MABALACAT CITY — Twenty six years after his passing, the legacy of the late Anthony Dee continues to resonate, remembered not only for his civic leadership and community service, but also for a remarkable act of kindness during one of the nation’s darkest hours.
Through an FB post, Department of Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Elmer Cato recalls Dee’s compassion while covering the actual eruptive stage of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991.
“Only few know that at the height of the eruption of Mount Pinatubo, Anthony opened the doors of his telephone company to two strangers coated in volcanic ash—Elmer Cato and Chandler Ramas,” he wrote.
During those times, news stories written by reporters had to be called in to their desks through then long-distance telephone calls. No smart cellphones existed back then.
Business Turned Into Friendship
At the peak of the disaster, Anthony welcomed Cato with fellow reporter from Philippine Daily Globe Ramas into his telephone company, Datelcom, in Angeles City.
With no operators on duty, Anthony personally connected their urgent call to their editorial desk in Manila to file reports on the cataclysm.
Afterward, despite the chaos outside, he invited the exhausted and hungry reporters to stay for dinner. Anthony then stayed on as friends to Cato and other local media practitioners.
Beyond this historic encounter, Anthony was widely known as a generous and dedicated local figure. A true Boy Scout leader at heart, he was always ready to lend a helping hand to those in need and is fondly remembered by residents for establishing Mabalacat’s local volunteer fire brigade.
Many in the community also believe that Anthony’s impact could have reached an even greater scale had he been permitted to assume the mayoral seat he rightfully won.
Like Father, Like Son
Today, Anthony’s spirit of service lives on through his son, Timothy Dee. Following in his father’s footsteps, Timothy serves as both the leader of the local fire brigade and an elected member of the Sangguniang Bayan of Mabalacat.
Timothy’s unwavering commitment to public safety was recently put on full display. Despite recovering from an eye procedure that should have kept him resting at home, Timothy stepped up to do exactly what his father would have done: he rushed to the front lines to help extinguish the devastating fire that recently gutted the Angeles City Public Market.
Timothy, despite his Parkinsons Disease, has led their private company’s fire brigade to many responses to fire calls. He also gives out free medicines and medical equipment to indigents.
Twenty-six years later, Anthony Dee’s profound ethos of courage, community, and unconditional service remains alive and well in the heart of Mabalacat.
The post Scribe-turned-diplomat remembers Anthony Dee, sees son in his mold in service first appeared on Pampanga News Now.