Amado C. Sanchez

Amado Cruz Sanchez, MD was born in Pilar, Bataan, Philippines on August 20, 1928. He lost his father at the age of 8, which greatly affected him for the rest of his life. Along with his only sibling, his younger brother, Virgilio, he was raised by his mother who encouraged him to be a physician. After completing medical school, he proudly served in the Philippine Navy for ten years, attaining the rank of Captain before resigning his commission. Alongside his wife Aurelina, and their two children at the time, he immigrated to Chicago in 1973, later becoming a proud American citizen.

He was a devoted family man making many sacrifices while caring for his wife and three children. He enjoyed preparing meals. His specialties were fried rice and fruit salad. Both devout Catholics, he and Aurelina worked hard to send their children to Catholic schools. Their support and guidance positioned their children for success in life. Amado instilled in his children the importance of duty and service. His first born, Michael, served in the US Air Force before finishing his undergraduate studies, while his daughter, Venecia, became an RN.

One of his favorite pastimes was watching movies, and he passed on that passion to all his children.He would take them to see Bruce Lee movies in downtown Chicago. His favorite genre by far were Westerns and he could recite lines from his favorite John Wayne and Clint Eastwood films.

Amado loved to travel. While spending most of his later years confined to living with his children in their various locations, he often reminisced with his son Michael about the times when they traveled together through the years. In addition to the last time Amado visited the Philippines in 2009, he fondly recalled when they had visited the Statue of Liberty and the Rocky Mountains, to name a few. Amado shared that his favorite trip of all was when he, Aurelina and Michael traveled to Paris and London together. Even as a young man in the Philippines, he dreamed of visiting Paris and used to tell Michael often in Tagalog, “Walang kaparis sa Paris,” which means, “Nothing compares to Paris.”

He loved music and enjoyed singing to his favorite Frank Sinatra, Engelbert Humperdinck, Neil Diamond, and Kenny Rogers tunes. In his final years, listening to music on his Amazon Echo gave him much comfort, especially after Aurelina had passed away in 2013. He enjoyed songs that brought back rich memories of his time with his beloved wife and their undying love.

Amado was a foodie. He loved Filipino, Chinese, and Thai food. He enjoyed going to buffets to stretch his dollars and maximize the food options, yet he surprisingly always maintained a slim figure.

His faith was important to him. He religiously attended mass until his later years when he would watch Sunday Mass on television. He believed in the power of prayer, and never stopped praying for his loved ones’ happiness and success. He especially enjoyed the weekly prayer sessions with his stepdaughter Ivy, where they spent time connecting with God and getting their share of spiritual nourishment.

After his wife passed, Amado would visit the home of his youngest son, Stephen, his wife, Kay, and their dog Coco from 2013 to 2022, all who lived in Southern California and later North Texas during that time. Even through his late 80s, he was still cruising around the neighborhood with his walker and frequenting his favorite local eateries. Though his health began to fail him in his later years, his memory remained strong when it came to his loved ones’ birthdays. His son Stephen’s proudest moments in life were caring for his dad during this time and helping him survive the early years of COVID and even getting him through the Deep Texas Freeze of 2021.

He was also grateful for his time spent in Northern California with Michael, his wife Minta and his twin granddaughters, Nadia and Sloane. During these visits, he enjoyed watching movies with the girls, going to restaurants, and taking the occasional weekend road trip to Monterey or Napa. Amado loved to tell stories! He charmed his caregivers (and us) with his humor, stories of his time as a doctor in the military, and reflected on childhood memories of his hometown, San Miguel, Bulacan.

Amado lived most of the last 25 years of his life with his daughter Venecia and later her husband Phil and their two children who cared for him as his health and vision deteriorated further. He was happy being around his oldest granddaughter Clarissa his only grandson, Mikey, with whom he shared a special bond.

Amado passed peacefully on August 23, 2024, just 3 days after reaching his 96th birthday. Services will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the National Council on Severe Autism.