Bernalda Tantog Suan's Obituary
Bernalda Tantog Suan Obituary
HELLO! My name is Bernalda T. Suan.
I was born in Waialua Hospital which was the only hospital located in Waialua behind the St. Michael’s church. I was born August 20, 1932. I resided in the town of Haleiwa with my parents Jose and Marcila Tantog. (Better known as the Entrepreneur or King of Hasu)
Amongst my siblings, we are eight and I am number four in line. There is my sister Asunción (Sally), Eufronia (Rose), Josephine, Bernalda (that’s me), two brothers Ramon and Carlos. Finally, the last two sister Rosalia (Indai) and Darlene.
I attended Haleiwa Elementary School and in my later years Waialua High and Intermediate.
I was a Domestic Engineer, from the day I got married and I never retired, my job just lightened up as we got older. I became a Consultant for Mary Kay for several years and did quite well but I never abandoned my responsibilities as a homemaker. Whenever my husband went fishing for sport, I always sold some of his catch as a contribution for our household. Yes, I called my contacts, bagged the fish, and delivered. Other times, I would drive around the community with my daughter and toot the horn, saying fish, fish for sale. Those were the days.
I met my husband Apolenario D Suan, at my younger sister Darlene baptismal, that was May 4, 1946. Four years after we met, we were married, April 29, 1950. Our favorite song from the day we met was A Part of Me by Nat King Cole and when we heard Moe Keale sing A Part of Me, A Part of You, I knew this was our song.
During our marriage we produced 5 children. Sharlene, Stanley, Rosenda, Randall and Bernadine. We blessed this world with12 grandchildren, 22 great-grandchildren and 1 great-great-grandchild
My children were baptized, Catholics. I made sure that every Sunday they had attended Catechism and Church. I had that structure from my parents growing up and I made sure to instill that in my kids. Every year on Good Friday, I would send my children to my mother’s home because we believed Jesus was crucified at 3pm, so bad things could happen because God was not watching over us. We observed Good Friday in that manner. We were not safe until he had risen on Easter Sunday. Every year we would do the same thing.
We were not rich in money, but we were rich in love, family bonding. We were happy and that was important. Our family was not perfect, but we tried our best to be good. I always told my children; Monkeys fall off trees. That was one of the sayings I shared and tried to instill that expression in their lives.
Every morning, I made sure they had a hot breakfast off to school. My mother always said, “No good go school on an empty stomach, always put something warm in there.” My children always claimed not enough time and wanted to scurry off. There were moments I would stand at the doorway and make them take at least a nibble and a sip of hot chocolate. Nothing went to waste because the left-over hot chocolate was frozen to become ice cream for dessert when they came home. The left-over cereal and pancakes became bread pudding for dessert for dinner. I was not perfect, but I tried my best to do good. I tried to live by God’s law and tried to instill that into my children also.
In my younger days I loved baseball and volleyball and this passion for sports followed me through my lifetime. I enjoyed it so much that I would help my two boys practice baseball at home. I hope I played a part in helping them be the all-star players in baseball. When we were not practicing with the boys, I made sure that after dinner we would play badminton. It was a sport that the family enjoyed playing faithfully every afternoon. We also played Croquet. At times we would have the Tantog clan over and we all enjoyed playing volleyball in the backyard. We would split into two teams so everyone could play. We did this while waiting for our Huli-huli pig on an open fire on the spit (roasting w/a rod). I looked forward to the family bonding every so often.
As the children got older, I enrolled in Great Shape in Waipahu. My daughter Sharlene joined and my two younger sisters, Rosalia and Darlene. Yes, I kept enrolled with this exercise group for many years until they shut down in Waipahu. In my 80’s, I found out I had scoliosis and that all the exercising I did in the past had helped me from suffering the horrible pains of the disease. I always attributed my pain in my back to an accident when I was 6 years old. We were living on the island of Molokai near Kaunakakai. My mom told me to stay at home, but as a typical child, I ran off with my friend to the town and a model T Ford hit me. I remember it knocked the wind out of me and I laid there, while people gathered around, and I was experiencing excruciating pain and could not move. I then heard my mother screaming and crying, "is that my Bernalda?" with her Filipino accent. Despair overwhelmed me just hearing her voice and I stood up in haste as I limped my way back to my home. When my mom arrived, she expressed much empathy and love, knowing she could have lost her child. I received a spanking for leaving the home after concluding that my injuries were not that bad.
The children were all grown and had families of their own so Apollo, and I decided to take up Ballroom Dancing in Pearl City. I always loved music, and I forgot to tell you about my singing at family parties when I was a child. My mom would ask me to sing a few Filipino songs for her friends and later my brother Ramon joined me. One day our family friend Emme Tomimbang’s father, (he was involved with the radio entertainment) visited my parents and he suggested that I sing on the radio. Those days you do not get paid, but imagine singing on the radio live. Back then you could record your own record, and I made a recording. That was my one and only. My love for music went hand in hand with dancing. In fact, when my children were cleaning the house, I would turn on the record player and play Chubby Checkers, Connie Francis, and others. We would all be dancing the twist, the jerk, the swim, and whatever dance we knew back then. My children and I enjoyed dancing. I love music and dancing; it was a part of me, and I shared it with my husband and children. When Karaoke was born, I made sure we bought a mic, and we held gatherings singing all the latest songs. Ballroom Dancing opened up another door. We started going to the clubs in Waikiki and there we met others that shared the same interest and passion for music and dance. We lived our remaining lives dancing the night away.
Alas, the time had come to retire our lives here. Four years later, I joined my husband. I left on June 24, 2024, to be with my husband once again.
Memorial service will be held on Wednesday, October 2, 2024 at Mililani Mortuary Mauka Chapel. Visitation begins at 9:30 am and service at 10:30 am. Inurnment to follow, 11:30 am at Mililani Memorial Park Cemetery.
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