Sheila Grace Dones Cuenco

Sheila Grace Dones Cuenco was a woman for whom actions would speak louder than words. Her life motto might well have been “if it isn’t logical, it’s not important.” The qualities of being fair, just and the ability to recognize what was right were clearly driving forces in Sheila Grace’s life. She was also the kind of person who could respect a “do not disturb” sign, whether it was real or implied. She was analytical and observant, with an ability to be simultaneously spontaneous and keenly perceptive. Sheila Grace was modest in her actions and extremely literal in her thoughts and in the manner in which she communicated with others. When Sheila Grace said something, she meant it. All those who knew her appreciated this trademark quality.

Sheila Grace was born on March 23, 1978 at Perpetual Succor Hospital in Sampaloc, Manila, Philippines. Her parents were Wilfredo and Rosita Dones. Sheila Grace was raised in Las Pinas City, Manila, Philippines. Even as a small child, Sheila Grace wanted to understand what was right and what was wrong in any given situation. As Sheila Grace grew older, she realized the importance of being treated fairly, and in return, she treated everyone around her the same way. This belief in fair play served Sheila Grace well throughout her life and despite her natural shyness; she enjoyed a solid group of friends.

Since Sheila Grace sought to treat those around her with respect, she often found herself in the role of playing peacemaker within her family. She was comfortable in working through the types of sibling rivalry situations that quite often occur, because she loved the challenge of conflict resolution. She would look at the most reasonable and practical ways to settle any disputes. Sheila Grace was raised with three siblings. She had an older sister, Sherry, an older brother, Arvin, and a younger sister, Angeline. Sheila Grace was constantly involved in activities with her siblings. Sheila Grace and her siblings had the typical rivalries while growing up, but they shared many life experiences.

During her childhood, family and friends viewed Sheila Grace as a quiet and reserved person with what most would consider a calm and tranquil demeanor. In fact, she was a fairly curious child who had the ability to entertain herself and didn’t require much in the way of outside stimulation. A great deal of Sheila Grace’s free time was spent learning how and why the things around her worked. She was an active child who loved being outdoors and absorbing all the sensory input that nature could provide. She took part in volleyball and also sang in the school choir. In her spare time she liked to play the keyboards and sing a lot.

The fact that she was curious was an asset to Sheila Grace while she was in school. She possessed strong study skills and good concentration. She relished the task of scrutinizing problems, investigating all of the options and then solving them. Sheila Grace enjoyed tackling the project that was right in front of her and working it straight through to its conclusion. Sometimes, she would become so involved in the process of problem solving that she would lose awareness of her surroundings. Experience was Sheila Grace’s best teacher. She graduated from St. Joseph Academy High School in 1994. She enjoyed some courses more than others, having favorite classes and teachers. Her favorite class in high school was Math and Music.

The same qualities that served as assets for Sheila Grace while she was in high school were tools that built success in her college years. Her ability to work through problems and assignments without wasting time and energy demonstrated to her instructors that she possessed a real “stick to it” attitude that allowed her to succeed despite an underlying desire to defer making difficult decisions. Sheila Grace was an analytical and an independent thinker, qualities that allowed her to develop and implement effective strategies and techniques to meet her college workload. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from De La Salle University.

Those who didn’t know Sheila Grace well might have thought her to be objective and somewhat emotionally detached, but family and friends who were close to her knew that she was capable of unexpected flashes of humor. Sheila Grace’s good friends tended to be “thinkers” like herself. Even though the circle of friends was somewhat small, it was a strong and loyal group, and Sheila Grace liked nothing better than to spend her free time with them. Sheila Grace was well known for always being up front and open, never hiding her true feelings, qualities that drew deep loyalty from her friends because they understood and appreciated her for the person she was. Another quality that people admired in Sheila Grace was her ability to link cause and effect and apply the appropriate connection in her assessment of any new situation. While growing up, one of her best friends was Charina. Later in life, she became friends with Melo, Sherry, sister Bujing, and kuya Arvin.

This same loyalty and up front honesty Sheila Grace shared with her friends carried over to other aspects of her life, including her relationships with her family. On December 30, 2003, Sheila Grace exchanged wedding vows with Davey A. Cuenco in Molino, Bacoor, Cavite, Philippines. The marriage became a solid relationship, due in part to Sheila Grace’s skill at bringing fresh energy and clarity to meeting Davey's needs. She was a great listener who enjoyed the couple’s “together” time, especially when it came to celebrating special occasions.

As the family grew, Sheila Grace was easily able to adapt to the changes and challenges of parenthood. Sheila Grace was blessed with two daughters, Zotia Danae and Samantha. Sheila Grace was never impulsive in dealing with family problems. Instead, she would carefully think things through before implementing the solution in a logical and objective manner. Sheila Grace was a strong, clear communicator who excelled at eliminating confusion by making matters crystal clear to all those involved. At the same time, Sheila Grace’s inventive nature could turn some of the boring old household chores into a fun activity for the family.

In her work life, Sheila Grace was the kind of person who had no difficulty in taking on a project and seeing it through to its completion. She excelled at dealing with those pesky details that can derail some people, and once she understood exactly why she was working on a project, she could plow full steam ahead. For Sheila Grace, being able to grasp the logical components of any task was significant to her in appreciating its importance. Even if she worked alone on an assignment, Sheila Grace was able to incorporate and welcome new insights from co-workers, and she would readily use them if they improved the process. Her primary occupation was as a admin office service specialist. She was employed for 6 years at Price Waterhouse Coopers. Sheila Grace always made the effort to be a team player, doing what was necessary in order to get the job done.

Sheila Grace’s curious and inquisitive nature influenced her choice of leisure pursuits as well. She applied her strong concentration and analytical skills as to how things worked to her choice of activities. She particularly enjoyed the “alone” time her hobbies provided. Her favorite pursuits were watching telenovelas and singing. Sheila Grace was content to enjoy her hobbies alone but was also willing to share her interests with others.

Sheila Grace had the ability to stay calm and the determination to do what was necessary to get the job finished, traits that helped her enjoy sports. Recreational sports included bowling.

Sheila Grace was an asset to any organization she joined. In many ways, she was a woman of action who would rather tackle a job than spend time chatting about irrelevant things. She worked well on small committees and excelled at focusing on the important details without getting bogged down by the unnecessary parts of an assignment. In high school, Sheila Grace was a member of the SJA Choir.

Religion and faith were important to Sheila Grace. She held dear the faith and values she derived from her beliefs. She was a Catholic all of her life. Sheila Grace appreciated the occasions when she was able to travel and get away on a vacation. She enjoyed learning about different locales and was open to exploring new and different places. Favorite vacation spots included Favorite vacations included Las Vegas, Nevada. She thoroughly enjoyed the task of gathering and analyzing travel information as she prepared for an upcoming trip.

Sheila Grace passed away on April 2, 2012 in San Jose, California due to an aneurism. She is survived by her husband Davey Cuenco; her daughters Zotia and Samantha Cuenco; her mother and father Rosita and Wilfredo; her sisters Sherry Ann and Angeline; and her brother Arvin. Services were held at St. Maria Goretti Church in San Jose, California. Sheila Grace was laid to rest in Oak Hill Memorial Park in San Jose, California.

Sheila Grace strongly believed that talk is cheap. She was the type of person who would show others her feelings through her actions. She was practical and realistic but was able to be flexible when the need arose. She had a curiosity about the things around her and tried to experience life directly rather than sit back and talk about it. The experiences she treasured most were those she shared with her loved ones. Sheila Grace Dones Cuenco will be greatly missed.