Erik Santos breaks down before his mother’s cremation
Erik Santos’ mother’s remains have been cremated.
All those who witnessed it were moved when Erik Santos, weeping, hugged the coffin in which his mother, Angelita Santos, was laid to rest.

Erik’s mother passed away due to lung cancer on November 25, 2022.

Her remains were laid to rest at the Arlington Memorial Chapels on Araneta Avenue, Quezon City. Before her sad farewell, Erik dedicated a song, “Ikaw,” to his mother.

A holy mass was held before the cremation of Erik’s mother’s remains yesterday at 11 a.m., December 1.

The Santos family chose cremation because they will first take the urn containing the deceased’s ashes home so that they can still be together this coming Christmas.

Regine Velasquez, Martin Nievera, Ogie Alcasid, Vina Morales, Yeng Constantino, Angeline Quinto, KZ Tandingan, Darren Espanto, and Christian Bautista are some of Erik’s friends who expressed their condolences and dedicated songs to his late mother.

Philanthropist and Grateful Tuesdays host Pinky Tobiano is one of Erik’s closest friends and considers him like a true brother. “I will take care of him,” Pinky promised Erik’s late mother.

Erik Santos with Pinky Tobiano and Christian Bautista

Even before his mother passed away, Erik was deeply saddened by the illness of one of his inspirations.

At his surprise 40th birthday celebration, which Pinky and her loved ones prepared in October 2022, Erik broke down in tears as he gave a message to his guests.

He said, “I really don’t want to celebrate my birthday because the whole family is going through a lot.

“And I’m broken, we’re so broken, sad, our spirits are very low.

“It’s like you just want your birthday to pass because every time I celebrate my birthday, we’re happy even though we’re not prepared. We wake up at 12 midnight, we sing.

“But this year, it’s very different, so this celebration is so special for me.

“And I will never forget this day that you really planned this special day for me. I feel so loved and I feel so special. Like, do I deserve it?

“Sorry, I really don’t want to make this celebration seem sad because our spirits are really low, but because of you guys, at least our family’s sadness has been alleviated.

“I’m sorry because we are all, our spirits are very low, we are crying.

“Every day, we break down. We don’t expect this kind of thing to happen in our lives.

“My mama has been… she’s been through a lot, honestly.”