Ricardo P. Paman Jr.

“Give me a problem and I’ll hand you a solution.” Those who knew Ricardo P. Paman Jr. would agree that that motto accurately described him. Jun was a man of great drive and he was a very original, independent thinker. For Jun, no challenge was impossible and just about any desired result was within his grasp. Jun placed great trust in his intuition, and since that intuition generally led him in the right direction, who was he to doubt it?

Jun was born on July 12, 1955 at National Children’s Hospital in Santa Cruz, Manila. He was the son of Ricardo “Carding” Paman Sr. and Magdalena “Denang” Paman. He spent his childhood in Cubao, Quezon City where he matured into an independent person.

Jun grew up with four siblings. He had two older brothers, Fred and Eduardo; one younger brother, Leonardo; and one younger sister, Epifania. At times, Jun often seemed headstrong to his siblings. It was important for him to be perceived as “right” when it came to typical family quarrels, but this quality did not overpower the love and care he had for his family.

During his grade school years, Jun was not fond of being in school. What prompted him to be a very focused and serious student was his mother’s proposed reward and recognition for being the top student amongst his siblings: the top honors would be flown to Hong Kong to travel. It wasn’t the actual tangible prize that pushed him, but the goal to win something awoke his competitive nature. He was determined to succeed, and he drew upon his gifts of trust and perseverance to develop a competitive edge. His first love was academics, but as a well-rounded young man, he also took part in the Cub Scout of the Philippines. Jun delighted in projects that required planning, critical thinking and resolution, which made him a consistent honor student.

During high school, Jun was relentless in his pursuit of learning, especially in areas that really grabbed ahold of his interest. His favorite class in high school was math. If a subject really interested him, he would eagerly put forth extra effort to learn all he could. Jun graduated from St. Martin’s Integrated School in 1971.

Jun’s inventive side developed as he moved into his college years. When Jun found himself involved in an area that particularly interested him, he could organize and complete any task that was given to him and make it look effortless. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in 1976 and he was a member of De La Salle University’s track and field team.

Jun was loyal to his friends. He was most in tune with people who had similar interests and thoughts about things the way that he did. Jun sometimes had a tendency to be critical in his friendships, but he meant well. He never wanted to intentionally hurt any of his friends, but he strived to be honest with them. Jun was a person who challenged others to fend for themselves and to be original in their thoughts and evaluation of the outside world. While growing up, some of his best friends were Ross Manlapat, Dong Quiambao, Sid Druja, Timmy Timuat, Julius Irinco and Phil Tenza. Later in life, he became friends with Joy Rojas, Putch Puyat, Delfin Almeda, Fernando Poe Jr., Eugene Tan, Ray Quimpo, and Mikey Arroyo.

On December 7, 1972, Jun exchanged wedding vows with his childhood sweetheart, Emmeline Linao, at the Immaculate Conception Parish Church in Cubao, Quezon City. Emmeline’s influence brought Jun to a new emotional level; one that eventually enhanced all of his other gifts and abilities. Later in life on July 12, 2013, Jun married Salvacion Estellana in Ermita, Manila at Manila City Hall. Salve’s sensitivity to Jun’s needs proved to be a wonderful influence on this man who preferred to follow and act on his gut instinct. Both Emmeline and Salve were able to help Jun appreciate the fact that others made contributions and complemented him in different ways. These relationships allowed him to grow as a person.

Jun often neglected his own feelings and needs in order to give to others. This was especially true when it came to how he dealt with his children. He was able to teach each child a number of strong values: he taught them to appreciate their abilities, he gave them a desire to persevere despite obstacles, and set within them a drive to succeed. He had eight children: Elainne, Lorainne, Erika, Erwin, James, Jemeline, Jeramiah, and Jerikah. He also had six grandchildren: Ariana, Aidan, Lauren, Alexander, Zoe and Zia. They were always aware of how much Jun loved them.

