Rodolfo “Bebot” Gallardo Abalahin was born on April 10, 1953 in the town of Camiling, located in the province of Tarlac in the Philippines. The second son of Asterio and Marina Abalahin, he spent the first 9 years of his life living provincially, collecting water from a pump, the chickens clucking about their henhouse, a goat tied to a coconut tree just a stone’s throw away. It was not until the early 1960s that his family began their move to the United States, finally settling down in Lakewood, Washington in 1962. Those halcyon summers were spent picking bumper crops of cucumbers, strawberries, and blueberries in the fields, shortly before suburban sprawl had yet reached those corners of the state. When he had enough coins collected, he would make his way down to the comics store, buying and delighting in their sci-fi collections, a fascination with machinery blooming in him that would last a lifetime. In 1971, Rodolfo began school at the University of Washington as an incoming engineering student, before dropping out after a year and pursuing his father’s footsteps in the military, where he joined the Air Force as a metrologist, calibrating and surveying aircraft and other machine parts. It was through his service that he got a chance to explore the world, traveling to Iceland, South Korea, all over the United States, before finally meeting his then future wife Nancy Sarmiento Macale at Clark Air Force Base. He courted her steadfastly, taking her on lunchtime pancit dates, afternoon jogs, and doing his best to win the approval of her stern father. Though quiet and serious seeming himself, he proved to have a penchant for teasing, and was deemed a kind and hardworking man by his dear wife. As the 90s rolled around, Rudy retired from the Air Force, taking on a few private sector jobs before once again serving the United States as a member of the Postal Service. There he worked graveyard shift as a postal technician for over 20 years before retiring in 2020. If you got mail, he was the reason it got to you on time, for he was the one working on the machines that sorted through all the letters and packaging flowing through the Puget Sound area.

He is survived by his wife Nancy, his former wife Genelyn, his daughters Jennifer Nelson (David), Jessica Mercado (Rupert), and Kim Ceccarelli (John), his son Thomas, and eight grandchildren. He also is survived by his brother Oscar, his sisters Virginia Berg and Lamar Haggart, and numerous nieces and nephews. He joins his father Asterio, mother Marina, and brother Angelito in the arms of our Lord, amen.

Rodolfo shall be laid to rest at New Tacoma Cemetery, located at 9212 Chambers Creek Rd, W, Tacoma, WA 98467. Visitation will take place on September 15 from 4-7pm at the main funeral home. The funeral service will take place at the Evergreen Chapel on the cemetery grounds on Friday, September 16 at 1pm followed by a reception at the same chapel. For donations, send to @kceccarelli5 on Venmo. In addition, please let it be known that Rodolfo requested everyone to wear white or bright colors at his funeral, so live it up a little! Thank you!

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