Bede Benedicto Nobleza Layador

My father was and still is the sunshine of our lives. He was given to us by God, to spend his 62 yrs, to become the most loving husband, father, brother, uncle, friend, co-worker to all of us. As a father, he was very selfless in his love. If my mom was the whirlwind-like energy in our lives, our dad was the calm force. The most important thing in his life is us, his family. He made sure that we had everything, from something simple as preparing our lunch boxes for school, to something great as the life lessons we have learned from him. And the last great lesson that he taught us was on how to be strong until the very end. He never wavered on his desire to live. Cancer did not defeat him. Cancer revealed to us how strong our father was. We had never felt so much sadness as when Daddy passed away. But deep in our hearts, we know that our Daddy is safe in the presence of his Creator. That he is waiting for us and that he is watching over us, our very special guardian angel. We love you Daddy and we know you are with us everyday.

Hi my name is Jerome Bediones. My family calls me Jeb. Bede Benedicto is my uncle. To his nieces and nephews he is known as tito bede. I’ve known him ever since I was a little kid, but I got to know him a lot better when he moved to the United States. There are many things that remind me of him. Every single time I saw him, he would always say “hi jeb!” in a very enthusiastic way. It was very special to me, because I could tell that he was genuinely happy to see me. For me, tito Bede’s humor was unforgettable. Whether he was healthy or lying in a hospital bed, he always found situations to turn into a laugh. Whenπ he was staying at the hospital, he would refer him being assisted by the nurse to the toilet, as being escorted to his royal throne. During his last few days, a lot of people visited him and brought him his favorite food like corn on the cob, siow pow, and siow mai. Sometimes before going to his house, I stopped by Starbucks. Thinking that tito bede was soundly asleep, I would open the paper bag from starbucks to eat my toffee almond bar. Tito bede’s eyes rapidly opened as he heard the inevitable crinkling sound of the paper bag from Starbucks. He reached out his hand for a taste. I quickly broke him a small piece of my toffee almond bar, thinking that’s all he could consume. But no, he reached out his hand again and I gave him a larger piece of his newest favorite treat. The next few days that same thing happened, and I gave him more toffee almond bar. Irish and Tita baby told me to hide it because he would finish it all. So tito bede, this is something to remember me by—your newest favorite treat. (walks to coffin and lays a toffee almond bar in his coffin)

Eulogy delivered on October 26, 2008 at 5pm in Marlatt Funeral Home (Kent, WA) for Tito Bede.

Given by: Aiza Villarin

 

Good afternoon everyone.  My name is Aiza Villarin and I'm the niece of Tito Bede.  I thank you all for being here to celebrate the life and memories of Bede Benedicto Nobleza Layador.  If he can see us now, he will be honored and overjoyed by the tremendous love and support from all of his friends and family.  Before I deliver my eulogy, I would like to begin with a poem:

“Life is but a stopping place,
A pause in what's to be,
A resting place along the road,
to sweet eternity.
We all have different journeys,
Different paths along the way,
We all were meant to learn some things,
but never meant to stay...
Our destination is a place,
Far greater than we know.
For some the journey's quicker,
For some the journey's slow.
And when the journey finally ends,
We'll claim a great reward,
And find an everlasting peace,
Together with the Lord.”

Tito Bede’s journey was quicker than some; however in his journey not only was he meant to learn some things, but we all learned from him.  From him, I learned about patience, humbleness, and a person doesn’t have to say he cares, he can merely show it and it means much more.  To me, he was the quiet uncle who, other than my dad, was always playing with my dogs, Miko and Zoe.  He loved animals and had such a gentle way with them.  Even during his hospice care, he would ask about our dogs and when we would bring them, he would open his eyes to hold them and talk to them. 

Though Tito Bede’s usual responses to me were either a grunt or a few sentences, I was fortunate to see his playful side.  I remember one time I was walking through Walmart and I was passing by the paint section going towards the car accessories and I kept hearing “Psssst…psssst.” I looked around but I didn’t recognize anyone I knew.  I walked a couple of steps more and I heard it again, I finally starting going backwards and there I found Tito Bede hiding in the aisle by the paint cans.  We laughed and laughed and I didn’t know he had it in him, but he did.  Tito Bede was always a hardworker and a good craftsman.  I remember when he, Tita Baby, and Irish first came from the Philippines; they used to live with me and my family.  They were starting life anew here in the United States and they took some time to settle in and find jobs.  Tito Bede was never the one to watch tv all day, he was always working on various projects around the house, which my family and I very much appreciated.  I remember when he made us a new shoe shelf out of the scrap wood we had and he helped take care of our vegetable garden by building a wire fence around it to keep it away from the critters (and deers).  During our time living with them, I never heard Tito Bede complain and he was always appreciative of everything.  He did not indulge himself too much in today’s luxuries, with the exception of his hat and jacket collection.  I did not realize it until recently, but I think he even has more clothes than Irish and Tita Baby!  This may be the reason why his outfits matched and he did not dress in outdated clothing.  Looking back, Tito Bede’s humbleness almost surprises me because the stories that I heard from his sisters is that he was the quote unquote favorite of the siblings and he was always the one to have first picks of everything, which you would think would make him spoiled.  However, Tito Bede was anything but, he was always very helpful, easily satisfied, and I’ve never heard him say a spiteful thing about anyone or anything, even about their previous dogs, Robbie and George, who some of you may have or may have not known, weren’t always the nicest when it came to other people.

I read somewhere that “Good men must die, but death cannot kill their names”  These were some endearing memories of Tito Bede that I have, please let us take a few moments of silence and think of wonderful moments you have of Tito Bede and how he touched your lives. <Wait 10 seconds>.   

It is tragic that Tito Bede had left so quickly, but we are still blessed that he left his impressions on his loving family, Luena, his wife, Ivy Lee, his first born, Jett, his only son, and his youngest Irish Joy.  We will constantly be reminded of him through them and may God give all of us the strength to get through this tough time.  Tito Bede is now in peace where life’s evils, like cancer and violence do not exist, let us all be happy for him and continue to live life through God’s ways with the hope that we will all see him again when we pass.       

Dear Lord,
Please help us in this time of loss and overwhelming grief. We don't understand why our lives are filled with this pain and heartache. But we turn our eyes to you as we seek to find the strength to trust in your faithfulness. We will wait on you and not despair; we will quietly wait for your salvation. Our hearts are crushed, but we know that you will not abandon us forever. Please show us your compassion, Lord.  Help us through the pain so that we will hope in you again. We believe this promise in your Word to send us fresh mercy each day. Though we can't see past today, we trust your great love will never fail us.  Amen