Eulogy for Uncle Jim

EULOGY FOR SIR KNIGHT JIMMY BALISI
By Reginald B. Tamayo

Today, we say farewell to a father, to a grandfather, to an uncle, to a friend, to a neighbor, and a brother Knight, Sir Knight Jimmy Cuntapay Balisi. We say farewell with sadness for we have lost him, but also we say farewell with joy for God had taken him in the bosom of His love.

Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi loved the Knights of Columbus. He served the Knights of Columbus faithfully and for that we will always be grateful. I remember with gratitude his long service as an emcee of the various programs and activities of the Council, as a crystallizer of issues and concerns during our breakfast meetings. Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi was also an endless source of knowledge about policies of the Knights of Columbus, including social issues and political concerns in the community and in the country. He is known also for injecting humor in his talks that would create a robust laughter among the members and among his listeners. Indeed, Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi was the kind of person that any Knight would want at his side.

Wise as he was, experienced as he was, faithful and totally dedicated to the cause of the Knights of Columbus, his concern for the welfare of the members of the Council were immense and this for sure will be long remembered. His warm, generous smile and genial nature helped transform the Council into a family that we are. He lived our principles of charity, unity, patriotism, and fraternity not just in the Council, but every day, wherever he was.

Many would seek the help of Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi practically on all matters ranging from love-letter writing to making speeches. Anyone who needed legal advice but could not afford to pay the services of a lawyer, Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi would be there to offer his help. Anyone who needed a graduation speech, a sample speech on siete palabras, Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi had all of them in his file. Anyone who needed to write a congressman, a senator, even a president but could hardly express himself, Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi was an expert in that field. Anyone who felt aggrieved by the government, Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi would be willing to help and make peace with the government.

After his awful diagnosis several years ago, Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi was determined to live out his life with grace and dignity and courage. Although the outcome of his sickness was never doubted, the very character of a knight of Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi as a courageous man and with a faithful heart to his God was not also doubted. He would not permit himself to easily admit defeat and he charged straight at his ailment with all his strength and determination and with the inspiration from his wife Manang Delia, his children, and grandchildren.

Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi was not only an admired knight but also a well-loved father, a well-like uncle and a doting grandfather. I personally know Uncle Jim as a passionate man about family. He kept us his family members connected, he kept us in touch, he kept the Balisi, Tamayo, Rigunan, and Gan clan vibrant. Every special occasion like birthday, Christmas, New Year, and the like, he and Manang Del would always invite us to share a meal with everyone at their place. He was generous with his phone calls to his children and grandchildren, he was lavish with his gifts, and he always had a fatherly advice to any member of the family. It was a rule of a thumb that he would make a phone call to his children who are living abroad and greet them and their families during Christmas seasons and during their birthdays. My teary-eyed uncle Jim would be happy hearing at the end of the line his eldest son Manung Abbeh and his family and his daughter Grace and her family. In the recent past, when he returned from the States, he was mouthful telling stories that he had the grandest time in his life with his grandchildren Janel, Jansen and Jonathan.

Indeed, Uncle Jim was a passionate man about family. Every time he and Manang Del invite us to share a happy occasion with them, it was always a reunion of the clan, an occasion of renewal and strengthening of family ties, an occasion of celebration, and an occasion of thanksgiving. Today, he extended an invitation to all of us members of his family to share with him for the last time, and that is, an occasion to send him off on a journey to the next life.

On a personal note, Uncle Jim was my mentor and critic in speech-making and writing. I will always treasure the journalism books and notes he gave me. It was Uncle Jim who showed and opened the path for me to write my thoughts and share them with others. And for this I am forever grateful to my dearest Uncle Jim.

To Manang Del, and to his children Manung Abbeh, Manang Elena Manung Jerome, Manang Teh and Grace and Manoj, and to his grandchildren and their families, we offer our heartfelt prayers and sympathy. Uncle Jim’s suffering is over, and he already sees the happiness that awaits him in God’s heavenly kingdom.

God bless you Sir Knight Jimmy Balisi. God loves you Uncle Jim. For sure, we will miss you. Till we meet again.