• DICTARINO M. SUGON
• 19 April 1956 – 08 February 2017

On Departure Day:

On the 8^th of February 2017, my dear classmate Dick Sugon expired at 3 o’clock in the morning at the Veterans’ Memorial Medical Center (VMMC). He was confined there due to diabetes and died after about a month when his right leg below the knee was amputated. The surviving family gave him a 9-day wake at the Army mortuary inside the gates of Libingan-ng-mga-Bayani (translation: Burial Ground for Heroes), while waiting for Dick’s family side to arrive from Iloilo and a younger brother from Japan.

Staying almost daily at the mortuary and acting as surviving officer to Dick’s bereaved family, I tried my best to ease the loss and pain of Chat, his wife, and children (Nikki, Ena and Conan). I was always around as a conduit for anything they need e.g. looking for billeting areas, producing transportation needs for Dick’s direct relatives, looking for speakers to give eulogies and alike. On one lazy afternoon just before the day of the necrological service was scheduled, funeral wreaths from different flower shops poured in the mortuary where Dick was lying in state. One wreath that arrived earlier before I came that day, as Chat had told me, was from 2 ladies with a dedication on a ribbon saying, “FROM YOUR BFF: LYNN & ESTHER!” The delivery boy showed a piece of paper with the name, for Colonel Sugon and he said in a hurry that he has one more delivery to make at the Heritage Cemetery. REALLY! Flowers coming from girlfriends whom Chat didn’t know or heard of!

Chat maintained her composure. Many things were running inside her head. “Maloko pala itong asawa ko!” but on the other hand, the wreath might be from his mistah, Gene and Esther, the husband and wife Commodore Velasco. She was really engulfed with mixed feelings at that moment; not knowing if she would get mad or just laugh it out – trying not to show her frustrations with her children and people around during the delivery. Anyway, she calmly let the delivery boy place the wreath at the space along the doorway, 3 wreaths away from the casket . . . Chat’s blood boiling!

Flashbacks:

The Mapigatagan Class of 1980 really finds Dick “The Boxer” Sugon funny. Even though most of the time, he did not intend to be funny but in his serious ways he can make us all laugh and smile. There are so many anecdotes about him. The class harbors this private joke regarding him on “Using Late Lights” hehe. Who cannot forget his expression, “It’s only a tsismis!” He was well known in our version of the 100-night show as the “6-Million Dollar Man”, or Bionic Man – running in slow motion. He has the built and body of Mandingo. As for the “Boxer”, Bong Cabantac can tell you how Dick got his famous monicker . . .

Jolo Days:

Dick Sugon has the longest stint in the battlefield after graduation in February 1980, spanning to nine years at his beloved 32^nd Infantry “Daredevil” Battalion. He told me in his deathbed, “Ang galling natin ha! Walang namatay o nagalosan man lang sa atin sa Jolo”. It was his battalion that relieved my unit at Pata Island immediately after the infamous Pata Massacre. “Kaya lang”, as he continues, “Halos lahat tayo tinamaan naman ng malaria!” Dick was stricken by Falciparum, the deadliest form of malaria.

In retrospect, we had fun in Jolo during our indoctrination and acclimatization of the area. We went on water skiing at Tandiong Beach. We sang our hearts out at the Lions’ Den, the watering hole of General Luga, our Division Commander, and his officers. The precursor or of the karaoke had long been existing, where an overhead projector serving as videoke, became our source of entertainment. Songs were written on plastic acetates, flashed on a screen and being accompanied by a live band. Sometimes the leader of the band guided the singer by tapping a pen on the exact lyrics to sing. We can see the shadow of the pen on the screen jumping from one word to the next. There was also a time that we consumed all the liquor displays of Colonel “Kwako” Cordero, the battalion commander of the 18^th Infantry “Follow-Me” Battalion. Dick, already drunk, was talking to “Kwako” with his arm around the latter’s shoulder, in tagalog “naka-akbay na si Dick kay Kwako!” Anyway Kwako, who is more drunk, was all ears to Dick…

Test Mission:

After a week at the Tabak Division Headquarter as a newly minted second lieutenants, General Luga decided to let us loose, the eight of us (2Lts Bolo, Francisco, Mendoza, Pasamba, Segovia, Sugon, Yano and me) and go on rebel hunting, by conducting a nighttime ambuscade. General Luga wanted us to gain the much needed confidence in combat in our baptism of fire. Before us, two PMA graduates from Class ‘79 (2Lts Naparan and Pagunsan) died in combat just a few months upon setting on foot in Jolo. So General Luga vowed not to let this thing happen anymore. He instructed 1Lt Danny Lim (USMA ’78), the Company Commander of the First Reconnaissance Unit (FRU) who took over from 1Lt Dick Morales, the founder, to let his best men accompany us during the skirmish. Distinctively, FRU is composed entirely of highlanders, pure-blooded Igorot warriors. They are best pitted against the Tausogs, whom we all know are ferocious fighters. However General Luga clarified further that Danny’s men must make precautions and be sure no casualty from the class will befell on us; if not, the Division might lose the entire PMA class ‘80 in one count. At the ambuscade area, my mistahs was so mad at me for not controlling my persistent coughing. We were all alert and nervous, adrenaline pumping whenever nearing voices were heard; but mostly silhouettes on the trail under the glare of the quarter moon had no traces of weapons. We were waiting from the team leader of the FRU to open fire first. However, nothing happened that night. No armed rebels passed on the ambush trail…sabi ng mga mistahs ko, sayang! For me, buti na lang!

Twist of the Plot:

Let’s go back to my “infidelity story”. So after about a quarter of an hour, the same delivery boy, who delivered the wreath for Dick, returned at the Army mortuary. He was very apologetic to Chat that he made a terrible mistake. He said that the recipient at the Heritage Cemetery doesn’t know either the sender of the wreath that had a ribbon emblazoned “from the UN Contingent to Liberia”. Now, everything made sense to Chat! Dick once upon a time served in Liberia; and the Lynn-and-Esther tandem is the BFF of the dead lady at the Heritage. Whew!

Ultimately, Dick was laid to rest on February 17, 2017 at Libingan ng mga Bayani. . . a devoted, sincere and loyal husband to Chat! I can see Dick smiling hehe