Mark Angelo Cadaweng Cielo, better known as Boknoi to his family and friends, was born on May 12, 1988, at Manuel J. Santos Hospital in Butuan in Agusan del Norte,[1] where he lived with his mother, Mildred Ban-e.g. Cadaweng and sister, Marcel Andrea or "Bonsai".[2] In 2001, he and his family moved to Bauko, Mountain Province to live with their other relatives, who are of Igorot descent.[3] As a student of the local high school, San Isidro, he would soon become proud of his indigenous roots, despite being raised in the Roman Catholic environment.[4] He fluently spoke Kankana-ey, a language spoken in the Cordilleras.[5] Aside from this, he was also fluent in English, Ilocano, Tagalog, and Visayan languages (specifically Butuanon and Cebuano).[2][6] According to an episode of Magpakailanman which revolved around life, his parents separated when he was still young and his mother took care of him, along with his sister on her own.[7] Despite this, he was able to reunite with his father, Avelino "Bobby" Cielo, and spend time with him after many years. Later in his life, he had stated, privately, that he truly loves his father.[4]
Career
Prior to his career, Cielo was a freshman studying Architecture at Saint Louis University, Baguio in Benguet, where he was a member of SLU Dance Troupe. When his classmates and close friends convinced him to audition for Starstruck, he accepted so he joined under the stage name, Marky Cielo. He audition for Starstruck where he emerged as "Ultimate Male Survivor" and the first and only "Sole Survivor", defeating his fellow contestants Jackie Rice, Gian Carlos, Iwa Moto, Chuck Allie, and Arci Muñoz.[8] He is the first Igorot ever to join a talent contest.[5] He won 10 million pesos worth of prizes and an exclusive GMA talent management contract, and a house and lot in Antipolo, Rizal.[3] He and his family moved to this new home only in 2008, during his birthday, May 12.[9] Prior to that, he lived in Pasig.
Cielo, 20, was found unconscious on December 7, 2008, by his mother.[17] The night before, he was last seen playing an online video game up until 10 pm in an internet cafe in Quezon City. Cielo was said to have made several unanswered calls to his manager-mentor.[18] When he arrived home, he had a discussion with his mother about "something personal". His mother advised him to sort out his problem saying that only he can solve his problems.[17][19] The next morning, his mother entered his room in their house in Antipolo at around 6 AM to wake him up for a charity event. When he did not respond, she immediately rushed him to the nearby Antipolo Doctors Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival.[10] Cielo's cause of death remains unclear.[20][21][citation needed] But the cause of death according to the Youtuber, it was "acute pancreatitis."
His wake was held in his home for three days then his remains were brought to the Cathedral of the Resurrection in Baguio, where it stayed for a day.[22] He was buried on December 15, in Bauko, Mountain Province, in his family's backyard according to traditional Kankanaey custom.[23][24]
^ ab"Archived copy". www.philstar.com. Archived from the original on June 26, 2015. Retrieved January 17, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)