Amelyn Veloso, CNN Philippines anchor and senior correspondent; 43

Facebook account photo

CNN Philippines paid tribute to its senior anchor and correspondent, Amelyn Veloso, who died after her three-year battle with cancer.

Veloso passed away early Thursday, CNN Philippines senior anchor Pia Hontiveros said in the network’s tribute segment on Thursday night. She was 43.

“In her final moments, she was surrounded by her immediate family— her husband, Rodney Zapanta, and their 14-year-old son Gab; and her mother, Amelita,” Hontiveros said.

Veloso was a CNN Philippines pioneer. Since the network launched on March 16, 2015, she had anchored several shows, including New Day, Newsroom, and Serbisyo All Access, as well as breaking news.

Veloso, a broadcast news veteran, first joined IBC 13 in 1997. She went on to anchor shows in TV5, including “Aksyon Solusyon” with Sen. Richard Gordon, “Andar ng mga Balita” with now Presidential Communications Secretary Martin Andanar.

She also anchored for Solar Daybreak and Solar Headlines.

Hontiveros said that her colleagues in CNN Philippines remember Veloso as a sweet, soft-spoken co-worker “who always wore the brightest smiles” in the office.

“We always thought of her as beautiful, inside and out. There was not a single mean bone in her body,” Hontiveros said.

“[She was] the kindest and gentlest of persons who bake cookies and pan de sal for us,” she added.

Hontiveros said Veloso remained positive all throughout the three years of her illness and still came to work despite being in pain.

“It was a reminder for all of us that life, indeed, is very short. She will be missed by all of us.”