Elmar Beltran Ingles, NCCA exec and long-time cultural worker, dies at 49

Long-time cultural worker Elmar Beltran Ingles — a man of many commitments, as described by one of his colleagues — died on Tuesday. He was 49.   

As of Wednesday noon, the cause of death has yet to be determined, deputy executive director Marlene Ruth S. Sanchez of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) told GMA News Online.

"God bless your soul, and thank you for all the efforts, time, and expertise. Napakarami niyang commitments. With the demise of Elmer Beltran Ingles, we sympathize with the family. He had served culture and the arts well, and we thank him," Sanchez said.

At the time of his death, Ingles was head of NCCA's Subcommission on Cultural Dissemination, a member of the Optical Media Board, and the executive director of Organisasyon ng Pilipinong Mang-aawit (OPM), where he was described as a “pillar.”

In 2011, Ingles was awarded the Quezon Medalya ng Karangalan for Arts and Culture, a recognition given by the government of Quezon province to its outstanding citizens for their exceptional achievements.

Ingles was also president of Telon Playwrights Circle, which he joined as a teenager, according to Rolando dela Cruz, who edited "Telon: Mga Dula" along with Ingles. The book won the National Book Award for an Anthology in Filipino in 2012. Ingles' play "Serbis" was included in the anthology.

Tributes

"Matalas ang dila sa kanyang mga opinyon. Matalas ang isip sa mga ideya. Matalas ang mga desisyon kapag umaksyon lalo na sa pagtataguyod ng kulturang Pilipino," Dela Cruz wrote on Facebook, where tributes poured in for Ingles.

"Thank you so much for sharing to us your beautiful visions for our country! You will always be a winner, a champion and a leader to us," Ringo Roque Dadole, a school teacher, said on Facebook.

The NCCA also posted a message of condolence on its Facebook page.

"Hinding-hindi po namin kayo malilimutan. Amin pa pong pagpupursigihin ang aming mga sarili na ipanday at itaguyod ang kultura at mga sining alang-alang sa bayan," wrote Erasto Arinuelo, who said he would not have become a scholar at Letran Calamba if not for Ingles.

Ingles' schoolmate at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB) Editha Mondragon-Haway described him as "walang kaartehan sa katawan, sa pagdi-direct lang siguro siya puno ng kaartehan."

"Hanggang sa huling mga sandali ng iyong buhay ay aking nakita at naramdaman paano ka maninidigan sa mga issues at paano mo tinaglay ang pagiging isang tunay na UPian ...So proud of you, fellow UPLB alumni!" she wrote on Facebook.

Nolit Abanilla, general manager of Indiepinoy, said Ingles was a pillar of OPM.

"Naalala ko ang kanyang interes sa mga independent artists nung isang meeting ng OPM board na umupo ako. Narun ang kanyang eagerness sa nakikita nyang young blood sa industriya ng musika. Sayang at hindi ka na namin makakasama sa nalalapit na pagbabago. Kung saan ka man naroroon, bigyan mo kami ng pwersang ispiritwal para sa ikabubuti ng musikang Pilipino. Mabuhay ka kapatid," she wrote.

Pro bono jobs

According to director Dennis Marasigan, Ingles served as executive director of OPM as well as the Philippine Legitimate Artists Group despite the fact that "both jobs were practically pro bono, with only modest allowances paid to him."

Ingles also served as chairman of NCCA's Cultural Education Committee, as well as Head of the Subcommission for Cultural Heritage, Marasigan wrote, noting that a busy schedule did not keep Ingles from producing "a steady writing output that included essays and plays."

"We know fully well that you have left us with shoes too big to fill. We can only hope and pray that your life will be enough inspiration for us to carry on," Marasigan wrote.

The necrological rites for Ingles will be held Wednesday at 7 p.m. after a 6 p.m. Mass at Rizal Funeral Homes in Pasay City. His remains will be brought to Lucena on July 11. — Carmela G. Lapeña/KBK, GMA News