They started out as good friends before their relationship became serious until they decided to marry on December 28, which is being celebrated as “Innocents Day,” Bacolod’s first lady, Elsa Leonardia, said of her marriage to Mayor Evelio “Bing” Leonardia.

Elsa said she met “Bing” when they were both employed at the Philippine Commercial and Industrial Bank in the mid 1970’s. But before that, she already saw him at the La Salle College in Bacolod (now University of St. La Salle).

“I saw Bing around and thought he was cute, although he had a girlfriend at that time, while I also had a boyfriend,” she said. He was taking up a course in Banking and Finance, while she was working for a Bachellor of Science in Commerce degree, Major in Accounting.

Elsa said that while they were with PCIB, they became “barkadas” and would hang out and sometimes play bowling. She recalled that Bing also went to night school, after office hours, taking up law.

After several years, Bing decided to leave PCIB to join the Department of Tourism where he became the coordinator of Negros Occidental. That is where the foundation of his public career was laid, she said.

Bing was one of the founders of the MassKara Festival and became festival chairman for several years. Because of his exposure, he was invited by former Bacolod Mayor Alfredo Montelibano Jr. to run for councilor under the Paglaum Party, she said.

Elsa said that after the DOT reorganized, Bing had to be assigned to Manila which he did not want. So he grabbed the opportunity to join politics and was voted Number One councilor on his first try.

Since then, there was no stopping him, she said.

Because they were both enjoying their careers, it took them too long to decide to settle down, Elsa said.

And finally, they consulted Bing’s sisters, Perla and Ninfa, when they decided to take the step, about the date of their wedding. They did not want it to fall on Christmas because everybody was busy, so they decided to hold it on Innocents Day, December 28, so they could play a joke on people who were skeptical about whether they were really going to marry or not, she said..

Elsa said Bing’s sisters liked the date since it was dedicated to the Lady of the Rosary and Our Lady of Perpetual Help. So December 28 was the day.

But she said they did not tell people they were getting, married. Instead, they told them that the occasion was her parents’ golden wedding anniversary, only to find out that they were the ones getting married.

Elsa said her husband was a popular political figure at that time and they could not afford a big wedding, so they did not issue wedding invitations.

“So we invited people to the golden wedding anniversary of my parents after Christmas. Only the ninangs and ninongs (principal sponsors) and immediate members of the family knew about it,” she said.

So many were not sure if it was not just a joke, and even then Bishop Antonio Fortich who was to officiate, went to the Queen of Peace Church at 6 a.m. and found nobody there. It was the late Msgr. John Liu who kidded him that maybe he was an Innocents Day victim, but finally told him the wedding was to be at 6 p.m. yet.

For years they were being teased, about when they would marry, Elsa said so this time, “We were playing a joke on them.”

Elsa said Bing likes to sing to her “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me,” which was popularized by Gladys Knight and the Pips.

It was a good courtship of close to 15 years, and still a continuing courtship until now, Elsa says of their marriage.

She also described the Mayor as a very gentle person.

They have two children, namely, EJ and Kara, who was named after the MassKara Festival.*CGS

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