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PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY April 1 - 15, 2019
“RONNIE NATHANIELSZ: MY REFLECTIONS ON 50 YEARS IN THE PHILIPPINES”
RONNIE NATHANIELSZ’ GIFT TO FILIPINOS
On November 3, 2016, Ronnie
celebrated his 81st birthday. No one
knew it would be his last. He was on
the way to cover the Pacquiao-Vargas
fight in Las Vegas, but he never
made it ringside. Two years later, we
are releasing his memoir, Ronnie
Nathanielsz: My Reflections on 50
Years in the Philippines. He wasn’t a
Filipino by blood but he was definitely
a Filipino by heart. This is his gift to
the country he called home and to
the people who accepted him as their
own.
In his article, “One Year
with Filipinos” published on The
Philippines Herald Magazine on
December 28, 1963, he wrote, “This
acceptance then is the culmination of
all the gifts this country has given me.
Now, it is my turn to give. And I will
give gladly.”
After spending more than 50
years of his life in the Philippines,
Ronnie experienced a great deal of
turmoil and triumph in a controversial
and monumental era in Philippine
history. In his book, Ronnie tells
the story behind his love for the
Philippines and what made him stay
after a 1962 vacation. He gives you a
taste of what it was like when he first
started working as a radio announcer
at dzHP in 1963. His colorful career
as a newsman covering Philippine
Politics, Sports, and Entertainment
led him to become Muhammad
Ali’s liaison officer for the “Thrilla in
Manila” in 1975 and later on became
one of the country’s most respected
sports personalities.
With his candid attitude, Ronnie
always spoke for the truth and stood
for integrity. He knew the cost but
never changed his beliefs for anyone
or anything.
Ronnie wrote, “For the past
couple of years, I have mulled over
the idea of writing a book, or more
aptly a chronicle of our past 50 years
in the Philippines, based on my
recollections and reflections on the
events that transpired in a sometimes
troublesome era. The idea was brought
about by the fact that it seemed most
of the stories on the Philippines were
written by the Western press, with their
own agendas in mind and shaped to
confine to their own perception of
Philippine events and the men who
shaped our country’s destiny, right
or wrong...Having been privileged to
be granted Philippine citizenship by
President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos
through Presidential Decree 192
signed in May 1973, we admittedly felt
indebted to Marcos for giving us an
honor we have cherished all our lives.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean
that we condoned wrongdoings
as you will realize later in this book
but it allowed us the opportunity to
put such wrongdoings in a proper
perspective...”
Ronnie arduously worked
writing this book. Staying up all
night hammering his keyboard like
a typewriter, going through his old
scrapbooks and photos to give
everyone a picture of his life, or
more aptly, a piece of his heart.
His oldest son Cliff wrote, “The
unravelling of the events of Ronnie
Nathanielsz’ 81st birthday led us to
publish this memoir that my Dad
had been working on for the past
seven years. My father loved the
Philippines and adored its people.
He was proud to be a Filipino and
never failed to wear the Philippine flag
on his lapel or his shirt collar. For over
half a century, he had known, loved,
and built relationships with some of
the most beloved and sometimes
despised people in Philippine Politics,
Sports, and Entertainment. My Dad
was passionate about this book
because he knew that this would be
the most lasting legacy he could give
his countrymen – his fellow Filipinos.
Ronnie worked on this book until his
death on November 11, 2016. Some
WWW.PHILIPPINEASIANNEWSTODAY.COM
chapters remained unfinished while
others had to be edited and gaps
filled by our family and VRJ Books
Publishing. Nonetheless we worked
hard to preserve his writing, content,
and intent.”
Ronnie’s book will be exclusively
available at National Book Store
and Powerbooks outlets nationwide.
Updates will be posted on the Facebook
pages of Ronnie Nathanielsz (https://
facebook.com/sugarrayronnie) and
VRJ Books (https://facebook.com/
VRJBooks).