Davide, known by ordinary folks as ‘Noy Undo’, was 101 years old when he passed away June 17, on the eve of Father’s Day in his home in Sitio Waling Waling, Barangay Capitol Site, here.

Former Chief Justice Hilario Davide Jr. was not in Cebu when his father passed away. But when President Arroyo called to express her condolences, the former chief justice immediately took the early morning flight to Cebu on Sunday to be with the family.

"He had no serious ailment. It was purely of old age," said grandson Cebu City Councilor Hilario Davide III.

In the last two years of his life, Hilario Sr. had been in and out of the hospital and was very weak. Last May, he was confined in the intensive care unit for two weeks and was later transferred to a room where he stayed for a few days. He was brought home last week, his breathing being aided by an oxygen tank until he passed away last Saturday.

During the five-day wake, Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban, Supreme Court administrator Christopher Lock, Secretary Cerge Remonde, some justices and judges, and other government officials came to pay their respects to the great man who juggled work and family time, instilling the virtue of knowledge and importance of education in his seven children.

Born to a poor family of farmers in Barangay Colawin, a mountain barangay in Argao some 66 kilometers south of Cebu City, Hilario Sr. was a teacher at the Talaga Elementary School in Argao in the 1920s when he met his future wife Josefa, also a teacher in the same school.

Noy Undo was later appointed as district school supervisor. One of his achievements during his stint was the construction of primary schools in the municipality.

He retired in 1969 as school superintendent in Lapu-Lapu City. Shortly after, he founded the Colawin Education Foundation which he headed until 1990.

‘’He constantly reminded us about how important our work is in providing quality education to our students," said Yolanda, a public school teacher in Lapu-Lapu City.

Noy Undo’s giving importance to education is mirrored in the accomplishments of his children. Eldest son Jose was an engineer and a lawyer who served as municipal councilor in Argao.

Jorge was a retired soil scientist and was connected with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Eldest daughter Paz is a retired public school teacher, while Oscar is a doctor of medicine. Romulo is a doctor of plant pathology in the University of the Philippines in Los Baños, while youngest child Lina is teaching at a university in Illinois.

Hilario Jr., became chief justice and is now the Philippine Ambassador to the United Nations.