Cristino Baliwag Sr. & Fresca Naval Enriquez: My Great-Grandparents

I got connected to a Baliwag cousin on Facebook recently.

Jean Jimeno Villanueva and I are second cousins.  Our maternal grandmothers, Amparo and Consuelo, were Baliwag sisters.  Their parents, our great-grandparents pictured above, were Cristino Baliwag Sr. and Frisca Naval Enriquez.

The funny thing was that I was already connected to Jean's mom, auntie Rory Villanueva, on Facebook.  She had added me a couple of years ago, but we had never chatted.

To make it easier to connect to the Baliwag clan, I created a Facebook group of course since none existed.  It gets tricky when you go into the third and fourth generations down a family tree, and there are so many surnames to know.

Uncle Renato Baliwag Jimeno Sr. added me on Facebook in July 2019.  Here's the family tree he sent me last year in 2020

The Baliwag Clan:

Cristino Baliwag Sr. married Fresca Naval Enriquez.  They had nine children.

1. Jose Baliwag married Ellen Baliwag.
2. Pilar Baliwag married Feling Dudley.
3. Amparo Baliwag married Perfecto Reyes.  (This is my branch.)
4. Consuelo Baliwag married Mario Jimeno.
5. Felix Baliwag married Fe Enverga.
6. Salvador Baliwag married Precilla Roll.
7. Ben Baliwag married Joling Malaloan.
8. Rosario Baliwag married Bert Arandallo.
9. Cristino Baliwag Jr. 

Lola Amparo and Lolo Pecto had eight children.  My mom Lualhati, or Nati, is the eldest of eight.  I am the eldest of two.  My sister was named after her two grandmothers, Amparo and Rosita.  Her full name is Amparo Rose Joy.

The Baliwags are from Mambulao in Camarines Norte. 

My mom has told fond stories of her happy childhood there.  I have vivid memories of playing in the water there.  I'll have to find those old photos.  They were even in color!

Mambulao is now known as Jose Panganiban.  

I left the Philippines in August 1976 so I have to refer to Wikipedia:

Jose Panganiban, officially the Municipality of Jose Panganiban, is a 2nd class municipality in the province of Camarines Norte, Philippines. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 59,639 people. The municipality was formerly known as Mambulao, a word taken from “mambulawan, ” meaning bountiful in gold.

Who was José María Panganiban? 

Philippine Revolution. Jose Ma. Panganiban y Enverga (February 1, 1863 – August 19, 1890) was a Filipino propagandist, linguist, and essayist. He is one of the main writers and contributors for La Solidaridad, writing under the pen names "Jomapa" and "J.M.P." 

If you're a Baliwag relative, please feel free to add me on Facebook.  But I prefer you keep in touch with me here on my blog PinoyBuilt.com instead of Facebook.  Salamat.