Ruben Ogot Nepomuceno

Ruben was born to Fernando Nepomuceno and Josefa Ogot on December 6, 1937 in Magallanes, Cavite, Philippines, the second youngest of nine siblings. He graduated from Cavite High School in 1955, then went on to the Philippine School of Arts and Trade before joining the US Navy in 1958 where he made many lifelong friends, as well as met his future wife, a nurse, Resurreccion “Rosie” Concepcion. They were married March 5, 1966, in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Ruben had multiple duty stations but eventually settled in San Diego, California in 1976. After retiring from the Navy in 1979, Ruben worked for SDG&E for 21 years, retiring in 2000 so that he could spend time with his children, Ron and Connie, and his grandchildren, Angelina, Ashley, Nathaniel, and Orion. In 2003, he finally built his dream home in Ramona, even buying an RV so he could live on the property to supervise every step of the build.

Ruben loved to travel and go on long road trips, and always found time to enjoy the local casinos. He and Rosie often drove across the country, and even once to Alaska and Canada. He loved to joke around, never taking anything too seriously. He loved and cared for his grandchildren with a gentle hand, instilling lifelong values in them with a joke and a smile whenever he had the chance. Ruben was also very generous, hosting family immigrating to the United States, and providing them a head start with their new life.

Ruben is survived by his wife of 57 years, Rosie, their two children, Ron and Connie, daughter-in-law Beth, and son-in-law Pete as well as his sister, Soledad Elizaga. He was a beloved grandfather of Angelina, Ashley, Nathaniel, and Orion, and the great-grandfather to Isaiah Mauro and Josiah Ruben.

In the words of my grandfather (which he borrowed from Frank Sinatra), “I’ve lived a life that's full, I traveled each and every highway; and more, much more than this, I did it my way.”

And that he did.