Ricardo Jingco Santos

On Saturday, November 2, 2024, our dad, Ricardo Jingco Santos Sr. passed away peacefully surrounded by his family. Dad loved so hard - my mom, my brothers, his daughters-in-law, me, his two apo, and a slew of family members and friends. Despite passing from a heart that was physically falling apart, Dad's true heart could fill thousands of football stadiums with immeasurable love.

His love was LIMITLESS, it was DEEP, it was UNWAVERING.

Dad kept a plethora of Hawaiian shirts, mountains of tools, many baseball caps, and his beer-and-wine-making lab equipment. Dad took with him his passion for poetry and creative writing, his 82-years-worth of wisdom and kindness, and all those silly dad jokes.

Referred by his nieces and nephews as Tito Dick, or Sangko by his siblings, Dad was born on a Monday in a small town called Guagua, Pampanga, in the Philippines. Dad arrived liked a shining gem as Benjamin Sr. and Milagros Jingco Santos's fourth child. What. ...A. ...Day.

In 1964, dad graduated with his Bachelor of Science in chemical Engineering from Mapua Institute of Technology. He was an editorial assistant for his yearbook, a representative for The Builder's Seminar on Leadership, and even Rho Chi Fraternity president that same year. And check out the title of his thesis: Variation of Over-all Mass-Transfer Coefficients With Respect to Gas Flow Rates of the MIT Packed-Tower Using the System Ammonia-Air-Water ... (Sophia knows what her Lolo is talking about).

Fast forward to 1969, the date was December 27th. Dad married the love his life, Salvacion (Sally) "Baby" Capacio. He waited something like two hours past the printed start time of their wedding ceremony for Mom to arrive. He always said she was worth the wait. After nearly 55 years together building a sweet life, whenever their anniversary rolled around, Dad would always tell us that marrying Mom was, by far, the happiest day of his life. BAR NONE.

My brothers and I are so proud and privileged to call him dad. We are honoured to carry his light and legacy. Over the years, we saw the sacrifices Dad made to give us a happy life. We saw how he protected us and kept us safe. Dad always guided us to make the right decisions and when one of us messed up, he would always be there to support us through-and-through. He helped us study math and science and taught us critical thinking skills. He really was the best dad.

We got to see Dad become a father-in-law twice and his biggest honour was becoming a Lolo to his grandchildren, Sam and Sophia. We see a lot of our dad in Sam- always observing, always learning, always embracing his artistic side. We also see a lot of our dad in Sophia- proud of his heritage, always showing grace, always thinking scientifically and logically.

Dad leaves behind his loving, faithful, and devoted wife, Sally, his dear and comforting children, Nathaniel, Ricardo Jr. (Jackie), Jeff (Mary), and me, Sheryl Mitzi, his admiring and affectionate grandchildren, Sam and Sophia, his caring tenderhearted siblings, Ben Sr., Daisy (Ernie), Nezer (Lisa), and Sharon (Rey), his lovely and supportive in-laws, Juliet Capacio Delariman, Nil Capacio (Lito) Espinosa, Ellen Capacio, and Boy (Pat) Capacio, his many doting and thoughtful nieces and nephews, all of whom Dad considered as his own children and loved just as much, and his treasured and loyal friends near and far.

Dad's living wish was to be cremated and my family is grateful for McEvoy-Shields Funeral Home in Ottawa for taking great care of him through that process. We also want to thank the amazing staff at The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa Heart Institute for making dad as comfortable as possible during his final days.

Please join our family in celebrating Dad's life on Saturday, November 16, 2024 at Rideau Funeral Home and Cemetery, 4275 Blvd Sources, Dollard-des Ormeaux, QC. We will receive all of you starting at 10:00 AM and memorial services will promptly begin at 10:30 AM followed by a procession to his burial site. Dad's remains will be interred at a private burial on Friday, November 15, 2024.