Chino Trinidad between me and my wife Yeyette.
Not many people might not know this, but Chino Trinidad was a history buff. And he was one of the very few history buffs that I know who was not a hispanophobe. Because of his passion for Filipino History, we ended up us friends. Despite his renown as a celebrity (particularly as a sports pundit), he was humble enough to admit to me that he still had a lot to learn when it comes to Filipino National Identity, a subject that has garnered his interest during his final years.
In 2017, Chino invited me to explore the ARM Cuauhtémoc which was then on a four-day goodwill visit, done in part to commemorate its 35th anniversary as well as the centenary of the promulgation of the Méxican Constitution. He intended to feature it on his PILIPINAS HD channel, a patriotic project of his. My number one fan (my dear wife, who else?) accompanied me. Chino engaged a navy officer there in an impromptu interview. Since he spoke no Spanish, and the officer spoke no English, I served as an interpreter. He had so much respect and interest for our Spanish past.
When Chino visited San Pedro Tunasán, then Mayor Lourdes S. Cataquiz gifted him a copy of my book, the biography of Abelardo "Captain Remo" Remoquillo. Too bad we were not able to see each other that day. I would have signed it for him. A non-celebrity signing an autograph to a celebrity. That would have been hilarious.
He still had many planned documentaries in which he had wanted to involve me. Hindí na ñga lang natulóy dahil sobrang naguíng abalá na camí parejo sa caniyá-caniyá naming mg̃a buhay. But we kept in touch online, chatting mostly about his other least-known favorite subject: our country's national identity.
Chino's well-known persona has transformed from TV sports connoisseur to history aficionado who was hell-bent on searching for the Filipino Identity (one of his influences was his Tito Nick Joaquín, a drinking buddy of his father Recah who himself was a distinguished sports columnist). Chino strove to achieve this through documentaries and other programs that featured topics on Filipino History as well as the best of what our country can offer. I hope many people remember him too as a modern Filipino nationalist.
Descansa en paz, amigo. Naua'y nagcucuentuhan na cayó ni Yeyette diyán sa Paraíso.
Requiem æternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace. Amen.
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