Angel Sapitan Dytioco's Obituary
Angel Dytioco Obituary
Angel Sapitan Dytioco
Angel Sapitan Dytioco, 86, passed away peacefully at his beautiful home in Mililani, Hawaii, on July 14, 2020. Angel is survived by his loving wife of 59 years, Roberta (Rubing); his sons Cornelio of Mililani, Hawaii, and Angelo (Charmaine) of San Francisco, California, daughters Solita (Solly) Dytioco (Michael Acholonu) of San Leandro, California, and Angelica (Angie) Dytioco-Santiago (Steven) of Mililani; grandchildren Aven and Damien Santiago, Caelan and Gaven Dytioco, Michael (Danielle), Brian, Patrick, and Olive Acholonu; and by his sister Benedicta (Bening) Santos of Hagonoy, Bulacan, Philippines; and his many cousins, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, nieces, nephews, grand-nieces, grandnephews, and friends.
Angel was born in Bulacan, Philippines, the son of Dominador and Maria Dytioco. He and Rubing were sweethearts since their teenage years. In 1956, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was honorably discharged in 1961. Angel and Rubing were married three weeks later.
In 1965, Angel left the Philippines to pursue a college education at the University of Hawaii at Manoa using his G.I. Bill benefits. He became a full-time student living on a $250-a-month veteran’s stipend, most of which he sent home to his family. To help make ends meet, he joined the Peace Corps and became a Tagalog language instructor and taught on the Big Island and Molokai. In 1971, at the age of 38, he graduated from the U.H. with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Agriculture and became the first of his siblings to graduate from college.
After his graduation, he was employed as a Plant Propagator with the City’s Honolulu Zoo. He resigned from the City to work for the Federal Government and retired after 30 years of service as a Tractor Operator. From 1972 until the early 2000’s, he ran his own company - Angel’s Green and Garden yard maintenance business - and in the early 1980’s, he provided janitorial services for several banks in Wahiawa to help supplement his family’s income.
In 1989, the family moved to their home in Mililani. In January 2001, he returned to work for the City’s Department of Parks and Recreation as a Grounds Keeper and took an “early” retirement at age 82 to help care for his wife.
Angel was a true trailblazer for the family. In 1972, he successfully petitioned for his wife and four children to move to Hawaii and live with him in Wahiawa. In 1975 he and Rubing bought their first home in Whitmore Village. Angel also cared for the well-being of his wife's relatives and petitioned to bring his father-in-law and 16 others -- Rubing’s six siblings and their families -- to Hawaii so they would have a better and brighter life.
Angel and Rubing took their children on family trips to Hagonoy to visit relatives and reconnect with their Filipino cultural heritage and roots by taking music lessons to play the guitar, banduria, bamboo flute, marimba, and xylophone. In this way, the Dytioco Rondalla (musical ensemble) was formed, with Angel as manager and Rubing as wardrobe designer. From the early 1970s to the late 1980s, the Dytioco Rondalla performed at political fundraiser events, at pageants, for school May Day Programs, at shopping malls, cultural parades, and for the “Filipino Fiesta” television show with Tata Respicio. They also got to perform at the Waikiki Shell and at the Aloha Stadium. Through their rondalla, Angel and Rubing showed the children how to give back to the community.
In 1980, Angel co-founded the Bulacan Circle and Associates of Hawaii (BCAH) and became the first BCAH President (1980 – 1982) and later served three other terms (1986, 2005-2006, and 2016-2018) as President. In 2018, the BCAH was selected among over 350 unit members organizations in the State of Hawaii as the Most Outstanding Unit Organization by the United Filipino Council of Hawaii (UFCH). The award was based on BCAH’s members’ active participation as volunteers in community service such as the monthly Feed-the-Homeless Project at the Institute of Human Services (IHS), the quarterly Adopt-a-Highway Clean-up Project, and the Clean-the-Park Project. In 1983-1984, he served as President of the Whitmore Filipino Association and established a scholarship program to provide scholarships to high school graduates of Filipino-American ancestry living in Whitmore. He served as a Director for the Oahu Filipino Community Council (OFCC) and as a Governor for the UFCH.
In 2001 and 2014, Angel and Rubing were nominated as “Outstanding Parents of the Year” by the Philippine Cultural Foundation of Hawaii (PCFH). Their nomination was due to their many sacrifices, their many years of community service, their positive life example, and their successful efforts in instilling and promoting strong family values, encouraging their children to pursue higher education and to lead productive and beneficial lives.
Angel’s love of learning was life-long, and he regularly took college classes and Adult Education courses to keep his mind sharp and active. He loved spending time with his family and friends. He was often seen carrying and reading the daily newspaper, the latest issue of the Fil-Am Courier, or a monthly news magazine. He loved traveling with his family, doing yard work, gardening, and attending cultural events and functions. Before the Corona-19 pandemic, he would walk a mile each morning to McDonald’s in Mililani for a cup of coffee and read the daily newspaper. Even in his 80s, Angel enjoyed walking to Mililani Recreation 3 to play basketball with his grandsons. He was deeply loved and is greatly missed by his family, friends, and by the members of the Bulacan Circle & Associates of Hawaii.
Service for Angel was held September 16, 2020, at Mililani Memorial.
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