Dean Mercado Santos

Dean Mercado Santos, age 84, passed away on Monday, September 30th, 2024, in San Diego, California. He is survived by his wife, Gloria; his three children, Lea (spouse Lowell), Roy (spouse Tracy), and Jan; his 6 grandchildren: Rylee, Kalee, Tatum (Feria), Megan, Chloe, and Brina (Santos); his siblings: Benji, Inday, Tesse, and Ariel; and countless relatives and dear friends.

Dean was born on February 12th,1940 in Silang, Cavite, Philippines, to Venancio and Amada Santos. He was their firstborn and eldest of 8 children. Also known as “Kuya Ding,” he enlisted in the United States Navy in November 1967 where he began as a Mess Management Specialist, aka cook. He was revered by his fellow seamen who gave him the nickname, “Big Time,” and the galley was always filled to capacity whenever he would cook his famous chili. It was this experience that ignited his passion for cooking.

Being onboard the USS Fletcher (the lead ship of the most famous class of destroyers) the navy afforded Dean many opportunities to travel to places he dreamed about, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Hawaii, and Australia. Wanting to settle down and start a family, he married the love of his life, Gloria, in June of 1970, and was stationed shortly after in San Diego, California, where they remained for the rest of his naval career & retirement. It was their 54th wedding anniversary this past summer.

Dean was known among relatives and friends for his cooking, often planning his menu weeks in advance for family get-togethers. Fan favorites were his stuffed chicken wings, pork menudo, pancit malabon, and kare kare. But it wasn’t so much the cooking, for what he truly valued was simply being surrounded by loved ones. He was most at peace at home, watching anything on Discovery or the Food Network and tending to his garden. Dean was a natural farmer, gifted with a green thumb he grew dragon fruit, papaya, eggplant, bittermelon, upo, green beans, and bell peppers (to name a few) - all of which he would use regularly in his dishes. Dean’s ultimate and greatest joy was spending time with his grandchildren.

Kuya Ding was a blessing to many. His kindness, warmth, & generous heart will be forever cherished by those who knew him. May our loving memories of him continue to fill him with peace, and may his beautiful soul rejoice in the good Lord’s kingdom.