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August 15, 1904, San Nicolas, Pangasinan, Philippines, Alejandro and
Anatasia Ubaldo welcomed the birth of their first child, Felipe, into
their family. The eldest of seven children, Felipe, grew up farming along side
his father. Like many fathers, Alejandro hoped that Felipe would follow in his
footsteps.
Felipe, on the other hand, had plans of his own. He felt that farming required too much time and energy and
offered very
little in return.
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Camilo Ubaldo: The U.S. Army's recruiting slogan in the Philippines at that time went something like this, "if you are in the Army, you will not be behind the plow." And being behind the plow was not were my father wanted to be. He told my grandfather that he was going to enlist in the U.S. Army, with or without his permission.
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Having passed his required written (reading comprehension, problem solving, and math) and physical exams, and eager to put his farming life behind him, Felipe traveled to Dagupan to enlist. On Saturday, May 2, 1923, he enlisted in the U.S. Army, Philippine Scouts. Assigned to a unit at Fort Stotsenburg, Felipe's excitement and anticipation of his new career path began to sour when he received his first orders to water and exercise the horses, a duty that reminded him of the life that he was trying to leave behind.
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Fort Stotsenburg was approximately 60 miles North of Manila, near Clark Field.
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Herminia Ubaldo: My parents lived in the same barrio (village) and I believe they were even related. My father's mother and my mother's father were either cousins or second cousins. My mother used to tell me that when my father was on leave--they called it furlough at the time--he would go back home and help his parents with chores especially during harvests. She said that at that time of harvesting rice he would purposely position himself next to her and either tease her or challenge her to race him to the end of their respective rows of rice plants. He did not directly court her at the very beginning, but when he was ready to get married, he went directly to my mother's father. At first, my grandfather Isaac told him that my mother was too young and that he had to wait another year. This must have been when she was 17 because they were married when she was 18.
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| Herminia Ubaldo: Though
growing rice was the main occupation of the people in our village,
they also mined gold in a process they called agsaiyo. The Agno River, is just north west of Santo
Tomas. Its
riverbeds contained some gold. This was both a boon and bane for the villagers.
It was not enough for someone to
get rich, but just enough for desperately poor people to want to
mine.
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| Leandra Cruz (Enes's younger sister):
My father and
I preferred to work
in the riverbed gold mining. During his leave, Manong Eping
(Felipe) would
occasionally join us and help load the heavy gravel. Together, we were able to make
about 50 pesos ($25) a week. Manang Enes liked earning money by making
pottery.
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| Herminia Ubaldo: At the time, before
and right after World War II, clay pots and
water jars were commonly used, so my mother and her mother, my
grandmother Maxima, often made and sold pottery. It was
difficult work because the clay had to be pulverized into a powder-like
substance before water could be added to it, in order to form the first
basic shape with the pottery wheel. Then they would have to wait for it to dry a little so it could be
shaped with a paddle and stone. After shaping the jar or pot, they
had to let it sit and dry. Once it had sufficiently dried, the pot or jar
had to be
rubbed smooth with a stone. The pottery was then glazed, dried
again and then finally fired. Other family members helped out
by transporting the clay pots and jars to the local markets where they
would be sold.
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Six years after he had enlisted in the Army, Felipe was getting married. On June 04, 1929, he married Enes Tambag in San Nicolas, while on furlough from the Army. |
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Herminia Ubaldo: Weddings are, relatively speaking, grand affairs in the village, everyone attends, and by the time my parents got married, my father already had a reputation of having a regular salary--a big deal. It is a Filipino tradition that the Groom's family undertake most of the expenditures for the wedding: Wedding feast, bridal gown, jewelry, and any property that would be given to the groom by his family. Everyone knew that my father was easily shouldering the expenses for the wedding himself. The wedding sponsors usually pay for the entertainment that takes place during the eve of the wedding and the day of the wedding. Sometimes there were even occasions when two orchestras were hired by the sponsors. My parents wedding sponsor was the wealthiest man in the village, Don Diego Ramirez. Several animals (a young water buffalo, a couple of pigs and chickens) must have been slaughtered for the celebrations and feasts which starts the day before the wedding, with a little procession from the grooms house to the brides house of unmarried girls carrying plates of rice cakes. There was dancing in the evening, and then the wedding party would go to town the next day for the real wedding ceremony in the Catholic Church. After the wedding, beginning at lunch, there would be more feasting and dancing until dark. During a wedding, both families of the bride and groom would commit a portion of their property to the couple. This gift is called Sab-ong. It's basically the seed money for the newly married couple as they start their new life together.
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Enes and Felipe had five children: Camilo, Felipe "Joe" Jr., Glorina, Herminia and Leonarda. Glorina died in 1937, less than a year after she was born.
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Herminia Ubaldo at 10 months old. Note the ring and bracelet on her left hand and baby booties.
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Sgt. Felipe Ubaldo and his family resided in Fort Stotsenburg until hostilities of World War II commenced.
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| Back Music by Michael Giacchino Next |
