Rodolfo Medina Beliso II

Rudy was born in the Philippines on September 11, 1943 to Luis and Encarnacion Beliso and was the youngest of 7 children. While Luis was serving in World War II, Encarnacion struggled to raise their 7 children by herself. At the same time, Encarnacion’s sister, Carmelita (aka: auntie Mameng) was unable to have children of her own. When Rudy was 3 months old, his auntie Mameng offered to look after him, to help relieve some of the pressure from her sister, while also being able to provide him with a better life. Rudy’s father passed away while serving in World War II so Rudy never got to meet his father. He spent the first 9 years of his life with no father figure. When Rudy was 9 years old, Encarnacion packed up her 3 youngest children and boarded a ship to San Francisco, CA to reunite with her 4 older sons. As a teenager, Rudy developed a strong passion for cars, worked multiple jobs to support his passion, and was often found racing. Encarnacion became overwhelmingly concerned with Rudy’s dare-devil racing lifestyle so she encouraged him to go back to the Philippines to find a wife and settle down.

Rudy’s family history and his childhood upbringing defined the wonderful man we all knew and admired, his values, why it was so important for him to be the husband to Emily (because he saw what his mother had to go through as a widow raising 7 children on her own), and why he strived his entire life to be the best dad he could be (the father figure he never had). Rudy listened to his mother, went back to the Philippines, found his wife, Emily, and they were married on January 8, 1966. He was a devoted husband, a proud father, grandfather and great-grandfather, and provided nothing but unconditional love and support for Emily, his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was selfless, generous, and expressed his love by serving others. He put all of us before himself, and he did everything for others before doing anything for himself. It made him happy to see others happy whether it was cooking for them, repairing their car, building something in their house, taking his entire family on vacation, providing a friend or relative with a place to stay, or just being present to cheer on his grandchildren as they played sports. He touched the hearts of so many. We often heard others say they consider Rudy as their second dad; we were fortunate to have him as our dad.

Rudy lived every day of his life with strong intention to raise and teach his children what he believed was right. We didn’t understand why he would make us work with him on cars or his properties. We now know it was all part of his strategy to teach us, and prepare us to take over the legacy he built and was so very proud of. Rudy was a “Jack Of All Trades”; there was nothing he couldn’t figure out how to build or fix by himself. His work ethic was second to none, working day and night for more than 25 years straight. In 1968, he partnered with his older brother, Lenny to open the BELISO Karate School. In December 1969, he started working at PG&E, and he would teach karate after work. In 1989, while working at PG&E, he aspired to add-on to his Windmill property. Of course, he wanted to do it all with his own hands. He would come home after working at PG&E all day, and he would often recruit Rodney, Ricky, our cousins, and our high school friends to help with the construction. In the early 1990’s, Rudy and Emily invested in rental property. In 1994, after 25 years of service, he retired from PG&E, and spent the past 30 years overseeing their rental property, enjoying life, serving others, and giving his family the gift of his time.

We almost lost him in April 2023 due to aspiration pneumonia. While in ICU, he shared his last wishes, shared how he wanted to pass on his legacy, and asked us to take care of our mom. We believe he was given a second chance to see everything he instilled in us come to fruition, and to see our family come together and care for him the way he took care of us his whole life. He was not happy with his quality of life this past year, but he fought to protect us from the pain and sorrow he knew we would feel. He beat cancer so mom would not be alone, we would not be without our father, and our children would not be without their grandfather. He wanted the quality of life he had prior to being diagnosed with stomach cancer in January 2023 so he could continue to serve others, but as he always said, “When your time is up, your time is up!” We believe he is at peace, knowing he raised us with his great work ethic and core family values, knowing we will take care of our mom, and knowing we will carry on the legacy he built. He is shining down on us from Heaven, and his eternal love will continue to inspire and guide us. Eventually we’ll be together, and the Beliso family chain will link again.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Luis Beliso and Encarnacion Beliso; his aunt, Carmelita Medina; his brothers, Louis Beliso, Joseph Beliso, Leonardo Beliso; his sister, Elena Beliso; and his daughter, Gina Beliso.

He is survived by Emily Beliso, his devoted wife of 58 years; beloved children, Rodney Beliso (wife Sylvia), Ricky Beliso (wife Pam), and Jeannie Beliso Colombo (husband Brian); beloved grandchildren, Vanessa Beliso (fiancé Pat), Aislyn Benjamin (husband Ali), Brendon Beliso, Bronson Beliso, Gavin Colombo, and Dane Colombo; great grandchildren, Devin Alexander and Olivia Alexander; brothers, Rod Beliso (wife Salve) and Al Beliso (wife Norma); and many cousins, nieces, nephews, and close family friends.