Obituary of Juan Maniquis Montelibano

Montelibano

Juan Maniquis “Joji”

Of Squirrel Hill on Friday, July 21, 2017, age 47.   Beloved husband of Gabriella Gonzalez; father of Joaquin Ysidro, Sofia Amal, and Sol Yasmine; son of J. Roberto Montelibano and Maria Teresita Montelibano; brother of Christian “Miko” Montelibano and Kimberly Montelibano Heil; also survived by nieces Katrina Heil, Ava Gonzalez, and Grace Gonzalez, and nephews Tristan Heil, Alejandro Montelibano, Maxwell Montelibano, James Montelibano, Nicholas Gonzalez, Thomas Gonzalez, Diego Leaver, and Alex Gonzalez.   Born in Manila, Philippines, Joji graduated from Stanford University in 1991 with a B.S. in Chemical Engineering, and then went on to pursue his artistic dreams, dancing professionally with the San Francisco Ballet, Singapore Ballet, Hong Kong Ballet, and at a workshop with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.  After completing his artistic calling he then earned an M.S. in Chemical Engineering from University of Southern California, and a Masters of Theological Studies from Harvard University Divinity School. In 1999 he met his wife, Gabriella, at the sociology department at Harvard, where he worked part time while she completed her Ph.D. in Sociology.  Married in 2001, Gabriella and Joji lived in Los Angeles where Joaquin was born, and in Qatar where Sofia was born. They eventually settled in Pittsburgh in 2007 where Sol was born and Joji rose to the top of his field professionally as a cyber security expert.  Joji was an avid reader, triathlete, marathon runner, Brazilian jiujitsu enthusiast, and a yoga and Vipasshana meditation practitioner for over 25 years.  He was a madrigal singer and an accomplished guitarist and pianist who loved to have impromptu concerts with his friends and family.  He also spoke seven languages, and traveled extensively throughout the world.   Although Joji didn’t know how to cook, he was always an eager eater and loved to take his family to restaurants.  Some of Joji’s favorite activities included dancing in the kitchen to 80s music, taking his family to the Renaissance Faire and going on bike rides, and skiing in the mountains.  He loved spending time with his wife and children, playing video games and guitar with his son Joaquin, playing Sudoku and reading with his daughter Sofia, going to playgrounds with his daughter Sol, and enjoying lazy Sunday family snuggles.   A memorial visitation will be held at McCabe Bros., Inc. Funeral Home, www.mccabebrothers.com, 6214 Walnut Street, Shadyside on Thursday, from 4 pm until time of service at 6 pm.  In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations to the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation, www.bbrfoundation.org, which is committed to alleviating the suffering caused by mental illness by awarding grants that will lead to advances and breakthroughs in scientific research.