How apt that I am coming out with the THIRD edition of the Doble Zeta Family Tree on All Soul’s Day! It is really being one with them on this day.
The Family Tree is the Bible of one’s existence. Here you find one’s origins — where you came from. The Doble Zeta is so lucky to have a Family Tree so carefully put together over the years by family members.
I came across a notebook belonging to my grandfather, Fernando Gonzalez, the eldest son of Dr. Joaquin Gonzalez, son of Friar Fausto and Maria Amparo Gonzalez. In his careful and defined handwriting, he had put names, births, baptismal dates, who were the godparents, deaths and causes of deaths, of each member of the family. Fernando died in 1938. After his death, another handwriting took over the chronicling of the same statistics.
I grew up in a house full of women. I saw my aunt, Georgina, meticulously type data not only for the Joaquin Gonzalez family, but also for the other children of Friar Lopez. If she came across information related to it, she would also add it to her notes. These, and other notes made by similarly-interested family members, found their way to the First Edition of the Doble Zeta Family Tree. The committee members purged wrong information, added new ones, and laughed at the accompanying stories of these people they were putting on paper. The Committee members were Lita Estrada (Jose), Renan Prado, Elsa Alicante and Eva Iral (Soledad), Phinny Ordonez (Francisco), and for the big Joaquin group — Nena Franco, Naty Palanca, Roro Gonzalez, Tina Lesaca, Dada Aragon, and Nina Noblejas. They presented the Family Tree Book to the Family Reunion held in the dela Salle auditorium where over a hundred excited Doble Zetans congregated for the first time. If I am not mistaken, this took place in 1978.
Twenty years later, I decided to update the 1978 Family Tree book, and put photos of the family members. One of my favorite memories is of one aunt, who came several times to my office to give her fourth photo to be placed on the tree. She also made sure her branch of the family had the right information. Another aunt collected 1 x 1 ID photos from her relatives from far-away Baliuag to be posted. I still have those photos.
Now, it is again twenty years, time to shake the skeletons once again. I am quite excited about this new book. I discovered this father-and-son curators of family tree websites, and contacted them. It will be more scholarly. They will trace the lines depicting the flow of one generation to the next. There will be a directory where one can look up a name and find it in the tree more easily.
Another plus is that this book will be able to go back to Valladolid, Spain, where Friar Fausto Palominas Lopez was born. The Spanish records are so good, this book will have eleven generations of Friar Lopez’s family.
For our Mariquita Gonzalez, whom I imagine to be a strong willed woman, this book will have three generations of her lineage.
Mariquita’s parents, the Venancio delos Angeles family, will have also a few generations listed in the book.
A few years back, the Spanish government alledgly issued a decree stating that those who could prove they have Spanish roots can move to Spain as immigrants. One uncle came to me and asked, “Can I have this book to show the Spanish Embassy that I am a Spaniard?” The thought of being an EU citizen travelling without visa around the world is pretty exciting.
This book will not end on November 2, 2019. We have to check it and continually update it. There will be many issues that will need to be addressed, the foremost of which is privacy. Some individuals will want to have their secrets kept secret. But, in general, I think having the Family Tree Book 2019 will be essential to one’s identity. Who am I?
APALIT GONZALEZES 
Hi Ate,
Was this published on 11/2? So looking forward to reading it.
It is due to be out by Nov 8. But it is really a work-in-progress, what with new births coming every day… I will see if it will be online. No photos. Just trees. I am also looking forward to see it. I commissioned a father-son curators in some geneology trees to work on it. They unearthed 11 generations of Fausto in Valladolid, Spain, and 3 generations of Mariquita Amparo Gonzalez, and some of her mother, Venancia delos Angeles. I think that is important, because it will be a cornerstone in our history.
Hi. Im Rina, grand daughter of Quincho. Daughter of Joven. Would like to order 3 copies of your book. Im based in Manila. Thank you!
Hi. My name is Restituto “Resti” Reyes Jr. My father Resty Sr. was the son of Atty. Ricardo Gonzalez Lloret. We are not formally recognized as members of the Gonzalez clan because Don Ricardo’s marriage to my grandmother Soledad Samson was considered invalid. They had eloped and gotten married in Hong Kong when she was just 16 years old (menor de edad). Although I do remember some members of the Gonzalez clan who recognized us as “part of the family”, including Tio Curo (Francisco Gonzalez), whom I believe was Don Ricardo’s youngest brother. He used to live in Horseshoe Village and we visited him there before he died.
I would like to order two copies of your new book. I am particularly interested in the roots of the Lopez family in Valladolid because I plan to visit Spain next year. Thank you.
+Hi Resi, There is no such thing as “invalid” marriage. We recognize all the Gonzalez bloodlines, so long as they are truly Gonzalezes. Blood is blood. It transcends paper legitimacy. I would like to meet with you, so you can share your photos and stories. I will email you directly.
Thank you for your prompt response. Please email me directly at resti.reyes@gmail.com
Hi there!
This content is most interesting: my name is Dominic and I am trying to embark on a similar project of tracking my family’s own history — my primary source is my 87 year-old paternal grandfather, whose name is Ruben Hernan Molas Ilagan. He now resides in retirement in Bongabon, Nueva Ecija. He is a scion of the Gerona, Tarlac Ilagan family, and he is a descendant of haciendero Don Francisco “Balbas” Gonzalez (a brother of Dona Maria Amparo Gonzalez) via his daughter, Dona Aurea Morales Gonzalez and her marriage to Don Mauricio Arguelles Ilagan (the son of Don Hugo Lopes Ilagan, Secretary of the Treasury in Aguinaldo’s revolutionary presidency). As I understand, the marriage produced many children, and one daughter became my grandfather’s grandmother. Unfortunately, she died at quite a young age and he has no memory of her or her name now, but he does remember his father, Pascasio Ilagan, mentioning often that he (Pascasio) was a child born out of wedlock with a second cousin in the Fray Lopez branch of the Gonzalez family, funnily because the paroquia mandated recitations by heart of prayers and oaths in Spanish, and the man could not recite them. The Gonzalez name was not adopted by my great-grandfather because of this, and because Ilagan was more prominent a name in Gerona at the time. I would love to get in touch to share and to touch base with what information I have (albeit very little).
Thank you for your time. 🙂
Hi Dominique, Thanks for contacting us. I will give your info to the Researchers doing our tree so that they can put a tracer on your family tree. I know they have data on the siblings of Maria Amparo Gonzalez. If you put your email address, I will get back to you through that! It’s too bad that you just gave me the info on the Bongabon residence of your paternal grandfather. I was there last 2018 for an agri meeting. But there is still time.