Brigida (Bridget) Fauntleroy left Earth for Heaven on March 13, 2024. All people die, but not all people live. Bridget lived!

She was born on February 1, 1942 to Fermin and Emilia Santiago in Bunsuran, Pandi, Bulacan on the island of Manila in the Philippines.

After graduating from Holy Angels' Academy in 1958, she went on to earn her pharmacy degree from the University of Santo Tomas in Manila in 1962.

After working in Manila for several years, she took advantage of a program bringing medical professionals to the USA and flew to New York City in 1972.

She started working in the pharmacy at Christ Hospital in Jersey City, New Jersey where she impressed the managing pharmacist with her notorious organization skills and attention to detail.

At the pharmacy, she worked with her future husband, (James) Monroe Fauntleroy, marrying on July 24, 1975. They were the owners and operators of the Fauntleroy Prescription Pharmacy in Jersey City for several years.They provided caring prescription services to their community, including door-to-door delivery, an innovative offering for the time. In 1976, Bridget became a U.S. citizen.

After she and Monroe sold their pharmacy, Bridget dedicated her time to raising their four children: Jan Monet, Joy Melea, Joel Matthan and Jean Marie in Englewood, New Jersey and Valrico, Florida. Bridget demonstrated incredible grace and forgiveness in the face of the bigotry aimed at her, her husband and her family. Bridget taught her kids about the beauty of their family and background, ensuring they learned about Filipino culture: the food, customs and dances. She cared just as much about their understanding of Black culture, becoming an avid Fauntleroy/Brown family historian, always emphasizing the importance of  maintaining connections with family and remembering their struggles and perseverance.

Bridget fostered a deep love for language, music, science, and learning overall. She took her children for weekly trips to the library and filled her home with fiction, poetry, science, social studies and reference books, and periodicals such as the Readers' Digest, Travel and Leisure, Black Enterprise, National Geographic, New York Times, Wall Street Journal and more.  She encouraged her kids to read (sometimes with money), and later quizzed them on the contents, including dictionary entries. Eventually, it became clear she was trying to develop a slate of worthy Scrabble opponents, though time would prove that she was always the best. In fact, she was the best at any word or knowledge-related game: Scrabble, crossword puzzles, word searches, Jeopardy. (Her kids would note she had the "unfair advantage" of learning English in the Philippines, where they'd use better words like "retrieve" and "gallivanting" instead of "get" and "running around".)

Even if the game was a little less cerebral, she was up for it. This includes the time she participated in a local radio station's version of the game show "Supermarket Sweep," where she won by running through a Food Lion grocery store, grabbing massive blocks of cheese, steaks, chocolate and other items on her strategic game plan. (Afterward, she, of course, had a plan for systematically storing what her family could use and sharing with her friends and neighbors in Lithia Ridge.)

In Florida, Bridget served 19 years as a dedicated Hillsborough County Public Schools substitute teacher. She wanted to help everyone in their life to live up to their potential, and this included her students. Whether she was with a class for a few days or several months, she was there to help them be their best. "Fauntleroy" was tough for some kids to pronounce, so "Mrs. F" became her stage name at school. She'd often hear "Mrs. F! Mrs. F!" ringing through the aisles of stores around town, as her students realized she was a real human that bought and ate food, and not just the substitute teacher who actually expected them to do work.

She loved to share her time to help others. Whether volunteering through her church, or as part of programs to help those in need, Bridget had an incredibly giving spirit fueling her action, and she encouraged her family to do the same.

Bridget traveled the world with her husband and family. From summers in the "cottage country" region of Canada, trips to the Caribbean, Japan, across Europe, foreign missions in West Africa, "home" (the Philippines), over 45 of the United States, many National Parks, and countless visits to Disney World…Bridget shared what she saw and learned with others. A voracious journaler, she documented the sights, sounds, tastes and smells from her experiences,  using her notes as a springboard for more research when she returned home.

Her journaling extended to all things, not just travel. She carefully crafted books of notes and magazine/newspaper clippings, including photos, recipes, lifehacks, jokes and opinions. Her scrapbooks were essentially the physical embodiment of today's social media.

She loved the Lord and took notes on every sermon she heard. Some of her favorite Bible verses were: Galatians 2:20, 2 Kings 19:30, and Romans 8:18. Her favorites hymns were: Blessed Assurance, Great is Thy Faithfulness, Amazing Grace, and Beulah Land. She wanted to be remembered as a Sunday School teacher who touched the lives of little ones. For her, the church was a source of encouragement for her and her family.

The last few years of her life here on earth were spent close to her grandchildren in Clermont, FL. She enjoyed helping the kids with their reading and arithmetic, through flashcards and games she made herself. She and the children also had fun learning extra history and geography while watching Antiques Roadshow. On occasion, Bridget even accompanied the grandkids on trips to the various Walt Disney parks.

It's not just a stereotype: Filipinos are great singers, and Bridget was no exception. She had a beautiful voice, loved to sing, and those around her loved to hear it. She and Monroe made sure their home was full of laughter and music, and encouraged their children to do the same.

She loved to tell the story of her time singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" in a competition as a young girl. She'd demonstrate her beautiful phrasing of the lyrics, "Birds fly over the rainbow. Why, then, oh why can't I?"

We were all blessed to spend time with her here, but she's finally over the rainbow now.

Brigida was predeceased by her parents, Amilia and Fermin; her brothers: Pablo and Jorge; and her husband, Monroe. She is survived by her children: Jan Monet (Mark), Joy, Joel (Connie), Jean (John); stepson Jeffree (Karen); grandchildren: Jackson, Corinne, Grant, Madelyn, and Charlotte; her siblings: Ventura, Pedrito, Rorie (Peter), and Cesar ; her niece and family: Dodette (Jojo) and children: Jodette, Jordan, and Jade; and countless relatives and loved ones in the Philippines.

Services will be held at Creekside Church, 311 Newberger Road Lutz, Florida 33549 on Friday, April 5, from 3-5pm.  In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.