Perla Santos Gubatan

Perla was born the 7th child to Amado and Carmen Santos on May 30, 1943, in their home in Aguilar, Pangasinan Philippines. As a child, she was raised on a modest farm in a village setting within a rich tropical paradise providing her with a lifetime passion for gardening and fresh Filipino cooking.

Early on, Perla demonstrated great heart and bravery. She was willing to take risks and decided to take a chance on love. Perla’s life changed forever when she met and agreed to leave her country, her home, to join her beloved Nemsy in the United States. This was a courageous transcontinental move for a simple farm girl, but her faith allowed her to transcend the challenges. The young couple were married at St. Kevin’s Church, San Francisco, in 1965 and went on to share a beautiful 56-year marriage, blessed with 3 children and 2 grandchildren. Continuing to take chances throughout their lives, the rock that steadied them was their shared devotion to family and their diligent and unwavering faith and love of God and Jesus Christ.

Perla had a few favorite hobbies. She was trained as a seamstress in a vocational school in the Philippines and brought this skill to the United States. She was ahead of her time championing sustainable methods. Throughout her life, she sewed, mended, recycled, and then sewed again. The family still laughs about times when they might recognize a kitchen towel that used to be dad’s swim shorts, or a fun party skirt that used to be draperies. Creating alluring garments, curtains, tablecloths and other miscellaneous items including Deacon Nemsy's custom albs and dalmatics was her unique talent, service, and delight.

Perla was also an amazing cook of essence, in balance with authenticity. This was her love language - making traditional Filipino dishes as well as learning to cook American food to please the varying cravings her family would bring to her. It was not uncommon for her Holiday meals to include turkey and stuffing alongside classic adobo and rice, and cranberry slices next to pansit and chicken. And of course, you could always count on her to provide her secret recipe lumpia eggrolls for many of the gatherings.

Perla was a devout and prayerful Catholic who was always involved with a ministry. From 1970- 2024 she participated in Cursillo, the Legion of Mary and multiple Novena Groups such as Sacred Heart, Padre Pio and Santo Entierro. However, one could argue that her greatest service and ministry was supporting the family. This humble and selfless village farmgirl assisted her husband through Diocesan Deaconate training and a lifetime of volunteer work while balancing the family and home. She worked a full time job as a Sr. Accountant & Bookkeeper for A. Duda & Sons for many years and managed to see her 3 children from private catholic elementary and high school education, all the way through Bachelors and Masters degrees.

Succinctly, Perla was a powerful spirit-led and spirit-filled enabler. She was the humble behind the scenes superwoman constantly encouraging us to take chances, while inspiring us to rely on prayer, faith, and trust in Father God and Savior Son. Her act of courage to blindly begin a new life in the United States continues to influence and inspire our family today as we navigate and author new chapters in her legacy of love. We will miss her greatly - her guidance, her tenderness, her smile, and her cooking!

Perla joins her spouse, parents, siblings, and beloved grandson, in Heaven. She is survived by her children Portia, Neme, Noel, and granddaughter, Gabriella.

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”

Matthew 13:31-32