ABS-CBN Executive and actress Charo Santos shared how she found a new definition of love and gave new meaning to the phrase "in sickness and in health" while she was taking care of her late husband, Cesar Concio Jr.. The Kapamilya star explained in the recent vlog of veteran broadcaster KC Constantino about the strength she got from her late husband.
Charo’s husband passed away back in 2023 at the age of 91–– just a few weeks before he would have turned 92.
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In the interview, she talked about how her 2025 film, Only We Know, with Dingdong Dantes, was pitched to her several years ago but only came to fruition this year. For her, this made all the difference in the film as she claimed that both of them are in different stages of their lives now which would be the reason for their chemistry.
“Ibang tao na ako nung 2023,” she shared.
The actress claimed that her definition of love has changed significantly in the past years as she learned how capable she is of deeply loving someone. She expressed how unexplainable the feeling is as one has to go through it personally.
“Even your definition of love, nagiiba. When you’re young, when you get married and settle down, and when you go through challenges of married life. When you’re taking care of someone who has lingering illness–– iba. Ako, I learned that I am capable of deep love. Malalim pala ako mag mahal,” she explained.
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Charo added how taking care of her husband wasn’t a burden due to the love they both have for each other. She then shared the conversation they once had about death and mortality which she found comfort in.
“He told me that this is all temporary, one day we will see each other again. If that’s your attitude then you should not cry, you should not be sad because this is a temporary setback. One day, we will see each other again, we will be so happy to see each other again. So, gumagaan ako–– yun yung sinasabi ko sayo. Until the very end, in health and in sickness, we were partners,” she recalled.
For the Kapamilya actress, losing her husband was one of the “two tragic losses” of her life–– the other being the ABS-CBN shutdown. Despite her late husband’s sickness, she maintained that he was still there for her at the height of the closure of the network.
“Masakit at siyempre, I mean, to lose your partner, to lose the person who believed most in you, was very painful. But then, we were partners, we were real partners in health and in sickness. We supported each other–– I could’ve not done it alone even if he was sick. He was there for me,” she added.
Almost two years has passed since losing her husband and Charo has since then entered a new chapter of her life as she returned to her craft as an actress. She has continued to treasure the memories she had with him in her heart.