Born with an entrepreneurial and innovative mindset, Jun dabbled into many businesses. His first major business, JELP Garments, a trade that specialized in ready-to-wear clothing, opened in 1978. This was in partnership with his first wife, Emmeline, hence, then initials J-E-L-P. This business earned him his first million in his 20s, which paved way to a new venture in 1980—horse racing. Jun’s idea of being a horse jockey due to his petite stature was opposed by his parents so he turned to horse ownership and training as an alternative. He bought his first horse, Nuts, for Php30,000 ($650.00) at the age of 25. He became a certified horse trainer at the age of 32. What started out as a job became a full-blow passion—from a small-time horse owner, he grew and evolved his business year after year until he was able to purchase his own farm where he produced thoroughbred race horses to race and sell. Jun retired from the horseracing industry after 32 years. The self-made man that he was, Jun needed to fill the urge to build another enterprise by opening a lottery outlet at the age of 58.

For Jun, his outside interests and hobbies became another exercise in learning and mastering areas that interested him. He greatly enjoyed unraveling the “hows” and “whys” that lay behind his hobbies. Jun was always pushing himself to learn more and to stretch his knowledge even further. He firmly believed that the more things he knew, the more control he would have over things. His favorite pursuits were reading, watching documentaries & movies, stamp collecting, playing Scrabble, and collecting cut-out articles for medicines, treatments, sports, workouts, and horses. He also loved playing music, listening to people sing karaoke, and exchanging stories with people. His active lifestyle involved playing basketball & Jai Alai, jogging, swimming, and later in life, playing badminton.

Jun loved watching sports events. It allowed him to indulge in his own individual interpretations of the event. It was not uncommon for Jun to know what the right play or move should have been, and he would vocally address these feelings even if there was no one around to hear them. If there were others around, he would still state his feelings and gladly debate anyone on their opposing views. He enjoyed following his favorite sport events like the NBA, college basketball, horse racing, and tennis.

Due to Jun’s loyalty and passion for following things through to the end, he found that he was a definite asset to many organizations. Once he was firmly behind a common goal, Jun’s skills became an integral part of the planning process and the success of any project. Jun was an active member of the Philippine Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Organization (Philtobo), Metropolitan Association of Race Horse Owners (Marho), Philippine Race Horse Trainers Association (PRHTA) and Badmiton Addicts (Baddicts). Jun’s contributions were valued as he was the person of structure in each individual organization.

While he never set out to gain individual recognition, Jun did receive honors and awards. In 2000, Jun was awarded Triple Crown Champion Horse Trainer, Outstanding Trainer of the Year, and Outstanding Imported Horse Awardee. In 2001, he was awarded Top Horse Owner in Money Earnings, and in 2002, he was awarded Triple Crown Champion Horse Trainer and Top Horse Trainer in Money Earnings.

Jun was a lover of animals and cherished his pets. One of Jun’s favorites was Mok-mok, a Pekingese mix dog. They were best friends for eight years. He also loved his Boston Terrier, Peggy, and his new dogs, Fili and Kili, who were Yorkies; Millie, a Labrador mix; and Chloe a Lhasa Apso mix. He also cherished his favorite thoroughbred horse, Lucky Lohrke.

When Jun’s retirement finally came in 2016, he was ready for a new beginning. He worked out many of the details in advance so that he could enjoy his new endeavor without having to worry about anything. His new life involved relocating to Las Vegas, Nevada to be closer to his kids and grandkids. In retirement, he continued to jog and swim, and he loved making sandwiches for his family.

Jun passed away on August 20, 2018 at St. Rose Hospital Siena Campus in Henderson, Nevada. He is survived by his children Elainne, Erika, Erwin, James, Jemeline, Jeramiah and Jerikah; his grandchildren Ariana, Aidan, Lauren, Alexander, Zoe and Zia; his partners in life, Emmeline and Salvacion; his brothers Fred and Eduardo and his sister Epifania. Services were held at Palm Southwest Mortuary. The cremated remains of Ricardo “Jun” Paman Jr. are kept in the home of his eldest daughter, Elainne, in Las Vegas.

Jun was always drawn to what was measurable, practical and factual. He was a very competent person and he expected the same from others. He could be headstrong and certain about the way things were supposed to be. He was determined in every aspect of his life and was confident that he was usually right about things. He trusted his intuition over all else, even if it opposed the popular belief, and he had faith in his inner version and speculations. He wanted to be acknowledged by others as someone who made full contributions in all things he was working on. His family and friends will miss his fierce determination, relentless innovations, and analytic mind. He leaves all those who knew him with many wonderful memories.