Milagros C. Pescador

Milagros de la Cruz Pescador, fondly known to many as Mila, passed away peacefully with her family by her side on March 26, 2024, in Tallahassee, FL, at the age of 82. Mila was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, godmother, "Auntie", and friend.

Mila was born on December 24, 1941, to Santiago and Victorina de la Cruz in her beloved hometown of Pandan, Caoayan, Ilocos Sur in the Philippines. The last surviving sibling of her family, Mila was the youngest of three children. Mila was predeceased by her parents and her older brothers, Florante Cabildo de la Cruz and Felixberto Cabildo de la Cruz. All three de la Cruz siblings completed college and graduate school, no small feat in those days. Mila and her brothers were no doubt inspired by their father, a well-loved and respected school principal in the Philippines, who constantly stressed the importance of education to each of his children, a trait that Mila passed on to her own children and grandchildren.

Like her father and brothers, Mila was whip-smart and possessed a great sense of humor and a heart of gold. She was known for her love of hosting (and attending) parties, especially the annual Big Bend Filipino American Association (BBFAA) Christmas Party. Her deep appreciation for education coupled with her lifelong friendships and her love of social gatherings made Mila a natural for organizing annual medical school reunions, barely missing more than a handful in the last 50 plus years.

Mila's home in Tallahassee, where she and her husband, Manuel (Manny), have lived since 1974, was always a hub of social activity – especially during the holidays – filled with laughter, joy, and the aroma of her delicious Filipino cuisine, including her staples of pancit, pork spareribs, chicken adobo, and calamansi pie. In addition to being an excellent cook, Mila, ever the "Entertainer in Chief," was incredibly generous, always welcoming new members to Tallahassee's Filipino community, especially those in the nursing field. Mila made a point of always checking in on them over the years and she was always the first one there with a present on their birthdays or births of their children.

More than anything, Mila cherished spending time with her family. Shortly before her passing on March 26, Mila and Manny celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary, hand in hand. In addition to her husband, Mila is survived by her two beautiful daughters, Marie and Molly, her two devoted sons-in-law, Tim and Jeff, her six beloved grandchildren, Xander (24), Ana (22), Bryan (18), Henry (16), Drew (16), and Abby (8), and her two loving sisters-in-law, Beatriz and Nery.

Mila graduated from La Union High School in the Philippines and the University of the Philippines (Class of 1960) before finishing as the top female in her class at the University of the East Ramon Magsaysay (UERM) College of Medicine in Quezon City. Mila was a dedicated physician who touched the lives of thousands over the course of her 40 plus years in the healthcare field.

After graduating from medical school in 1965, Mila moved to the United States where she completed two residencies, the first in pediatrics at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital in New York City from 1967 to 1970 and the second in psychiatry at Norwich State Hospital in Norwich, Connecticut from 1970 to 1972. It was at this time that Mila moved south to Tallahassee in 1970 to start her medical career as a staff psychiatrist with the Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee, FL. From there, Mila served in several positions with the State of Florida. After 34 years of service to the state, Mila retired as the Medical Service Director for the Florida State Hospital in Chattahoochee. In the years after her retirement, she would occasionally run into some of her former patients who would always greet her with a wide smile and a big hug for their favorite "Dr. Pescador."

It was in Tallahassee that she first met Manuel Pescador, then a graduate student at Florida State University. Mila's aunt, Maxima, introduced the two in what would become an enduring love that would unfold over five decades. Shortly after their first date, Manny left on a two-month graduate school expedition to South America. He was worried that the "beautiful Mila" would not be there waiting when he returned. History and fate had other ideas. When he returned, Manny bought a tennis racket and insisted that he knew how to play to impress his future wife. It worked, and from there, a love story for the ages was born.

After laying down firm familial roots in the Florida capital, Mila and Manny would quickly establish themselves as true Matriarch and Patriarch figures in the close-knit Filipino American community of North Florida. But for Mila, it was always family first. No matter how busy work was, she always managed to be there for her daughters' piano or ballet recitals, volleyball games, and tennis matches. In the last two years of her life as she bravely battled cancer, Mila and her youngest granddaughter would have story time over FaceTime before bed each night. Nana sat smiling from ear to ear as Abby read her bedtime stories and shared her favorite riddles, helping Abby develop a lifetime appreciation for reading, something that would have made her father proud.

After her retirement, Mila loved to spend her spare time in her beloved garden full of fragrant roses, citrus trees, bougainvillea, palm trees, and azaleas. Up until her very last days on earth, Mila found tremendous joy and comfort in gardening, tending to her plants, and maintaining a beautiful yard that was the envy of the Tallahassee neighborhood that she and Manny called home for more than 50 years. Mila especially loved to share the fruits of her garden, especially the giant pomelos with friends and family near and far. Her daughters would laugh every year when they would receive a cumbersome 20-pound package in the mail from their mom. It could only mean one thing: it was pomelo season in Tallahassee.

Milagros means "miracles" in Spanish, and Mila was a deeply spiritual person who loved her faith with every ounce of her being. Every Sunday, Mila could be found at her usual pew in her beloved St. Thomas More congregation. During Covid and in the last year of her life, Mila would frequently put on Filipino Masses on the television, watching and praying in her native Tagalog. When Mila first got sick two and a half years ago, she credited her deep faith (and the excellent medical care that she received) in giving her a second chance. And for two years, she and her family relished the "bonus" time that they got to spend with their beloved matriarch.

Mila also loved to travel, especially with her family and grandchildren. From regular trips to her native Philippines to cruises in Mexico and frequent visits to see her daughters in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. to long weekends along the white sand shores of Panama City Beach, Mila loved to explore the world – near and far – with her family and friends, and always with Manny by her side. And her family knew if they were flying somewhere on vacation that Mom/Grand Mommy/Nana/Auntie Mila would be packed a week in advance and would get to the airport at least three hours (minimum) before her flight was to leave. "You never know," she would remind her traveling partners.

In 2019, she and Manny along with both of her daughters and their families, including all six grandchildren, had an unforgettable once-in-a-lifetime vacation to Hawaii. Picking mangoes, walking nature trails, sipping mai tais at a beachside luau, admiring the exotic fauna and waterfalls in Maui, trying out the local cuisine (huli huli chicken!) and building sandcastles at the beach with her grandchildren, the trip embodied everything that Mila held dear: her family, nature's incredible beauty, and copious amounts of delicious food shared with those closest to her.

As a longtime season ticket holder, Mila was also an avid supporter of the Florida State Seminoles football team, and a huge fan of the Duke Blue Devils men's and women's basketball teams.

To honor Mila's wishes, her family will hold a small, private service in Tallahassee on Monday, April 1. The family will host a larger Celebration of Life later this Summer, details to follow.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the American Cancer Society or the Big Bend Filipino American Association (BFAA) Philippine Scholarship Fund, two organizations Mila felt strongly about.