Jennylyn Mercado's aunt and adoptive mother, Mrs. Lydia Mercado, still sadly thinks about what her late husband, Mr. Roger Mercado, had to go through while fighting diabetes. Mang Roger, 69, died last August 19, three days after Jennylyn gave birth to her son by ex-boyfriend Patrick Garcia.
"Noong unang naputol ang paa ni Roger, e, August," Mommy Lydia related to Startalk. "Pangalawang beses na inatake siya, e, August. Pangatlong putol, e, August din. Ngayon, August na naman."
"Parang yun lang ang hinintay niya [Roger], e," Mommy Lydia said, referring to Jennlyn's healthy baby delivery. "Kasi 19 lumabas [ng hospital] si Jen, 19 namatay si Roger. Nineteen ng umaga, ng 12. Inaantay niya na ‘yon kasi nag-aabang na siya sa bintana [ng bahay], nakaupo siya sa wheelchair niya. Sabi ko, ‘Roger, dito na apo mo.' Tumawa siya."
Mommy Lydia and Roger Mercado are Jennylyn's aunt and uncle who became surrogate parents to the first StarStruck Ultimate Female Survivor after her real parents abandoned her. According to Mommy Lydia, Jennylyn was able to talk to her uncle before he passed on.
"Parang first time na mag-usap ang mag-ama nang matagal," Mommy Lydia narrated. "'Tapos noong lumabas si Jen, sabi niya, ‘Mama, hindi ko na maintindihan ang sinasabi ni Papa. Wala akong naintindihan.' Pero nakipag-usap siya. Hindi na kasi siya [Mang Roger] marunong magsalita. Nabulol na."
After talking to his daughter and seeing his newborn grandson, Mang Roger showed signs of weakness. It was in the hospital that he expired.
"Ayoko sana tawagin si Jen," Lydia related. "Pero tumawag si Jen at tinanong niya na, ‘Kamusta na si Papa?' Sabi ko na wala na si Papa."
What did Jennylyn feel when she found out about her adoptive father's passing?
"Namugto-mugto ang mata ni Jen," said Mommy Lydia. "Wala na siyang mata sa kaiiyak. Sabi lang niya na, ‘Mama, hindi ko man lang nakita si Papa na umalis.'"
Jennylyn attended her adoptive father's wake last August 22. She gave no interviews, however, to the press present there.
Mommy Lydia, who thinks about what happened during those days of birth and death, looks at it in a positive way. She said, "Ang akin lang, isa ang nawala, may ipinalit na blessing. Yun lang naman ang sa akin. Blessing ang ipinalit sa akin. Kumbaga, lalaki din." Mommy Lydia was referring to the birth of Jennylyn's son, of course.