Valedictory

In today’s last weekly membership meeting for this amazing Imagine Rotary year, we will be listening to the valedictory speech of President Hermie Esguerra. The valedictory speech will be delivered auspiciously during the latter’s last day as President, thus perfectly in keeping with the word’s Latin ancestor, valedicere, which means “to say farewell.”

Imagine Rotary Year (2022-2023) has been quite a ride for Manila Rotarians, for indeed, there have been numerous programs and projects successfully undertaken and completed. This year, the Club snatched the most significant awards during the District 3810 Awards Night (which included the Most Outstanding Phenomenal Rotary Club and Over-all Most Outstanding President). Notably, too, during this soon-to-close exciting Rotary Year, there also emerged a couple of challenging, if not interesting, episodes for some members (with some pending issues we all hope would be fully resolved sooner than later). The year also saw the passing away of some of the Club’s esteemed members. It was also during this Rotary Year when the Club’s weekly meetings began to transition from online to mostly in-person gatherings, thus paving the way for more personal encounters and more intimate, and meaningful fellowships. RCMFI’s highly successful RCM Cup also capped the year beautifully.

What is more, with the easing of travel restrictions around the globe, Manila Rotarians were able to attend Rotary events outside the Philippines, including the Rotary International Convention in Melbourne. President Hermie himself graced several Rotary events not only in areas outside Metro Manila, but also outside the country -- in Korea, Thailand, Japan, and Australia. Remarkably, the number of projects dedicatedly undertaken made this year a truly successful year for the Rotary Club of Manila. Running true to form, the oldest Rotary Club in Asia again showcased its trailblazing ways, its tremendous agility, and its adaptability and resilience.

Today, as our Club President (who has been awarded as the District’s Over-all Most Outstanding President) delivers his year-end message to all, let us gleefully congratulate him, our Club officers, and all of us, for successfully making this Rotary Year an eventful and service-filled journey. The awards that we reaped, the lessons that we learned, the bonds that we fortified, and the realizations that we had from all the problems and challenges encountered this year, should all serve as a beacon, guide, and inspiration as we, with fortitude and newfound strength, carry on and look forward to another Rotary Year.

As the Imagine Rotary Year comes to an end, we proudly note that Manila Rotarians have adroitly accomplished what they have imagined. And as a new year opens, the fine gentlemen of Asia’s oldest Rotary Club will surely, with one mind and heart, make waves and purposively answer the clarion’s call to meaningfully create hope in the world.