President’s Corner

Dear Fellow Manila Rotarians,

I hope you have all taken time off from your busy schedules both at work and in Rotary during the Halloween, All Saints Day and All Souls Day break to recharge and make the most of family bonding time, whether at home, in the cemetery or elsewhere. I am positive that you are all now ready and eager to bring our busy Rotary year to even greater heights as we approach our culminating activities.

The week before the break, we had the time of our lives, marvelling at the candidates of Ms. Earth 2018 as they exchanged pleasantries with each of us. Indeed, it was beauty with environmental advocacy at its finest as we signed a Joint Commitment to Protection of Earth and Humanity with the officials of the Ms. Earth Beauty Pageant. This, in effect, enhanced our public relations for our Seeds of Change by Rotary Club of Manila so much so that we even chose a Ms. RCM Earth in the person of Ms. Earth Spain.

On the aspect of international relations, I continuously invite you to join our respective delegations to the 49th Anniversary and Fund Raising Ball of the Rotary Club of Kowloon East and the 70th Charter Anniversary of the Rotary Club of Taipei. Attending these important milestones of our sister clubs affords us the opportunity to reciprocally invite them to take part in the culminating activities of our centennial celebration.

On the aspect of fellowship, I wish to announce that our Christmas Party will take place on December 13, 2018, 6:00 pm at the Grand Ballroom 3, Coral Wing Lobby of OKADA MANILA in Parañaque City. Let us all attend and share the Christmas spirit with everyone. Likewise, I wish to thank Special Children Committee Chair PD Phillip Ong, Co-Chair Rtn. Ray Davis and Rtn. Zdenek Jankovsky for bringing tons of cheers to the children and elderly of the Hospicio de San Jose through the Hospicio Halloween party we staged. I am certain these children and elderly felt the warmth of a genuine Manila Rotarian whose quintessential ways have defined who we have been for the past century.

On the aspect of our centennial projects, many of them are underway in nearing fruition. Our Sari-Saring Aralan project is set to launch on November 14, 2018 as I wish to invite all of you to signify your attendance with our Secretariat as Ayala Foundation needs the names of attendees for documentation. Our Seeds of Change by Rotary Club of Manila reached a milestone by enhancing its public image with the Joint Commitment to Protection of Earth and Humanity. Our Legacy of Rotary Service event for June 21, 2018 is slowly shaping up as oculars and program plans have been drawn up. Our Rotary Club of Manila Centennial Chorale Competition has reached a new high with the recent Memorandum of Agreement signed with DepEd and the continuous meetings with the District Governors. Our Rotary Club of Manila Coffee Table Book is now in the identification of personalities in the archives stage. Our REAP is fully covered. Hence, I encourage everyone to do their share in making our centennial projects an overwhelming success.

Today, we welcome our Honorary Member, His Excellency Daniel Pruce, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to the Republic of the Philippines, as he gives us a sneak peek into the present state British-Philippine Bilateral Relations.

Indeed, all these are colossal undertakings that require our passion for Service Above Self. Hence, great things in Rotary are never the works of a single individual, but, by a team of Rotarians moving together on the path to a common goal under ONE CENTURY towards ONE MISSION in furtherance of ONE ROTARY, our club, the Philippines and the world can truly be proud of. It’s time for us to BE THE INSPIRATION as we all take pride in what we have collectively accomplished.