Philippine Rotary Magazine Highlights RCMPD's Anti-COVID ...

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OFFICIAL CLUB NEWSLETTER I ROTARY YEAR 2019-2020

VOLUME 3 NO. 11 MAY 2020

rcmakatipremier.org

Philippine Rotary Magazine Highlights RCMPD’s Anti-COVID-19

Efforts

Reprint from Philippine Rotary Magazine

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Celebrating Youth Service Month Youth Service Month is a special time in Rotary. Throughout the month of May, members of Rotary

clubs, Rotaract, Interact, and those involved in Rotary Youth Leadership Awards and Rotary Youth

Exchange celebrate the opportunities Rotary provides to connect, grow through service, develop

leadership skills, mentor or be mentored, and have fun.

The outbreak of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, may alter the way we observe

Youth Service Month this year. But it need not dampen our enthusiasm, excitement, and gratitude for

these programs and the volunteers who make them possible.

Check out ways to safely celebrate Youth Service Month and share your celebrations with

#RotaryYouthService.

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Increasing our ability to adapt: That is one goal of our

new Rotary Action Plan. And wow, have we seen that

ability put to the test this year.

In March, Gay and I were to visit Zimbabwe, Turkey,

and eight other countries over the course of 30 days.

After participating in a medical mission in Zimbabwe

and Commonwealth Week activities in London, on the

11th day, we were packing our suitcases for Switzer-

land and Liechtenstein.

While attending a dinner at the High Commission for

Pakistan in London, we received word that it would be

impossible to travel everywhere on our itinerary. So,

instead of flying to Zurich, we returned to Evanston

and One Rotary Center.

Throughout early March, the news about COVID-19

became increasingly serious throughout the world.

Following the advice of local officials, we canceled UN

presidential conferences in Paris and Rome. Soon, the

World Health Organization declared the virus a global

pandemic, and we consulted with authorities on more

critical decisions. We asked all Rotary districts and

clubs to curb face-to-face meetings until further notice

and to hold virtual meetings instead. To the districts

and clubs that have adapted so quickly, thank you.

The Rotary Board of Directors held its first-ever virtual

meeting to make the most difficult decision of all, to

cancel the 2020 Rotary International Convention. Like

the more than 20,000 registrants who planned to at-

tend, I am disappointed. We acted to protect the

health and safety of convention attendees and their

families, friends, and colleagues, as well as those who

call Honolulu home, and I am confident we made the

right decision.

I want to thank the 2020 Honolulu Convention Com-

mittee, the Host Organization Committee, the 2020

Honolulu Convention Promotion Committee, and Ro-

tary staff for planning what would have been one of

the best Rotary conventions yet. I appreciate their

hard work.

This issue of The Rotarian was going to press as the

decision about canceling the convention was made,

and many other decisions across the Rotary world

were still up in the air. Future issues of The Rotarian

and of Rotary's regional magazines, along with Rotary's

social media channels, will keep you informed.

We began this Rotary year promoting the importance

of the new Action Plan for all Rotarians and Rotarac-

tors. Today, we are putting that plan into action out of

necessity. That includes the possibility of a convention-

like experience with you through a virtual event. We

will have more to say about this in the near future.

The world is changing rapidly, and so must Rotary. Our

adaptability and strength will help us navigate this ex-

perience. The world needs our leadership today more

than ever. Truly, Rotary Connects the World.

MESSAGE FOR MAY by MARK DANIEL MALONEY, President 2019-20, Rotary International

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Rotary is a global network of 1.2 million neighbors, friends, leaders, and problem-

solvers who see a world where people unite and take action to create lasting change –

across the globe, in our communities, and in ourselves.

Solving real problems takes real commitment and vision. For more than 110 years, Rotary's people of

action have used their passion, energy, and intelligence to take action on sustainable projects.

From literacy and peace to water and health, we are always working to better our world,

and we stay committed to the end.

WHAT WE DO Rotary members believe that we have a shared responsibility to take action on our world’s most persistent issues. Our 35,000+ clubs work together to:

Promote peace

Fight disease

Provide clean water, sanitation, and hygiene

Save mothers and children

Support education

Grow local economies

OUR MISSION We provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through our fellowship of business, profes-sional, and community leaders.

WE WORK DIFFERENTLY We see differently: Our multidisciplinary perspec-tive helps us see challenges in unique ways.

We think differently: We apply leadership and ex-pertise to social issues — and find unique solu-tions.

We act responsibly: Our passion and perseverance create lasting change.

We make a difference at home and around the world: Our members can be found in your com-munity and across the globe.

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Dear Members and Friends,

I can’t hardly believe that June is almost upon us. Re-

flecting on nearly half of 2020 now being complete, the

scale of transformation and the agility the world has

shown in coping with such an unprecedented phe-

nomenon makes me proud and humble as a human

being. If we thought back just a few months ago, the

way we lived our lives interacted with our colleagues,

spent time with our families and friends, and traveled

so much and communicated in such different ways.

