Eulogy for Mom & Dad

Two Fully-Lived Souls

Good afternoon everyone.  Thank you all for being here not to say goodbye but to celebrate & wish my parents Gerry & Lisa, peace in a new life in heaven.

For those who knew my dad (Geronimo Jamisola Garcenila) he was a true humanitarian, a leader, one who would put people he knew & loved first, very studious & hard working.  He liked watching sports, movies, & loved to travel.  But above all, a wonderful father & husband.  He was born in Ilo, Ilo (Antique) Philippines on September 30, 1941.  He grew up with 1 older sister & 1 younger sister& was raised by a single mom.  My dad liked to read, he was part of the glee club in high school & graduated with honors in both high school & college.  As he grew older, he tutored students in college when they needed help on some subjects.  My dad graduated Salutatorian in high school, the second highest honor in high school.  He also graduated Magna-cum laude in college as well as a masters degree at SDSU.

Once my parents were married in the Philippines, my mom was a part-time RN.  They immigrated from the Philippines to the US in 1973.  Inspired by my mom, my dad decided to enter nursing school at Pace University in New York & within years, he graduated with a nursing degree.

For those of you who knew my mom (Edelisa Pilones Garcenila), she was also a true humanitarian, hard-working, a great cook, who loved to tell her spontaneous life stories & was beautiful (inside & out).  But above all, she was first & foremost a mother but also a wife.  She was born in Cebu, Philippines on July 10, 1942.  She grew up with 2 older brothers & was raised by their parents.  M mom was a good student in school.  She took care of her parents & volunteered at local community centers.  It was only natural that she had a passion to be a nurse.  When her parents gave her the money to go to nursing school in the Philippines, she passed the boards 7 saved enough money to come to the US.  She worked part-time at Cook County Hospital in Chicago along with her fellow new graduate nurses.

My mom & dad met/introduced through a mutual friend.  In fact, that friend is joined by us, auntie Dina.  Her late husband (uncle Romy) was my dad's cousin.  I was going through some boxes of my parents & found out that they were writing letters to each other from the Philippines to the US.  Their love story was like a combination of the Notebook & Letters to Juliet.  They got married on April 29, 1973.  Two years later, I was born on January 7, 1975.  They're love & devotion to each other lasted for 49 years.

My dad was a wonderful man, intelligent, generous & truly touched many people's lives.  As a humanitarian & leader, Papa (as we called him) studied hard to be an RN & eventually, a Nurse Practitioner.  Years later, he joined the PNA Sand Diego where he was a newsletter editor, vice president & president.  He & my mom were also a part of an organization called ACUSA (Antique Circle of the United States of America), Antique is a province in the Philippines.  ACUSA is an organization that celebrates & talks about the culture, history, language & agriculture.

Last we turned our house in San Diego into a developmentally disabled home care, which we ran for a little over 20 years.  My dad also volunteered at St. Jude Children's Hospital.  My dad was always open & direct when it came to giving advice w/life & career issues/decisions. He taught me to just be me, follow my dreams & it's good to give more than take.  He retired from nursing in 2001.

As a humanitarian, my mom studied & worked hard to be an RN. Years later, she also joined the PNA San Diego & was on board of directors.  My mom was always frank, caring, family/prayer-oriented & a devoted relative/friend.  My mom was a very good seamstress (which til this day, I could never get the hang of), she loved traveling (just like my dad) & most of all, talent for cooking home-made Filipina food (I'm glad I learned to cook by watching her when I was younger).  She taught me to be strong, respectful, never to give up & hold my head up high in tough times.  She retired from nursing in 2005.

In conclusion, I will always be grateful for them for bringing me into this world, watching me grow, celebrating birthdays/holidays, & being there for my high school & college graduations.  But one of the most memorable events I will always cherish is both my mom & dad walking me down the aisle on my wedding day.  My parents said, they fulfilled & achieved so much in life & travelled the world (which I'm sure the still will).  They were truly an inspiration to me & I hope one day I can bet as they were to my kids.  They retired & became proud & doting grandparents to their 2 wonderful grandkids...Zach & Olli.  Again, thank you all for being here & for all your prayers, thoughts & support.  God Bless.

I want to leave you w/my dad's advise/saying when I was growing up  "Speak up, don't keep things bottled up inside"