Rob Schneider’s Filipina mother Pilar dies

Comedian and actor Rob Schneider’s Filipina mother Pilar Monroe Schneider died at the age of 91 on Sunday, January 10.

Pilar, who was known to make cameos in Rob’s films, “passed away peacefully” after spending a “perfect Sunday evening family dinner” surrounded by her loved ones, according to Rob’s Instagram tribute on Tuesday, January 12.

Aside from Rob, 57, Pilar’s daughter April, son-in-law Matt, granddaughter Crystal, and great-grandchildren were also by her side.

“A World War II survivor from the Philippines, her mother had small pox and she was raised for the first 3 years by her aunt. Then one day, this well-dressed family showed up and told her they were her family and introduced her to her mother, Victoria,” Rob wrote on Instagram, alongside a photo of Pilar with Rob’s two daughters, Miranda and Madeleine.

“Pilar grew up without a father (an American soldier she never met until by accident 22 years later in San Francisco) who abandoned her family before Pilar was born. Pilar’s brothers John and Bill were both killed by the Japanese as teenagers. There was never enough food during the war and her stomach bothered her for her nearly 92 years,” he added.

Rob said the family survived due to Pilar’s ingenuity. She, her mother, and her sisters sewed pajamas from bedsheets, trading them with farmers for kamote (sweet potato), “the ones that the Japanese didn’t steal from her.”

“After the war, Pilar was able to ‘pay for school’ because she and her sister Rose found money the Japanese buried in a cave (along with what they thought were metal pineapples which turned out to be hand grenades),” Rob said.

Pilar was born an American citizen, graduated from the University of Santo Tomas in Manila, and moved to the United States in the 1950s. She then got her master’s degree as a reading specialist and was elected to the school board of Pacifica, California. She was a “beloved teacher” for 3 decades to 3 generations of children, whose names she remembered.

After retiring from teaching, Pilar ensured that all schools in Pacifica had music teachers and music classes, which was a program she ran for 15 years.

“Pilar spoke often of joining her beloved husband of 39 years, my lovely father Marvin Schneider. That day has come for them to be together. I am proud to be able to say that I am the son of Pilar Monroe Schneider,” said Rob. – Rappler.com