Stephen Chua Chua

July 14, 1976 to September 12, 2017

Family Background

Stephen or “Phen” as we lovingly called him was born on July 14 ,1976 in Makati City, Philippines to Kampong Chua and Flora Chua. He was the eldest among 6 siblings with 4 brothers (Teddy, Rommel, Herbert and Paolo) and an only sister (Stephanie). He stands as a big brother not only to his siblings but to all his cousins since he was the oldest among all of them. Phen had very fond memories of his happy childhood whenever he talked about it and always have a big smile on his face. He came from a big family with loving aunts, uncles, cousins and grandmother who love him dearly. He is genuinely caring, loving and thoughtful even when he was sick. For him, family is very precious and an important factor in one's life. Even he is “makulit” as they would described him and sometimes misunderstood but he had a profound and deep concern for everybody's well being that made him unique and loved by everybody. As the saying goes, “No one can break a person's sincere heart.”

He also have few recollections of his childhood but mostly been shared by his mom. Phen was very curious, outspoken, smart, strong willed and very sociable kid according to his mom and uncle. His uncle, Julio, was so proud of him when Phen's kindergarten teacher told him that he was a genius kid and stands out than the other students. His curiosity prompted him to ask a lot of questions non-stop until he got the answer he needed. On the other hand, his mom shared Phen's naughty side when he was just about 6 or 7 years old. He would cry non-stop and be all over the floor if he can't get the toy that he wanted. His mom also panicked because he hid trying to play hide and seek inside the big wall where he can fit in while she was crying looking for him with his brother, Teddy. She also added that Phen was not afraid to do or try something what he thought was beneficial to him. He started to developed his self-independence as early as 7 or 8 years old. The most unforgettable one was when he waited for the bus for so long and decided to walk from school to their house (which was 26 minutes away) with confidence remembering his way home. On another occasion, he left unnoticed going to his aunt's house maybe 4 blocks away from their house to visit her. His mother further added that he liked talking to older people than kids his age. Maybe this is one of the reason why he view things in a different perspective and carefully studied every angle to find a solution.

Education

He attended his kindergarten at De Hoya and was the top among his class and was able to get the Valedictorian award. His uncle, Julio, which was close to him always praised and speak highly of him. He transferred to Chong Hwa on his 1st grade but moved to Don Bosco Technical Institute, a private Catholic school, in Makati City, Philippines during his 2nd grade until he gradated in High School. His mom mentioned that he was always in the Top Ten of his class during his elementary days. Phen would usually reminisced his good school days with joy and proud to be a Bosconian. Here he learned a lot about Saint John Bosco and developed an interest of the saint's life and contributions to the catholic church. He applied what he learned and very evident on how he talked and taught our kids about the importance of our faith in God. He have been studying more about Saint John Bosco and wanted to share this to everybody and patiently typing the life and teachings on his facebook wall. My kids developed this interest from their Papa by showing them the clips, the miracles, and even the songs that our kids love.

Phen graduated in University of Santo Thomas with a Bachelors degree in Commerce major in Business Administration and been an excellent student. He garnered the top score when he took the entrance test in commerce without bragging. The Dean tried to convinced him to proceed to Accounting as his major but he turned it down. During that time he wasn't interested in Accountancy but later regretted this. He did study Law just only for a year and decided not to proceed due to financial constraint and focused himself to other field. His experiences taught him a lot and appreciated the importance of life in general. Thus, he always emphasized the importance of good education, good manners, good conduct and good values to our kids that may prepare them for their own future. He believed that setting a good example and always reminding our kids that having a good foundation, coupled with good education and hard work will give them the opportunity for a better life telling them “ Hindi lahat ng tao nabibigyan ng pagkakataon na maging mayaman kahit hindi nakapag-aral. But you have a better opportunity of having a good life if you are educated and work hard for it rather than not knowing or didn't study at all.”

A Family of His own

It was destiny that we met each other in Bacolod City where he was assigned to work as a Pharmaceutical Rep under Schering Plough and I on another local pharmaceutical company. A common friend introduced Phen to me in the hospital and noticed that he was so quiet. He would send text messages but so shy to even say hi whenever we bumped into each other in the workplace and yet he kept asking for dates. It was so funny when he sent the wrong message to our friend asking me out. I remembered him taking me to our first date, one of his favorite place to eat, the carinderia in Shopping Street. He loved the taste and the savory marination of the porkchop and offered to share his soda because I refused to order. He told me that maybe I'm just self-conscious but later found out that I am not really an avid drinker of soda. It lead to many wonderful dates being a couple for 3 years and got married on July 17, 2004. He looked so handsome and radiant on our wedding day but was struggling to do his dance steps properly. So I have to coached him. It was one of the happiest day of our lives and we were fortunate to spent every moment with each other. Our love blossomed and we were given two wonderful and amazing kids, Matthew and Felicity.

Phen was very happy when Matt was born and very cautious because he was small and don't want to hurt him so he made sure there was a partition of pillows in between them. He would spent his free time playing with Matt, watched cartoons with him and took us for a good and exciting road trips like in Tagaytay, Philippines until we immigrated to USA. A double dose of happiness when he knew I was pregnant with our second child, Felicity. He was full of excitement when I did my ultrasound and was so happy to hear that it was a baby girl. But this time, he was more confident of taking care of her because of his experiences and it was beautiful to see how he managed it exquisitely and made him a proud father.

