The loving family of Francisco Daria regrets to announce his passing on Friday, October 11, 2013, in Beaumont, Texas. It was on his ninety-second birthday that he departed for his eternal rest with the Lord. He was born on October 11, 1921, in Dingle, Iloilo Province, in the Philippines.

The fourth of six children born to Marcos and Bibiana Daria, he learned from his beloved parents the values of faith, loyalty, and service. At the age of twenty, ten days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Francisco joined the Filipino forces preparing to resist the expected Japanese land invasion of the Philippines. He remained on active duty as part of the Filipino guerilla forces during the Japanese occupation, twice narrowly escaping capture by the Japanese. After the war he reenlisted under American command in 1946 and served as part of the American force occupying Japan, reaching the rank of sergeant and receiving the World War II Victory Medal and Army of Occupation Medal for his service. Francisco was also awarded the Philippine Independence Medal, Philippine Defense Medal, the Asia Pacific Campaign Medal, and the Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation Badge. After obtaining his honorable discharge from the United States Army in 1949, Francisco attended the University of San Agustin in Iloilo City, Philippines, and received his Bachelor of Science degree in Commerce in 1953.

The next year he married Josefina Ramirez of Hinoba-An, province of Negros Occidental, Philippines. Four children were born in the first nine years of their marriage.  He took great pleasure in the management of his property and was the first landed proprietor in the Bacuyangan region to use irrigation and advanced farm equipment in rice production, and to produce certified rice seeds. While immersed in the management and expansion of his property, Francisco was also a First Lieutenant in the Reserves of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, while assuring his children’s education. In 1987, he moved to the United States, becoming a naturalized United States citizen in 1992 and residing for over twenty years in Houston, Texas. He worked at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts, participated actively in the community affairs in southwest Houston, and was a devoted member of Notre Dame Catholic Church, Boone Road, Houston.

He is survived by a very loving and grateful family: by his wife, Josefina; children, Dolly, Marina, Arthur and his wife, Mercy, Lina and her husband, Robert, and Maricor (whom he helped raise); his grandchildren, Chris, Kim, Lauren, Katrina, Isa, and Justine; his sister, Rosita; and a very large extended family of cousins, nieces, and nephews in the Philippines and the United States, and by countless friends who have treasured his kindness, resourcefulness, enthusiasm for life, and strength of character.

He truly fulfilled his life’s vocation.

A funeral service for Mr. Daria will be 5:00 p.m., with a gathering of his family and friends to follow, Saturday, October 19, 2013, at Broussard’s, 1605 North Major Drive, Beaumont. A family committal will be at Houston National Cemetery, Houston, at a later date.