CHULA VISTA, Calif. – To be
able to memorize and recite a 15-verse poem at the age of 90 is a rare feat, and
Primitiva M. Manalo did just that during her 90th birthday celebration at the Bonita Golf
Course Clubhouse on November 25, 2006. “Ibang,” as she is fondly called by friends, was a picture of healthy
and graceful aging as she welcomed her guests. According to her daughter,
Priscila Gil, she knew about the party, but she didn’t know who among her
friends were invited to attend. Hence, you could see the sparkle in her eyes as friends and her former students from
far (Washington, D.C.) and near (Los Angeles) came to surprise her.
When the family photo
montage was presented on the screen, one couldn't help but admire the beautiful
woman that she was during the springtime of her life. Her physical beauty may
have been wrinkled by age, but she is still all aglow. You can see it in her sweet
smile as she acknowledges the presence of friends and loved ones and as she mentions
the names of her three daughters – Priscilla Gil, Cynthia Lacsamana and
Proserfina Demonteverde for generously sharing their talents and resources to
make her 90th birthday a happy and memorable event.
I’ve known Ibang for the
past thirty years. We were together in many events as members of the National
Executive Council of the YWCA of the Philippines in the late 70’s. Ibang was
the life of our group. Her keen sense of humor expressed by her clean jokes and
impersonations kept us from getting bored during national and local
conferences. (In fact, until now she can still lip-sing “Sa Kabukiran” and pretend to be Sylvia La Torre, much
to the delight of her audience).
I was much younger, yet
I felt so comfortable with Ibang. She was a friendly bridge-builder among people.
Perhaps, this was the reason for her designation as chaperone of the PNC Barangay
Dance Troupe when they went on a cultural dance tour to Japan. She dressed with
simplicity and yet looked elegant. She spoke with a soft voice but she could orate
with eloquence before a crowd, as she did during her birthday celebration. She acted with humility and yet you knew that in everything she did, there was always a mark of excellence.
I volunteered to give a tribute to Ibang during her birthday. I have associated with her frequent
enough to discern that she is a woman
of excellence, an intelligent woman with grace and spiritual depth, and a
highly accomplished woman. She loves life and lives it to the fullest. She has
discovered and shared with others the strengths and talents that are uniquely
her own.
Many of her acquaintances
here in San Diego do not know that Ibang was the Department Head of Home Economics of the Philippine Normal
College for several years. She was a government scholar and was sent to the
United States to pursue advanced studies in home economics. She was the first Filipino woman to become a member of the Delta Kappa Gamma, a
professional honorary society of women educators, which promotes professional
and personal growth of its members and excellence in education. She was involved in women’s development
and empowerment at a time when the status of Filipino women was just beginning
to be a social issue in the Philippines. She was the
organizer of the Quezon City YWCA, a grassroots organization which provides
early childhood education and social services to children and mothers from the
slum areas.
We frequently had our
meetings in Ibang’s well-appointed home. We gave her a warm send-off party when
she decided to come to the United States after her retirement. Many of her
friends, including myself, greatly missed her.
However, when I came to San
Diego in 1993, I was able to renew my ties with Ibang. I found her attending Ikebana
classes at Balboa Park and other community events organized by the United
Filipino American Senior Citizens of San Diego, Inc.
Ibang went to church
regularly with her own church group and she travelled and visited with friends in
other States. It is only now that she has slowed down. She now walks with a
cane and goes out only when accompanied by one of her daughters or grand daughters.
At the venerable age of 90, Ibang currently spends some of
her week days at the Horizon Adult Day Health Care Center and now finds herself
in a safer environment in an independent living facility for seniors.
The United Filipino American
Senior Citizens of San Diego, Inc. honored Ibang with a plaque “for being an exemplary senior citizen
and a role model for graceful aging.”