The Legacy of Dr. Flordeliza M. Baltazar
It was in the 1900s when Amang and Inang, Ines Mendoza Baltazar, started to bear children. Family planning was not a popular advocacy during those times that’s why Amang and Inang had a total of 18 children. Some of them died of miscarriage while others died in infancy. Only 10 survived to adulthood and one of them was Flordeliza who later became one of the best obstetricians-gynecologists in the country and a staunch advocate of family planning. Her siblings were Jose (Lolo Pepe), Carmelo (Lolo Elong), Mariano (Lolo Naning), Iluminda (Tita Lum), Valente (Lolo Baleng), Liwayway (Lola Nene), Jovencio (Lolo Joven), Bienvenido (Lolo Benido) and Mariano Encarnacion (Lolo Ato). Flordeliza (Tita Flor) became the clan's matriarch. She lived a single life and led a very huge groups of clans.
I am neither a historian nor a biography writer. But just for the fun of it, I am writing a bit of history about the clan that Tita Flor has provided, protected, cared for and loved so well. Some information here are incomplete as it is so difficult to gather first hand information because our old fellows are all gone. Thank God Wikipedia is here to give me some details which are a little helpful. And since I got some of the information from the internet, I also do not claim ownership to some of the pictures in this article.
The name Baltazar, sometimes spelled as Balthazar or Balthasar, is oftentimes associated to King Baltazar, one of the 3 wise men who visited Bethlehem when Jesus Christ was born. I remember when I was in grade school, my classmates would often ask me if I was with Melchor and Gaspar, the two other magi who went to Bethlehem with Baltazar. But they were right because the word Baltazar can actually be traced as far as biblical history. It was the name of the Babylonian King Belshazzar. It was also the name given to Daniel by the Chaldeans in the Book of Daniel. They called him Beltheshazzar.
But brace yourselves, we are not in any way related to these kings and biblical characters. The nearest royal blood relations we could possibly have is with the King of Filipino Language, Francisco Baltazar, a great poet from Bulacan. Their family started to use the surname Baltazar after a declaration issued by Governor General Narciso Claveria in 1849 ordering all Filipinos to use Spanish surnames instead of their native names. Francisco’s old surname was Balagtas. He was born in Bigaa, Bulacan. History would tell us that he studied in Manila, was imprisoned, was freed and decided to live in Balanga, Bataan. It was in Bataan where his family made a name in local politics. His three siblings Felipe, Concha and Nicholasa remained in Bulacan. If we are to trace the line of predecession, it is possible that we belong to the lineage of Felipe, but that is just assuming that the Baltazars of Bulacan came from one root.
Certainly, however, we all came from our beloved Amang Bernabe Del Pilar Baltazar. He was the son of Marcela Del Pilar of the famous Del Pilar Clan of Bulacan, Bulacan where two great Philippine heroes, Marcelo H. Del Pilar and Gregorio Del Pilar, also belonged. I always brag about this to my friends that in me runs the blood of famous heroes and superheroes of the Philippines because my Lola Chuling (Consuelo Del Rosario Baltazar) was the first cousin of Rosa Del Rosario, the first movie actress who portrayed the role of Darna. But that’s another story.
The Baltazar Clans
by: Alex Baltazar
*Lolo Pepe was married to Salvacion Baltazar (Lola Basyon) and they had three children: Pilar, Clarita and Renato
*Lolo Elong was married to Catalina Baltazar (Lola Ina) and had 1 child: Felicitas
*Lolo Naning was Married to Lucia Baltazar (Lola Lucing). They had 7 children: Nita, Mar, Danny, Emma, Myrna, Nesty and Rebecca
*Tita Lum opted to be single
*Lolo Baleng was married to Natividad Baltazar (Lola Naty) and had 10 children: Zeny, Josefa, Irene, Adora, Charito, Emmeng, Melchor, Dading, Manolo, and Lando
*Lola Nene was married to Domingo Garcia (Lolo Domeng) and had 4 children: Tanggol, Bayani, Gani and Ningning
*Lolo Joven was married to Consuelo Baltazar (Lola Chuling). They had 10 children: Soliman, Antonio, Resty, Milagros, Baltazar, Rafael, Enrique, Rodrigo, Jovencio Jr. and Francisco
*Lolo Benido was Married to Juanita Baltazar (Lola Juaning) and had 3 children: Erlinda, Eduardo and Aniceto
*Tita Flor opted to be single
*Lolo Ato was married to Aurora Baltazar (Lola Auring). They had 9 children: Amparing, Celia, Chey, Remy, Teresa, Nesty, Pepito, Gaspar and Junior
In total, Tita Flor had 47 nephews and nieces and hundreds of grand children and great grand children that became members of the Baltazar Group of Clans. She sent hundreds of them to school and provided more than what they actually needed.