Rigoberto Cloa Mijos Sr.

Rigoberto Cloa Mijos was born on January 4th 1950 in Panglao, Philippines to Antonio & Primitiva Mijos.  He was the second born of 13 children, which made him head strong & always responsible to care for his family.  He started his education at Panglao Elementary, excelling in his studies and graduated first of his class at Saga High School.  Rigo always will be remembered to be a hardworking man and one with many tools & trades.  He was a shoe shine boy in H.S. and after graduation decided to move to the bustling city of Manila.  This is where he expanded his many talents, working as a time keeper, liaison officer, & time entry personnel to name a few.  Manila is where he reconnected with his wife, Fidela after 7 years of separation.  Their paths first crossed at a fiesta on Balicasag Island in 1966 when he was just a boy at 16 & Fidela at 13.  In Manila, their love for each other blossomed into a true love story.  Their first son, Rigoberto Mijos Jr., was born in 1976, a miracle baby born premature at 7 months.  Rigo was determined to protect his baby and even made a makeshift incubator to ensure his survival. At this moment, Rigo & Fidela realized that they could conquer any hurdle thrown at them.  On February 20th 1978, they vowed their commitment to one another in front of many family & friends.    Rigo continued to work hard & provide for his family which would eventually turn from 3 to 7.  His family always gave him the strength and motivation to keep moving, to never fail them.  In 1990, Rigo found an opportunity to come to the United States after finding out his father was born in Hawaii.  He needed his children to have a brighter future & be filled with numerous opportunities. This drove him to work tirelessly & relentlessly to make this happen. In 1991, Rigo left the only home he knew & relocated to unknown territory.  He arrived in L.A. by himself, made sure that he created a new & stable home for his family. In 1994, Fidela & all the children followed suit.  This is when the Mijos family made their mark in this new country.  Rigo found fortune again when he got a job with Mizuno and this is when is career began, he remained with the company until retirement after 23 years. The company expanded to GA & Rigo made the decision to move again.  Fidela flew with Leandro & Ana and the rest of the family loaded up in a green Ford Windstar in the blistering heat & travelled cross country.  Throughout all this, Rigo never faltered & made sure his family was thriving.  He never showed any signs of weakness & was a pillar of strength for the whole family.  These traits are stamped in all his children, he as they all say is their Superhero.  They bought a home in Norcross, GA where two more children came along.  Rigo was always at his happiest, when he was surrounded by his wife & children.  His nine children Ricky, Marco, Maria, Blas, Danilo, Ana, Leandro, Robert & Lourdes always kept him going.  If anyone were to come to their home, they will be welcomed with tons of Mama’s cooking, laughter, and tons of love.  This is all Rigo needed to fill his heart, he was a simple man & never asked for anything more but the health & wellbeing of his family.  In 2008, a devastating blow hit the family, Rigo was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemina.  The whole family was terribly afraid & unsure of his fate.  After intense chemo treatment, medications, searching for a donor, a miracle happened in 2010.  A bone marrow match from a stranger living in California.  Rigo had another chance at life and declared cancer free on 12/19/2010.  From this trial, Rigo fully understood how precious life was & thanked God every day for allowing him more time to spend with his loved ones.  He made sure he could fulfill his own dream of building a house in the Philippines after retirement.  He visited his home several times and yet never hesitated to contact his children to ensure that all was okay & safe.  He loved singing karaoke, playing majong, chess, Scrabble, posting pictures & selfies on FB, taking long walks everywhere with Mama, eating his favorite foods (siningang, pho, fish), and most of all being around his loved ones.  Unfortunately, Rigo fell ill once again, his body could not fight the cancer anymore.  Rigo never showed signs of fear, even in his most fragile state. He enjoyed the last of his days surrounded by Fidela, children & grandkids.  Those who had the pleasure of crossing Rigo’s path were forever imprinted by the man he was.  No one will ever forget your witty smile, your corny jokes, hearing you say “gago & buing”, all the fond memories burned into our hearts. You’ve shimmered so much light in everyone’s lives and will remain to help guide us all during our darkest days.  God has gained another angel in Heaven, we were so lucky to have known you here on Earth.   Rigoberto Mijos is survived by his wife Fidela, children (Rigoberto Jr, Marco, Maria, Blas, Ana, Leandro, Danilo, Robert & Lourdes), 13 grandchildren & 11 siblings. Arrangements by Byrd & Flanigan Crematory and Funeral Service Lawrenceville, GA. (770)962-2200 ByrdandFlanigan.com