Theresa Verzosa Santos Manzon was born on Tuesday, September 10, 1929, in Manila, Philippines. Her birth name Teresita was “Americanized” when she was “naturalized” by immigration officials who could not pronounce it. To her close relatives, she was affectionately known as Teresing or Teret. When she became a grandmother, she embraced the name “Lola” (Tagalog for Grandma), and it stuck for the remainder of her life. She was the fourth of ten children of Mercedes (“Mamang”) and Elias (“Papang”), descendants of multiple lineages including the Mislang, Verzosa, de Jesus, Santos, Samonte, and Mariano clans.
Lola grew up mostly in Mamang’s hometown of Labrador in the province of Pangasinan (which translates in their local language to “the land where salt is made”). She was kinship-adopted for a time by Mamang’s younger sister Angela (her Auntie Lilang). During World War II, along with half of her siblings, she was evacuated to Laoag, Papang’s hometown, in the province of Ilokos Norte, where they stayed with her Uncle Alberto (“Dading”), Auntie Dora (Papang’s older sister), and her houseful of cousins. Later returning to Pangasinan, she attended a Catholic high school, The Adelphi College, where her classmates wrote, because of her piety: “We hope to see you as a Mother Superior someday.” Lola also had a rebellious streak — and dreams beyond the convent. On one occasion, she risked her father’s wrath to sneak away with a friend to watch her matinee idol in his latest Hollywood film release.
Mamang, who was granted US citizenship for her service to Philippine President Quezon’s government-in-exile, established herself in San Francisco right after World War II circa 1946 and sent for her children one at a time. At age 19, Lola immigrated in 1949 on a student visa, and joined her mother and older sister, Zenaida, at 763 Minna Street, South of Market, not far from the historic Little Manila neighborhood. She enrolled at what was then called San Francisco State College. Though very intelligent, school just didn’t inspire her. She longed to work and, with that, to be independent. Photos from that period are abundant with family and social gatherings, outings in nature, picking fruit in orchards. It was also during this time that she met Sofia Alquizola and Sally Fernandez, originally Mamang’s best friends and housemates on Minna Street. They were fellow Filipinas with whom Lola developed cherished, lifelong friendships and on whom she could always count for wise counsel and companionship.
In 1950, as one story goes, while Lola was working in Downtown San Francisco at Woolworth’s, the five-and-dime store, she met Mario Ramones Manzon, a Filipino from her home province, who said “ooh la la” when he first saw her. He was charming and a talented chef, and he joined the US Army which led to his US citizenship, and ultimately hers. They married on April 28, 1951, in Camp Roberts, California, where Mario was stationed.
Lola’s first born child, Antonio (Tony, whom she called Buging), arrived in October of that year. Her second baby, daughter Hilda, nicknamed Chi-Chi, came in December 1952. Her third child, Bonnie, was born in February 1958. Lola quickly became a devoted mother and hard-working military wife. Innately organized, she managed the household including the family finances.
In 1962, Mario and his family were transferred overseas to Naples, Italy, for a three-year tour. The Manzons grew close to other Filipino military families stationed far from home — including the Prietos, the Ocenars, the Santiagos, the Martinezes, and the Arlanticos — becoming godparents for each other’s children, and referring to each other as Kumare and Kumpare, terms of endearment between what might be called chosen family. In fact, Lola and Mario were Ninang and Ninong (Tagalog for godmother and godfather respectively) to George Prieto, who was a toddler when his family moved from the Philippines. They all socialized at the NCO Club and vacationed modestly across Europe by car-caravan. Lola acclimated and became adept at negotiating with the local Neapolitan underground market, exchanging government-issue coffee and cigarettes for fresh produce and fish. For the next 60 years, she would routinely use certain Italian expressions: domani (“tomorrow”), grazie (“thank you”), Ciao! (“hello” and “goodbye”), subito (“right away”), and Mamma mia! (literally “My mother!” but translates to “oh my goodness!” — an expression of amazement or surprise).
In 1964, Mario was transferred back to the States for successive tours at four different bases, including Fort Gordon in Augusta, Georgia, where he and Lola received their fourth child, John (Johnny), in March 1965. (Pare Freddie and Mare Nisa Prieto were Johnny’s godparents.) In 1971, stationed back at the Presidio (San Francisco), they bought their first house, like so many Asian and Latinx immigrant families, in Daly City, California.
It was also there in the Daly City house that Mario retired in September 1973 after 23 years of military service, and where he had a fatal heart attack on Johnny’s 15th birthday in March 1980. Resilient to the core, Lola made the transition to widowhood and single motherhood, buoyed by her faith, and her family.
