Tito Jesse

Last March 7, I remembered that it was the birthday of Tito Jesse, Gwammy's eldest brother who passed away from a stroke in the early eighties.  The picture above was taken in the late fifties, and a lot of my relatives say that I look a lot like him.  He was around 5"10" in height and was a holder of a black belt in judo, having competed in the Asian Games after the war.  During our childhood, I remember him to be the ice cream man--when it was time to distribute ice cream, he would gladly scoop for us, and we'd fall in line to get our cones from him.  Whenever we'd have out of town beach excursions (those wonderful summers in Hundred Islands) in the early seventies, he'd take charge of the whole clan.  He taught me self-defense judo, basic kendo and even some no-nonsense street fighting moves.  During the war, he was a messenger for the guerilla forces, and he was also part of the Ateneo teen-age contingent that helped out at the Philippine General Hospital.  My mom recalls that Tito Jesse was lining up for water at a pozo along Padre Faura when a bomb exploded and flying shrapnel felled the three gentlemen in front of the line.  Since the family was so desperate for drinking water, Tito Jesse had to push the bodies aside in order to get some water.  Since everyone was frantic and looking for cover, he was only able to get half a pail of fresh water that time, but it was enough to keep the family alive.  In the early eighties, he was a ranking officer at the Civil Aeronautics Authority, and his job kept him busy giving technical assistance to airports abroad (Lagos, Nigeria).  Just before his passing, he headed the management team at the Lahug airport in Cebu. I miss him a lot.