Sunday, October 14, 2007

Farewell, Dr. Conrado Dayrit, 88


Note: Last Monday, October 7, 2007, my project assistant, Arianne, called me and asked permission to leave early from work. She said she that she will join the staff of our Science and Engineering Dean, Dr. Fabian "Toby" Dayrit to visit the remains of Toby's father, Dr. Conrado Dayrit in Greenhills. I was surprised to know that Dr. Conrado Dayrit passed away already. I asked Arianne whether it was announced somewhere. She told me that it was posted on the Ateneo Blueboard, the online Ateneo bulletin (it turned out that my e-mail was no longer subscribed to the Blueboard).

That Monday night, I went with some of my co-faculty members in the Math Department to the wake of Toby's father. Our group included Reggie (Dr. Reginaldo Marcelo, Math Department Chairman), Ninette (Dr. Ma. Antoinette De Las Penas), and Jume (Dr. Jumela Sarmiento).The wake for Dr. Conrado Dayrit's remains was held at the Sanctuario de San Jose in Greehills East, San Juan, Metro Manila. During the wake, we were able to witness a eulogy for Dr. Conrado Dayrit. We heard interesting stories about Dr. Conrado Dayrit from his granddaughter and his son-in-law. Toby was there together with his family. Aside from Toby, another famous son of Dr. Conrado Dayrit is Dr. Manuel ("Manolet") Dayrit, former Secretary of the Department of Health (DOH).

Dr. Conrado Dayrit was an institution in the Philippine scientific community. Recently, his name was associated with the popularity of "virgin coconut oil".

Our university president, Fr. Ben Nebres, SJ, released a memorandum on the passing away of Dr. Dayrit. The memo was published in the Ateneo de Manila University website (http://www.ateneo.edu/) . Below is the text of Fr. Ben's memo on Dr. Conrado Dayrit:

[startofquote]

06 October 2007

MEMO TO : The University Community

FROM : The President

R E : Death of Dr. Conrado S. Dayrit, M.D.

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This is to inform the University community of the passing away of Dr. Conrado S. Dayrit, M.D. (GS ’32, HS ’36, AA ’38).

In 2006, Ateneo de Manila University conferred on Dr. Dayrit the Lux-in-Domino Award which we describe as “a special recognition of an extraordinary individual who has incarnated in life, and perhaps even in death, in an exemplary manner, the noblest ideals of the Ateneo de Manila University.”

A portion of the citation reads:

“True to the ideal of Lux-in-Domino, Dr. Dayrit’s proudest legacy are his and his gentle wife Milagros’ eight children and more than 20 grandchildren, all achievers. His sons and daughter form a Who’s Who roster of their own: a former Health Secretary, a pulmonologist, an exporter, bankers, educators, and of course, Toby, Dean of our School of Science and Engineering. A proficient violinist, Dr. Dayrit has passed on his love of music to the younger generation, and one granddaughter is now a music scholar in the U.S. For despite Dr. Dayrit’s full schedule, family time is sacred. The clan attend Mass together on Sundays and discuss issues over lunch at the patriarch’s residence in Greenhills. And speaking of faith, this man of science is also a man of religion, with his lectures on the archaeology and history of the Holy Land replete with slides and maps from his many travels.”

“For living up to the ideals of the Hippocratic oath; of leading an exemplary life as a witness to what it means to be a Christian human being; and for his unique genius in discovering the medicinal value of indigenous Philippine plants, the Ateneo de Manila.University is proud to confer its Lux-in-Domino Award upon Dr. Conrado S. Dayrit, M.D.

His remains are waked at Sanctuario de San Jose, Greenhills East starting tonight. We ask the University community for your prayers for Dr. Dayrit and his family.

BIENVENIDO F. NEBRES, S.J.
President

"
[endofquote]

Condolence to Toby and family.
Farewell, Dr. Conrado Dayrit.


In prayers,
10/14/07

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