Our marriage is not perfect, had arguments and misunderstandings but he was very patient, loving, caring, understanding, compassionate, devoted husband and father. He always prioritized us before himself and made sure we are comfortable and had ways on how to surprise me and our kids especially during special occasions. He knows how to deliver the message of love to us. Matt and City's request for their birthday parties were made possible even we are on a budget and made his preparations while putting together different photos and banners for the decorations. Even though my job entails a lot of time at work, he never complained but patiently waited for me until I'm done and made sure I have something to eat. Texting me and leaving me sweet messages on my voicemail were some of his ways to show how he deeply cared for me. He always complimented me by saying “Ang ganda ganda ng asawa ko at napakaswerte ko na ikaw ang napangasawa ko.” and kisses me goodnight whispering to my ears “ I love You so much Bambi.” But there were times that he would joke around after our petty argument telling me “You will miss me more” and changed to his serious tone talking about our future and he would say “ I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Hanggang sa pagtanda natin.”

He did everything for us from cooking, playing with our kids, driving us anywhere, spending time as a family, watching movies, playing games, attending the conferences and performance at school, managing our budget and to simply just being there.

Hobbies/Interests

Stephen loved to watch cooking shows like Gordon Ramsay's Hell's kitchen, Iron Chef, 30 minutes meal by Rachel Ray, etc. and was so into kitchen cookwares. Some of his favorite dishes and desserts were Pork or chicken Adobo, Kare-kare, Crispy Pata, Monggo with Malunggay, Sotanghon soup, Pinakbet, Pineapple, Fruit salad, Biko, etc. He would spend time watching and laughing to his favorites shows from Frasier, Last Man standing, The Office, Cheers, Everybody Loves Raymond, Mash, Friends, Seinfeld to Home improvements shows like Fixer Upper, Property Brothers, Flip flop, Holmes on Homes and a lot more. Some of his favorites movies are The Mannequin, Forrest Gump, Die Hard, Kung Fu (Jackie Chan's Movie), Sleepless in Seattle etc. Whenever we go shopping, the kitchenware and tool departments were among his top lists.

Furthermore, he had an extensive array of interests from politics, news of current affairs, history, reading and listening to Catholic radio and news, gardening, home improvements, cooking, reading his favorite comic books like Pugad Baboy. Stephen always wanted to learn new things and even studied the concepts and importance of life insurance and have successfully passed the tests including the substitute teacher's exam. He was well rounded and a enthusiastic book reader but Peanuts and Archie books were one of his fave cartoons.

He also loved listening to his favorites songs and made his own playlists like Let Me In by Mike Francis, Hindi kita Malilimutan, Jose Mari Chan's songs, to name a few. A very family oriented person, he loves spending time with us, going fishing with our friends especially with our son, Matt (this was one of their bonding moments together), sometimes playing video games, singing and playing with our daughter, Felicity; playing basketball with our kids, traveling to different places and emphasizing to our kids that time with the family was very important.

Tagaytay, was one of his fave vacation spot and kept telling me that he loved to buy a piece of land there so he could build a vacation house with a farm where he can tend to. He was actually planning to grow more vegetables and fruit bearing trees on a raised garden bed for our consumption. He wanted to have an access directly to what we eat because he preferred organic grown foods. Another place that he loved was Bacolod City where he met me and planned to have our house built when we retire. He also wanted to start his own business and think of anything that he can do and shared his ideas to me and to one of his close friend, Warren. Thus, also asking for advise from his uncle and aunt and always give suggestions and advises to our families and friends.

In-law/Friends

Stephen have a lot of friends and know how to carry himself in a conversation. He would share his jokes to them, his interest in politics, the everyday news and to any topics that they were into. To his friends, he was very loyal, someone you can depend on, and would say no to a friend in need. His wisdom, intelligence, simplicity, humbleness and concern for them were his outstanding traits that they admired the most.

On the other hand, he had a high regard of my parents and was very concerned when my father got sick and he kept reading and did his research on ways that can help him (my Papa) with his kidney problems. He bought the medicines and supplements that my father needed and have it shipped right away. He didn't hesitate to send some help when my father was hospitalized and suggested that I have to make his meal plan to improve his appetite. Phen was devastated too when my father passed away and bought my ticket and decided that he and the kids will stay behind. Instead, he sent the money to help with the burial expenses rather than them flying to the Philippines and supported me all the way. He would call everyday and we talked via Skype to check on me and my family during those times of sorrow. His sincerity, humbleness, willingness to help and love for me and our children made him loved by my family.

Overall, Phen will always be the loving, caring and devoted husband to me and a great father to our kids. He will always be our angel, beloved Papa and will forever stays in our hearts.

I will always be yours as you are to me. You will be my forever, Langga. Not a single day that we will forget you. I will not bid you goodbye because one day we will meet again. For now, be with Jesus' loving arms, welcoming words, stress free environment as heaven will be your peaceful haven. WE MISSES YOU and LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!