Thank you and farewell

Cebu golf lost a pillar yesterday when Albino D. Gothong passed away at the age of 69 losing his battle to the Big C.

Amo, as many fondly called him, was one of the key men who raised the standards of golf tournaments in Cebu back in the 1990s.

I used to just cover the events until the time came when I became part of the committee and it was always fun and inspiring to see how men like Amo and the other committee members would spend their time and money to make others happy by organizing golf tournaments.

Our group called him Tatay, because he was the father figure behind the Filipino-Chinese Golf Tournament Committee.

Although recently, he wasn't really in the tournament committees, but he remained a silent supporter who would never let us down when we needed his wise counsel and his financial support.

Many of Cebu's golfers have fond memories of the man, who was responsible of organizing events where participants got a lot more than what they paid for in registration fees.

When the economy was doing so well before the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s, the Fil-Chinese Friendship Golf Tournament was an event that the local golfers looked forward to.

The event offered BMWs as hole-in-one prizes. There was a time when Land Rovers were at stake on the different par-3 holes.

The tournaments were extra special since it was the fiesta atmosphere in many areas at the golf course and the clubhouse and even if you had a bad game, you knew that all would end well with the wonderful giveaways and raffle prizes that you were sure to take home.

There was a time when I played very early every Friday mornings with Amo and the other members of his group, who are often jokingly referred to as his "sons."

We teed off at 5:30 a.m. and before 8, we were already done playing and eating the hearty breakfast that he would have specially prepared for the group.

There were times when he'd call to tell me that he'd like to offer help to a patient of The FREEMAN Foundation. He would ask for a collector to visit his office so he can give his donation without fanfare as he preferred to be anonymous when he did such acts of benevolence.

Amo loved to eat and when the group gets together, food was always aplenty and golf would always be the favorite topic of conversation.

I remember one morning when there were about ten of us from the tournament committee of Alta Vista Golf and Country Club (AVGCC) who visited his office in Subangdaku, Mandaue City. He gave us a tour of his facility at A. D. Gothong Manufacturing and we were like a group of students on a field trip.

At the end of the visit, we all had something to bring home as he opened boxes of corporate giveaway items that he kept at his office.

For the Christmas Tournament of Alta Vista we did not go to him to ask for sponsorship since he was already sick, but to our surprise, we were told that he was going to be one of the sponsors of the tournament and had already set aside a budget for that.

Amo surely knew how to pleasantly surprise people dear to him.

I usually sleep at past 1 a.m. and early yesterday morning, I dreamt that I saw him riding what looked like an open vehicle. His hair flew as the wind blew on his face and then he looked at me and smiled.

When I woke up, I had a feeling that something was wrong and I was right when I read the text message from Wellington Lim that Amo had passed away.

It was probably his way of saying goodbye.

Thank you for all that you've done and farewell.