(L) Jake Ejercito with daughter Ellie; (R) Jaclyn Jose with granddaughter Ellie. | Images: Instagram, X/@unoemilio
Jake Ejercito paid tribute to the late Jaclyn Jose, mother of his erstwhile partner Andi Eigenmann, saying he couldn’t have survived the early years of fatherhood without the seasoned actress’ guidance.
After attending the first day of the wake, the actor took to X (formerly Twitter) to share a picture of the late actress with his daughter, Ellie, when she was just a little girl. Ejercito noted that being a grandmother to his daughter was Jose’s most favorite role.
“Of her many iconic roles, being a grandmother was one she cherished the most, especially to Ellie,” he said.
The “Linlang” actor remarked that even though he had already parted ways with Eigenmann, he and Jose had continued to get along in terms of “doing” everything for her granddaughter.
“I surely wouldn’t have survived those early years of fatherhood without your guidance. We rolled with the punches together—anything and everything just for Ellie,” he said.
Ejercito affirmed that Jose’s death has left a “void” in his daughter’s heart, yet assured he will make an effort to fill the gap.
“You’ve left a void in Ellie’s heart that we could only attempt to fill for the rest of our days. But I’ll give it my best shot and make sure she’ll be okay. Maraming salamat sa lahat, Tita. [Thank you for everything, Auntie]. You were loved, especially by your Ellie,” remarked the actor.
— jake ejercito (@unoemilio) March 5, 2024
In the same thread, the “Can’t Buy Me Love” actor shared an old conversation between him and Jose, using a heartbroken emoji as the 2016 Cannes Best Actress expressed how much she missed him.
“Jake na mi miss na kita ng sobra. Anak pa din ang turing ko sayo. Sorry sa IG, kailangan ko lang mamili. Mahal kita alam mo yan,” read Jose’s message to her son-in-law.
(Jake, I miss you very much. I still treat you as my son. Sorry for the Instagram, I just had to choose. I love you, you know that.)
Jake Ejercito conversation with Jaclyn Jose | Image: X/@unoemilio
Ejercito and Eigenmann broke up in 2014 and are currently co-parenting their only daughter, Ellie.
Eigenmann confirmed that her mother died of a heart attack on March 2nd and asked that the speculations concerning the cause of her death be put to rest.