Brigadier General Punong Ginoong Abelardo Perucho Andal, a direct descendant of the Maginoo of Batangas and Aklan, embodied the courage and discipline of his ancestral line. A soldier during World War II, he endured capture as a prisoner of war, and survived the brutal Bataan Death March. After the war, he continued a distinguished military career and became an instructor in guerrilla warfare, where among his notable students was Suharto, who would later rise to the presidency of Indonesia. He went on to serve as Head of the ROTC at the University of the Philippines Diliman, shaping generations of future officers. A man of both arms and intellect, he earned a law degree and later offered his legal expertise through the Public Attorney’s Office, extending service to the people with the same dedication that marked his military life. His legacy endures as a bridge between the valorous traditions of the Maginoo and the modern Philippine Republic.

Teodoro Andal Agoncillo, National Scientist for History, was a distinguished Filipino historian whose scholarship reshaped the nation’s understanding of its past. A nephew of Punong Ginang Amada Contreras Andal and Brigadier General Punong Ginoong Abelardo Perucho Andal, he belonged to the broader Contreras–Andal lineage rooted in the Maginoo traditions of Mindoro, Batangas, and Aklan. His family ties extended even further into the nation’s revolutionary heritage: he was the nephew of Marcela Marino Agoncillo, revered as the Mother of the Philippine Flag, and Felipe Agoncillo, the Filipino representative in the negotiations of the Treaty of Paris of 1898. Guided by this rich ancestry of patriotism, service, and intellectual leadership, Teodoro Andal Agoncillo championed a Filipino-centric interpretation of history, asserting the importance of native voices in narrating the nation’s struggle and identity. His works remain foundational to Philippine historiography.