Another person that I knew from the school days has passed away.
This time, it's Rowena Raquel who I knew from Lanakila Elementary School. I knew her mostly because I used to hang out with her brother Oscar. Rowena was one grade level ahead of us. Even though my interactions with her were limited, she was always nice to me. I even remembered a few conversations I had with her and Oscar as we were walking home from middle school.
As an adult, she had a rewarding career as a teacher at Waipahu Elementary School. She loved to mention on Facebook about her former students still came to visit her even as they moved on away from elementary to middle & high school. She was definitely an inspiration to her students. Even her colleagues felt inspired as they wrote on Facebook about how she helped them adjust to working at the school.
Sadly, Rowena spent the last few years dealing with colon cancer. She passed away earlier this month at the age of 42.
As I mentioned about her death on Facebook, some of our former classmates expressed their love & support. While many talk negatively about Facebook, I'll say that the most positive thing about Facebook is that it brings people together in times like these to reunite (virtually) to pay respects to loved ones that passed. Many of us who got distanced from each other due to time & life circumstances come together as one to express our condolences and memories.
