We Gather Light To Scatter
On July 8, 2009, at the residence of Aileen "Ivey" Enriquez-Tacorda, the daughter of the late Fellow Emmanuel “Noli” Enriquez ’66, and Egel Tacorda, the Houston Chapter performed the last rites for Brod Noli. Fellow Noli Enriquez is survived by his three children: daughter Ivey Tacorda (Egel), son Tom (Michelle) and son Ted Enriquez; three grandchildren: Randy and Ralph Tacorda (Ivey’s children) and Manu Enriquez (son of Tom); and four sisters: Eloisa, Enya, Elena, and Emma. He is predeceased by his wife, Alita S. Argao-Enriquez who passed away almost 2 yrs ago. After cremation on July 15, 2009, Noli’s remains were brought back to the Philippines by his family. The gavel and stand (picture above) were presented to Ivey after the last rite ceremony. Two eulogies, one by Alfie Kwong ’67, and one by Rogie Concepcion ’66, were read during the ceremomies.
Excerpts from Rogie Concepcion’s Eulogy:
….The last time I saw Noli was in Toronto during the 2006 Otso Otso fraternity reunion. He stayed at home so we had long conversations relieving the lost glories of our youth. We spoke many times over the telephone after that, and I know that he was never able to come out from the depths of his grief when your Mama died of her illness.
He was not only my fraternity brother; he was also a fiercely loyal friend and comrade. To those who do not know Noli, he may appear as a very private and detached person. Even so, when you get to know him well he would embrace you with that mischievous smile and baritone laughter of his that always made you feel good.
He was a true North, our Batch 66 leader. He rallied us to conquer our fears during those painful initiation rites of manhood. When Roland Perez ’66 died in 1969 from a senseless rumble with a rival fraternity, batch 66 carried a collective guilt that seemingly sucked the air out of us. However, Noli had broad shoulders. He organized the annual trip of batch 66 on each of Roland’s death anniversary to Santa Maria, Bulacan, Roland’s home. And while Noli has not been able to attend these gatherings after Alita died, the tradition he started carries on….
Your Papa was a fun loving, warm, intense emotional individual generous to a fault. He was inventive, energetic and entrepreneurial. He would talk to me frequently, and I can almost hear him again say “rogie may pakulo ako” and would obtain my opinion on his project as I was a banker and had training in assessing risks. Until recently he would write and show me another of his ventures. Many of his ventures probably failed, but he had nothing else to prove. He was already a millionaire before he was 30 making money chartering airplanes across the Pacific. He really did not need to undertake another venture, but “pakulos” was how he was wired; he was a Type A personality that was always on the go. It was also the only way he could deal with his grief.......
Excerpts from Alfie Kwong’s Eulogy:
……I first knew Noli Enriquez as a neophyte. In the turbulent 1967 when I applied to become an Upsilonian in my sophomore year and shortly after my trip back from China, which was at the height of its Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, he was a member of Gari Tiongco's Fellowship Council. He was a humble brod, not known to boast and at times almost reticent, preferring to enjoy the conversations that went on around him. He was a good listener by all accounts. However, when he spoke, his face was animated, and he spoke with much intelligence and insight. As officer, I had the impression that Noli measured every word he spoke, as if he rehearsed what to say beforehand so that its import and impact would be that more dynamic and effective. Perhaps, it was this kind of measured speech he made before the brods when he persuaded them to accept me as applicant during my presentation. You see, there were brods who thought I was a commie plant, some red agent commissioned to infiltrate the greatest fraternity in the world and learn its secrets. My Chinatown haircut didn't help of course, and my recent trip to China where I was invited to observe the hail of propaganda about the alleged success of their cultural revolution certainly brought suspicion, not to mention my very Chinese surname. Noli had learned that there was a move to reject my application. I am grateful that there was Noli, who stood up for me, believed in me and in my potentials…..
We will miss him, our fellow Noli Enriquez, a tried and true Upsilonian. Even so, like all Upsilonians who went before us, we will see him again when we are united for that Great Banquet in the Hereafter, when we toast each other to say, “We’re Upsilonians. For this title, we proudly bear. Through tears and laughter, we are one everytime, everywhere.”
The Last Rites Of Emmanuel "Noli" Enriquez '66, July 8, 2009
