlfriend, Tami Marie Stauff.
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4. President Of Gamillah Inc.
Manuela founded Gamilah Inc, a company that deals in the production of designer candles and other ventures.
She is presently the president of the company.
5. Manuela Testolini Marriage To Prince
Manuela was first married to the late American musician, Prince. They met while she was working in his charity, Love4One Another. As a charity worker in his organization, she may not have seen that coming.
But as they say, love happened between them. They tied the nuptial knot on 25 December 2001. Their marriage brought a lot of media attention to the two.
While she was 25 and he was 43 at the time of their marriage, it didn’t stop them from pursuing their happiness. This happiness was cut short when news of their divorce filtered out.
Their divorce was finalized in 2007.
6. Her First Husband Did Not Want Them To Divorce
Though they got divorced in 2007, they had been separated since 2004. Sources claim they had been counseled by elders of their denomination, the Jehovah’s Witness but it was not successful.
The troubled marriage could not be saved. Shockingly, Prince wanted the marriage to work out, he never wanted the divorce. But why didn’t he contest the petition?
Court documents after their divorce revealed how hard they partied and spent money. Manuela hired a stylist at $5000 per day while they spent $50000 on party planning.
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7. Manuela And Prince’s First Wife Are Friends
After Prince’s death in 2016, his former wives struck a friendship. Manuela first reached out to Garcia his first wife and broke the news of his death.
While at it, she asked her forgiveness for the hurt she caused. To this day, the two women remain friends.
