FVR daughter Jo Ramos dies of cancer, 54
(UPDATE 2) Josephine "Jo" Ramos, second daughter of former president Fidel V. Ramos, succumbed to lung cancer at The Medical City in Pasig at 1:10 a.m. on Monday, June 27. She was 54.
Jo, who is also a drummer-percussionist and singer has a son, Sergio, 17, by former husband Lloyd Samartino.
Jo was noted for her live performances as back-up singer to Gary Valenciano and drummer of Mon Faustino's Powerplay Band.
Friends remember how Jo was "low key."
Jo's father, former president Fidel V. Ramos, said in an interview aired on DZBB that he didn't learn about his daughter's illness until five weeks before her death.
A staff member of her father said on condition of anonymity that Jo underwent chemotherapy and was hospitalized last September but never let the family know that she was seriously ill.
The family only learned about her condition a week before her death. The low-key Jo also shunned pictorials.
Stage actor and singer Carlo Orosa, who worked with Jo when she was with Powerplay Band, agreed.
“She always opted to keep a low profile,” he recalls. “Hindi siya mayabang kahit president ang tatay niya. She lived a private life. “
Carlo also saw how Jo was a devoted mother. Her son, Sergio used to frequent the Trumpets Playshop summer workshop. Carlo is founding member, board member and External VP of Trumpets, an artist development initiative.
President Noynoy Aquino already sent his condolences to the Ramos family.
Her body lies at La Funeraria Paz, Sucat, Paranaque. Interment will be on Friday, July 1, at Manila Memorial Park, Sucat, Paranaque.
The Ramos family sent Yahoo! OMG! Philippines a statement on Jo's passing which read:
"Josephine Martinez Ramos, second of five daughters of former President Fidel V. Ramos and former First Lady Amelita "Ming" Ramos, passed away early this morning June 27, 2011 (Monday) at The Medical City, a victim of lung cancer.
"Fondly known as 'Jo' and a musical artist who trained as a teenager under Prof. Carmencita Guanzon-Arambulo, founder of the Greenhills Music Studio, she performed on the Yamaha organ at the Cultural Center of the Philippines in concert with budding talents of the likes of Marites Salientes, Louie Ocampo, and Rowena Arrieta....Her love for music, the arts and sports, together with staying low-profile, Jo has always claimed, 'was inherited from her mother'.
"A product of the International School of Manila as a scholar, Jo also attended the UP College of Fine Arts and various dance and music workshops in the US. As part of an athletic family, Jo was a champion water-skier and was a member of the Philippine Ladies National Water-Skiing Team that won medals in SEA Games competition under the captaincy of Maite Villareal in the late 1970s.
"Jo was born on January 18, 1957 at the Mary Johnston Hospital in Tondo. As a single parent, she is survived by her 17-year-old son Sergio, a high school senior who is studying music, drama, and dance."
