Leticia Feliciano Mateo

Leticia Feliciano Mateo
(Sept. 15, 1933-Aug. 7, 2025)

“You are the angel glow, that lights a star”

Leticia Feliciano Mateo, fondly called Lety, lived up to the true meaning of being an “angel glow, that lights a star.” With eleven siblings, she lighted them with a deep faith on bended knees to help them in the most heartfelt way – relentless, loving and determined. She was the middle child, embraced her parents with limited means, gifted with wisdom of goodness. With a popular persona and referred to by some people as one of the most beautiful girls in town, Lety brought that same persona from childhood to adulthood, extending that shining star to the lives of those she touched, with joy and generosity.

Lety and her lawyer husband Monico established an insurance and travel agency in Manila, at a time when the U.S. opened the gates for professionals to migrate and practice their professions. By word of mouth, the travel agency had become a stepping stone for hundreds of professionals from her hometown to migrate, at a time when U.S. citizens were also able to petition their families.

Lety and Mon came to visit in San Francisco in the mid-60s, became acquainted with former townmates who came to the U.S. in the 1920s, the ‘old timers’  who answered the call from the U.S. during the agricultural revolution – to work in the farmlands to plant, harvest and process; some joined the military, some in ships. These ‘old timers’ echoed their homesickness, need to reconnect, find love, get married and have families of their own in their adopted land, realized with Lety’s assistance.

In the early seventies, with their son William in tow, they settled in the San Francisco Bay Area. Mon worked for the Superior Court in San Francisco, while Lety worked with Saks Fifth Avenue, working there for 15 years. She retired and from there worked for Macy’s Dept. Store for 10 years as a sales associate, where for three years in a row she had the highest sales and was awarded the most coveted “Star Academy Award” at an event held in the company’s Los Angeles location. She continued the same energy and enthusiasm while working at Nordstrom’s for 10 years, where she finally retired her designer clothes, shoes and purses to focus on serving the community.

Lety and Mon have been active parishioners of the Church of the Epiphany in San Francisco for almost 50 years. From a distance, connection with their hometown church, Parish of San Geronimo in Morong, Rizal, Philippines, serving as hermano and hermana of San Geronimo in 1995, assuming the same role at the unique but traditional Cordero in 1997. Lety mobilized her experience as a travel agent to answer the call from Philippine Tourism to invite citizens living abroad to visit the Philippines in year 2000.  With grit and enthusiasm, Lety, answered the call – the town of Morong had the most Balikbayans visiting. For bringing the honor to her hometown, the Philippine Dept. of Tourism recognized Lety and awarded the Philippine “Balikbayani Award” with prizes of cash, house and lot. Both cash and proceeds from the house and lot, were donated to the Morong Balikbayan Association for the completion of the Glorietta Project.

In everything, and everywhere, the “angel that glows, that lights a star” guided Lety in bringing love to her Mayberry that will forever shine. ●                                                            
                                                                                  

– Inspired by Lety and Mon Mateo’s theme song, “All the Things You Are,” by Frank Sinatra.