DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/05 May) – Pedro Ramos Timonera, Jr., a former journalist and public servant, passed away early evening of May 3 at his residence in Iligan City, surrounded by his family.
“It was a decision we made a few days before, that he’d die surrounded by family, than alone with strangers in the ICU (Intensive Care Unit), being resuscitated and defibbed until his heart stops beating,” wrote one of his sons, Robert “Bobby” Timonera, one of the editors at MindaNews.
“It was sad I wasn’t there, because it was such a beautiful event for the entire clan. Everyone who was in Iligan was there, right in his room. Each one telling him how much we love him, thanking him for the life lessons, saying goodbye, reading verses in the Bible, singing, crying, laughing,” said Bobby who was in Manila with his wife Miriam, when his father breathed his last, to act as tech support for a lecture in a major physicians’ convention.
But their children, Arkay read a poem that he wrote about parting, and Kara read a German poem. Bob and his wife bid the father goodbye through mobile phone.
Pedro Timonera dancing with wife Nena at 50th wedding anniversary in February 2005.
Mr. Timonera was born on November 12, 1925 in Marawi City but he grew up in Iligan. At that time, according to Mr. Timonera himself, many Iliganons were born in Marawi because it had the best hospitals then. Also at that time, Cagayan de Oro City was accessible from Iligan by boat since there was no road linking the two areas then.
“From what I gathered in his stories, he was too young to be in the guerilla, but the horse-riding boy that he was, he helped in passing around messages among guerilla units. He was a courier,” wrote Bobby.
Mr. Timonera worked in the Senate as a staffmember of the late Senator Tomas Cabili. It was around that time when he met Nena Donato, who was then working in Malacanang as dental aide. The couple got married and raised eight children.
“Later, dad worked at City Hall (Iligan), first at the City Treasurer’s Office, then at the City Mayor’s office, serving as executive secretary of Mayor Camilo Cabili, Sen. Tomas Cabili’s son. Most of his career life was at City Hall.”
Mr. Timonera retired from government service but was later recruited by Franklin Quijano to work again at the mayor’s office, way past his retirement age, when Quijano was mayor.
He was into bowling, even managed a bowling lanes in Iligan. “He played football even at age 50, and tennis up to his 60s,” wrote Bob.
“Though he stopped smoking in 1988 when he was operated on after a ruptured appendicitis, he was diagnosed of lung cancer mid-last year. A mass was removed in his lung in an operation at Cagayan de Oro September last year. His last months were a rollercoaster ride, improving one time, then deteriorating, then improving again, etc..,” said Bobby.
Mr. Timonera is survived by his wife Nena, children Alita Roxas, Rowena Isla, Cleo Jean Angara, Xenia Regencia, Fe Salvacion Orbe, Dante Nestor, Bobby and Paul Eric, and 21 grandchildren. (MindaNews)
