October 16 2019: CANO, Hilda Romillo

 

Hilda Romillo Cano (Age 93)

 

On Sunday, October 13, 2019, of Potomac, MD.  Beloved wife of the late Benito Angel Cano; loving mother of Maria Lourdes (John) Corso.  Grandmother of Mary Bridget Rivers (William Rivers) and Bernadette Jane Corso. Great Grandmother of William Joseph Rivers IV. Sister of the late Gonzalo Romillo, Hilda Abascal, and Olga Gonzalez.  Aunt of Marilda Abascal-Colonna and Lourdes Abascal Leyva. Relatives and friends may call at  Collins Funeral Home, 500 University Boulevard West, Silver Spring, MD, (Valet Parking), Thursday, October 17, 2019, from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM. Requiem Mass in the Extraordinary Form at St. John the Evangelist Historic Church, 9700 Rosensteel Avenue, Silver Spring, MD, on Friday, October 18, 2019 at 11:00 AM.  Interment  Gate of Heaven Cemetery.

My mother always said, “it’s not worth it.  Love one another.”  Love, faith, service, and generosity are the virtues by which my mother lived her life.  She was born in Cuba, of parents who migrated from Spain.  She had a beautiful life there and loved Cuba very much.  She attended Our Lady of Lourdes School, her proud Alma Mater, where she learned the crafts of embroidery, sewing, and other homemaking skills.  Unfortunately, she was exiled from Cuba by the communist regime of Fidel Castro with my father Benito and me.  She had a few good years after that in Spain, but she longed to join her sister Chiqui and her husband David in the United States.  We packed our bags and came to Union City, New Jersey, where we applied for and obtained U.S. citizenship.  We were in a one bedroom apartment, and soon both Hilda and Benito began working, my mother in a garment factory and my father at the Hilton Hotel in New York City.  Hilda was noticed by the factory owner for her talent, and he encouraged her to start her own business.  She designed clothes and performed impeccable tailoring services for a broad clientele.  Her constant in the midst of all these changes was her steadfast faith, for which I am the grateful benefactor.  We prayed together every night, including the Rosary and to various patron saints to which she was devoted.  Each saint had a holy card, which she neatly tucked into her missal and prayed every prayer on the back of each card.  She was consistent with her prayer life and attended to the small details, things like the sacramentals that filled our house and the doting care she provided to her entire family, especially my father in his twilight years.  She had an amazing love for her twin granddaughters.  Nothing would stop her from providing everything from sharing even her finest dresses and jewelry for a dress-up playtime in her closet to lavishing them with whatever treats they wanted from the grocery store like a game show shopping spree.  She looked for the best in other people.   Her hospitality had no limits.  Noone ever had to make an appointment to see her and she always had time for everyone.  She anticipated every visitor, ensuring each guest’s favorite foods were on the table.  In imitation of Christ she brought the joy of God to others, nurturing and inviting with food, faith, and love.  In her life she knew great suffering, leaving her homeland as a young woman and leaving her home to go to a nursing home in her final years.  She knew where her true home was and in this way taught all of us a great lesson.  Her faith carried her with grace through all of her trials.  It was a privilege to care for my mother while she was institutionalized.  She gave me the gift of her memories of her youth and Cuba.  I recall in particular one Christmas a video interview she recorded and which we still play and treasure.  With tender forethought, she told us that when she was no longer on this Earth, she would be looking down from Heaven through a little opening in the sky.  This was her way of assuring us that she would be our intercessor and remain connected to her family even in eternity.  Mamita, tu siempres seras mi guia y mi fuerza.  Mommy, you will always be my guide and my strength.