99re在线精品国产欧美激情

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By Delya Apsari

Julie Boadilla has a small altar at her house in East London, adorned with a crucifix, flowers, a candle and photos of her mum Julita and her dad Benjamin. Also on the altar are 鈥渙fferings鈥� to her parents – a Filipino macaroni soup that her Mum used to make, a cream sandwich, and a vanilla sponge cake. As for the drink, serving a glass of Lambrini felt almost obligatory; after all, it was her mum鈥榮 favourite. 鈥淢um loves her wine,鈥� she says.聽聽

鈥淭oday, my siblings are coming over to remember Mum and Dad. In the Philippines, my family gathered at their graves, having a full on fiesta with costumes and fireworks. They even go as far as having the best costume awards,鈥� Julie laughs. 鈥淚 wish my children can experience this, too. I鈥檓 thinking maybe we can go next year to celebrate All Saints鈥� Day.鈥�

Julie, 54, lost her mother, Julita Martinez-Daguio, to abdominal cancer in June last year. Even while her mother was in palliative care, Julie knew that she would want to be buried alongside her father in their hometown of Tarlac City, a two-hour drive from Manila. Despite their grief, Julie and her siblings arranged to repatriate their mother’s remains to the Philippines.

As Christian Filipinos celebrate Todos Los Santos or All Saints Day, Julie feels a sense of peace that her parents are together again, their graves lying next to each other in Tarlac.

Filipino families often approach death through a deeply religious and cultural lens. As they celebrate All Saints鈥� Day (November 1) and All Souls鈥� Day (November 2), the majority of Christian Filipinos, , pause for a solemn period for prayer, reflection and coming together as a family and community to honour their departed. Also called undas (from the Spanish 鈥渉onras,鈥� meaning honours), the two-day commemoration brings together the living and the dead in a uniquely Filipino way when cemeteries come alive with flowers, families gathering together and vendors selling anything from candles to balloons.聽

Bringing loved ones back to the Philippines

For many Filipino immigrants, dealing with a loved one鈥檚 death can be complicated when repatriation is involved for whatever reason — in the case of Julie鈥檚 parents, a request to be buried in their hometown in the Philippines.

Julita came to the 99re在线精品国产欧美激情 in 1971 and worked as an auxiliary nurse in Mount Vernon Hospital, Northwood. Her husband Benjamin followed in 1992 and worked at St George鈥檚 Hospital, London as a domestic porter. Julie described her parents as hard-working, raising her and her brothers with love and discipline.

鈥淚 first contacted in May 2012 when my dad passed away. When a family member dies, you just don鈥檛 know what to do, and my dad鈥檚 wish was to be buried back home in Tarlac City,鈥� Julie, a business and intellectual property specialist at the British Library, shares.聽聽

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know how the process worked. We live in Newham Borough, East London, and the late secretary of the church there introduced us to one of the grandsons of the T Cribb family. They鈥檙e very well known in East London for having an excellent repatriation service. I knew I could trust them,鈥� she says.

She found herself ringing them again 12 years later when her mum Julia passed away in 2024.  She recalls getting that dreaded call from the doctor at lunchtime: 鈥淭he doctor called to tell me that the time had come to say goodbye. I went to the hospital immediately.鈥�

From the hospital, took care of the delicate matter of collecting Julita鈥檚 body, organising the final wake, and bringing her remains safely back to the Philippines. 鈥淭he only things they needed from me were her passport, the original death certificate, and the contact details for the funeral partner in the Philippines,鈥� said Julie. The funeral company sorted out all the documents needed to bring Julia鈥檚 remains to Tarlac.聽

Julie recalls that as prepared for her mum鈥檚 final vigil at the funeral parlour, she didn鈥檛 even think for a second about what her mum would look nicest in or whether she would want to be seen wearing a hat. She was wrapped in grief and it made a difference that the staff were there to help her look after the preparations. 

鈥淭hey were very considerate about what she was going to wear. Whatever she liked to wear when she was alive, they were happy to dress her up. They were also talking to her while changing her 鈥� just very respectful. They even put a Philippines flag on top of the coffin; I was so surprised!鈥� said Julie with a warm smile.

TCS repatriations coordinator Andre Nascimento has been assisting Filipino families in the last few years and he knows their needs.  鈥淲e understand that once someone is gone, celebrating their life is very important to the Filipino community鈥�.Over the years, we have learned their customs and rituals, ensuring the deceased are treated with the utmost respect and in accordance with Filipino traditions.鈥�

Three weeks after Julita passed, the family were finally able to hold a vigil and a Mass in the church where family and friends came to say goodbye. Plane tickets were bought, and Julie and 14 family members flew to Tarlac City to lay her to her final rest. 

Julie would always remember her mum鈥檚 sense of humour. 鈥淪he was very funny, had a really good sense of humour. She loved all her grandchildren and would always feed them. They always look forward to her cooking, especially the ginataan (sticky rice balls in coconut milk). I used to get angry because making ginataan is very messy, but when I got angry, I think the kids like it more,鈥� she chuckles, recalling their banter.

Dealing with the practicalities of death

In Southeast London, Mark Lester Lopez, 37, never thought that he would have to deal with the repatriation process so soon. An IT project manager, he got to know TCS after his flatmate and colleague of four years passed away from cancer, right on his birthday. 

鈥淚 was worried about the documents, but surprisingly, everything was easy and smooth. I just had to prepare the documents, and TCS handled the rest, including securing approval from both the 99re在线精品国产欧美激情 and Philippine embassies. The only thing we had to decide was which casket and funeral package to choose. That鈥檚 the helpful part of having a funeral director who really understands the process,鈥� Mark said with a sigh of relief.

鈥淚 think people need to move past the culture where talking about death is seen as as a bad thing. Of course, no one wants to die. But you need the people you left behind to know and plan everything. Do you want your body to be sent back to the Philippines? Do you want to be cremated? Lots of hanging questions.鈥�

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 think I was able to grieve properly. The entire time, I was more focused on what needed to be done. I didn鈥檛 even know what I felt. It was a good thing that the repatriation service was extremely helpful. On the day of the viewing, they did live streaming so his family in Manila could see him.鈥�

The experience taught Mark a hard lesson for those who work overseas: it鈥檚 not easy to die in a foreign country.

鈥淚 think people need to move past the culture where talking about death is seen as as a bad thing. Of course, no one wants to die. But you need the people you left behind to know and plan everything. Do you want your body to be sent back to the Philippines? Do you want to be cremated? Lots of hanging questions.鈥�

With extensive specialist experience in international repatriations, TCS offers repatriation services to over 90 countries. They also have years of expertise navigating cultural and religious requirements.

Pre-paid repatriations plan

Andre shared that repatriations can be expensive for some so they are launching a next year. TCS hopes to help Filipino families prepare for the future by offering an affordable prepaid plan with fixed installments over a set period, rather than a lifetime payment. Through this plan, families can honour their loved ones鈥� wishes to return home when the time comes.

Andre added that all expenses would be covered when needed, protecting families from inflation or rising costs. Their aim is to ensure that every person鈥檚 final wishes are fulfilled in a way that is both affordable and respectful, whilst providing a caring and dignified service.

For Filipinos living abroad, repatriation allow families to honor their loved ones in line with their faith and traditions 鈥� ensuring that, even across oceans, the final journey home is carried out with care and respect.

About the author

Delya Apsari is a freelance journalist based in Bournemouth. She holds a Master鈥檚 in Multimedia Journalism from Bournemouth University and previously worked as a journalist in Indonesia for three years. Her work focuses on multimedia storytelling, exploring cultural and social issues.