Lola lived in this house for 29 years. She worked in the Central Kitchen of the South San Francisco Unified School District, earning a pension after a decade, and moonlighted as a caregiver to seniors, encouraged by her long-time friend Sofia, who showed her the ropes. Lola fell in love with cats and became a fierce supporter of animal rights. She enjoyed extended family living in the Bay Area with her closely held siblings, cousins, in-laws, including Sofia + Joven, Sally + Fred, Zenaida, Romulo + Maxima, Fe + Tony, Vicky + Flor, Bobby, Ginny, Doming, Elsa, Roger + Erly, Bitong, Angie, Kits, and their burgeoning families.
In November 1978, she officially became a Lola with her first grandchild, Kevin, who she nicknamed Koko, born in Hong Kong to Bonnie and then husband Kearn. Kevin was joined by younger twin siblings, Aimy and Tihani, in February 1980. Lola would visit as often as she could to support Bonnie and help care for her grandchildren.
A few years later, Bonnie returned to the US and landed back in Lola’s home in Daly City. The twins followed when they were 4 years old; Kevin would join them in 1994 in order to finish high school stateside. Lola was heartened to welcome Bonnie and then husband Will and help raise her three oldest grandchildren under her roof. In December 1996, Tony and then wife Liz gave birth to Augustus (Gus), Lola’s fourth grandchild, whom she would enjoy visiting in New York City over the next several years.
In 2001, Lola began another chapter, moving alone to a new home in a senior community in Brentwood, California. Coming full circle, it was in Brentwood’s orchards that she had picked fruit with her mother when she first immigrated! Lola made friends among her neighbors there, enjoyed her independence, and pursued hobbies. She continued her “galavanting” around the globe, encountering friends and acquaintances who sent a steady stream of postcards and letters despite the fact that, by her own admission, Lola was far from a consistent correspondent. In the end, she would visit 55 countries across five continents and, with joy and intention, add to her souvenir collections. Though she didn’t pursue her creative spirit in a formal way, her artist’s eye and sensibility were undeniable. She appreciated beauty, saw it everywhere in nature, in high art and folk craft alike. She paid attention to who made the art she loved, and as often as possible supported young, fledgling artists.
In March 2011, Johnny and Mickey began fostering 6-week old Mimi, whom Lola always considered her fifth grandchild, even after Mimi reunited with her family of origin just shy of her first birthday. Shifting to the role of godparents, Johnny and Mickey would remain in loving relationship with Mimi and her family, while Lola, over the next few years, would always look forward to visiting Mimi, whose photos she lovingly and prominently placed among her cherished family.
Then, in July 2012, Lola welcomed her sixth and last grandchild, Andrés, who was sent by many ancestors to Johnny and Mickey through adoption. She nicknamed him Chico and their relationship was full of tenderness and inside jokes. In 2017, Lola accepted the invitation of Johnny, Mickey, and Andrés to share their home, which allowed the Lola-Chico bond to grow over the next three years.
As her health declined and her needs became more complex, Lola relocated in 2020 to the Carnelian Assisted Living community to receive the dignity and round-the-clock care that all seniors deserve, surrounded by highly skilled, culturally familiar, and deeply caring staff. She spent her final hours there with three of her children, Chi-Chi, Bonnie, and Johnny, by her side.
Many will be grateful for her thoughtfulness and generosity – opening her home for long stays, willingly lending and gifting money, and commemorating weddings, graduations, and births with meaningful keepsakes. Grounded in her core value of education, Lola made sure all of her adult children and grandchildren completed college. She will be known for championing art and music, for her adventurous spirit, voracious travel, and opening to many cultures, including what became a multi-ethnic, multi-racial, interfaith, queer-affirming family. She weathered life’s storms – war, immigration, widowhood, loss of roots, loss of loved ones, loss of health. Through the low points of her life, she found refuge with her family, in her passions, and her faith never wavered. Prayer remained constant.
Lola became our Ancestor on Tuesday, May 16, 2023, at 11:57 pm, though her death was officially pronounced by the hospice professional who arrived soon thereafter at 12:05 am and, thus, on the next day, Wednesday, the 17th. In the background was the voice of Andrea Boccelli singing “E Chiove”, from his CD Romanza, one of Lola’s favorites, appropriately a song in Napoletano, the language of Naples, Italy.
Lola is survived by her children, grandchildren, niblings and other extended family, including siblings Doming and Roger. She joins her beloved Sofia, Sally, Auntie Lilang, Mamang, Dading, Papang, Auntie Isay, Nana Carmen, her siblings Zenaida, Honorato, Romulo, Precita, Fe, Cirilo, Samuel, Leticia, sister-in-law Maxima, cousins Victorina and Loring, and all her other relatives and friends in the Ancestor world, always to be remembered, cherished and celebrated. For Lola’s life we are deeply grateful.
"Ciao, Lola!" 