Fondly known as “Inday,” she is best remembered for founding the Cebu CFI (Court of First Instance) Community Cooperative in 1969—a legacy that continues to benefit Filipinos today.

True to her name, which translates to “hope” in Spanish, she provided thousands of Filipinos with the opportunity for financial empowerment through the cooperative.

While serving as Clerk of Court for the CFI of Cebu, Garcia witnessed the struggles of court workers who were vulnerable to loan sharks.

Today, the Cebu CFI Community Cooperative stands as one of the country’s most successful community cooperatives.

Garcia held various positions throughout her career, including attorney for the Department of Labor, City Judge of Mandaue City, and Presiding Judge of Cebu City’s Regional Trial Court Branch 23 until her retirement in 1993.

Inday also served for decades as Chairperson of the Board of VICTO National.

Among her numerous accolades, Garcia received the Baul Award in 2000 as a Model Filipino and the VICTO’s National Tony Martin Leadership Award in 2001 for her “exemplary promotion of cooperativism and for fostering the ideals of freedom, justice, and nationalism.”

In 2011, she was honored with the Esperanza Award from the Federacion Internacional de Abogadas for her advocacy for women, children, and families.

Garcia was born on August 14, 1933, in Palompon, Leyte, to Dr. Eutiquiano Fiel and Consuelo Tan, who originally hailed from Ormoc City.

She completed her high school education at St. Peter's College in Ormoc City and earned her Associate in Arts and Bachelor of Laws degrees from the University of San Carlos.

In 1954, she married fellow attorney Pablo Paras Garcia—a bar top-notcher, constitutional expert, and deputy speaker who would later be elected as a Board Member of the Province of Cebu, Governor, and Congressman.