For the remainder of the year, as lockdowns begin to

be released, we need to show the same leadership,

courage, and strength to adapt once again. We need to

find the balance between the past, our restrictive pre-

sent, and our unpredictable and evolving future. All of

these is encompassed with our work as Rotarians. Our

many committees our coming together to recognize

the impact that we continue to make in the world. We

have a whole host of activities design to support the

reinvention of the ‘’new normal’’. Our new initiatives

will exemplify our traditions, our spirit as an organiza-

tion, and our strength as individuals. Still, there is no

doubt we will adapt our approaches to ensure people

get the care they need today in light of the ever-

changing scenarios that are dealing with COVID-19

brings to us.

Our committees continue to gain feedback for every

member to feel more inspired by Rotary to want to

dedicate more time to commit to new ventures and

operations within the club. This effort is crucial, partic-

ularly when we understand how we can improve to

maintain our relevance, courage, strength, and output

as an organization.

I can’t encourage you all enough to truly embrace and

put energy into being an active part of our commit-

tees. For the remainder of 2020 and beyond, we all

need to find our own ‘’new normal’’ and having a fel-

MESSAGE OF THE CHAMPION PRESIDENT

lowship, friendship and bond of being an active Rotari-

an will no doubt enrich and support our individual and

collective journey. As your President, I thank you all

sincerely for making me proud to lead this wonderful

association in a time within which team spirit and to-

getherness has never been so needed and achieved.

by NIKKI TANG

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The prestigious Philippine Rotary Magazine (PRM) features our Club! Our story helping out in the COVID-

19 pandemic makes the front page, with the magazine adopting our communication theme, "We Are

One" as their issue theme! Personal reflections from two of our members, Hazel Zuellig and Leah

Quesada, also made the issue. An extraordinary feature story of the philanthropic work of member

Hazel Zuellig and husband David is also in the magazine.

Sonny Coloma, editor-in-chief of PRM writes, "Thank you for sharing your Club's remarkable story. You

are genuinely People of Action worthy of emulation … Your Philippine Rotary Magazine is truly the voice

and mirror of our Clubs and fellow Rotarians. This early, I have received generous feedback from our

readers, conveying their appreciation and gratitude to be connected to your magnificent Club's

magnanimous deeds. May your tribe increase!"

A crisis has brought us together. In many ways, indeed, WE ARE ONE!

PRM COVERS RCMPD IN A BIG WAY!

Infographic by Raissa Hechanova-Posadas

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our clubs

by the ROTARY CLUB OF MAKATI PREMIER DISTRICT

uddenly the world stopped. Everyone had to stay at home to be safe. In the meantime, a

brutal battle ensued in our hospi-tals as more people were getting sick with COVID-19. Our hospital frontlin-ers not only had to save lives, but they also had to protect their own from this contagious virus.

Those who stayed home fought their own battles of lives disrupted. At

the onset of the quarantine, people need-ed information on what they can do. Will their children ever go back to school? As they stayed longer at home, how could they remain emotionally grounded and balanced?

For us at the Rotary Club of Makati Premier District, we asked ourselves what does “People of Action” mean when we are all sitting at home? How can we help?

A CRISIS BRINGS US TOGETHER

Driven only by the common desire to serve, we quickly mobilized ourselves as soon as the lockdown happened. We started by putting our funds together. We posted an appeal in our Viber group, and members responded immediately. Within two days, we had Php 400K of commit-ted contributions. After that, what en-sued was more members and their fami-lies giving in cash and kind joined in. Encouraged by the club’s energy and enthusiasm to help frontliners, club member Dr. Hazel Zuellig and her fami-ly (husband David and sisters-in-law Susan and Joan) stepped up to contribute another Php 11.8M significantly. By the end of two weeks, we had close to Php 13.5M in cash and kind.

HELPING THE FRONTLINERS

Club Membership Committee Head Dr. Jonathan Dizon initiated the drive for medical frotnliner needs. Working with their medical colleagues in three COVID designated hospitals, he and Dr. Hazel Zuellig quickly identified the most criti-cal PPEs and medical supplies needed and provided the right product specifica-tions. Hazel and Jonathan also identified the hospitals that were most critical to serve. We added key regional and pro-vincial hospitals that had sought assis-tance from ABS-CBN Foundation and a list of hospitals that Negros Occidental Governor Lacson, a batchmate of many club member, provided. Altogether we have 80 hospitals to serve.

Then came the task of sourcing and buying. Club President Nikki tang and Service Committee Vice-Chair Baby Cheng sourced and urged suppliers to give us the best terms. At the same time, members Ravi Daryanani and Mukesh

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Philippine Heart Center receives their aerosol boxes, protection for intubations

Advani helped us tap suppliers from the Filipino-Indian business chamber. Club Admin Chair Corina Kalaw, Community Service Head Patti Manuel-Go, members Dee Jalandoni-Chan and Rachel Kelly Davis also buckled down to do the work. Without a staff to help, they researched and contacted different suppliers. They ordered after they validated the right product specifications coming only from legitimate suppliers locally and abroad.

With the world demand far exceed-ing the supply of goods, the heart pulse-raising activities of virtual auctions en-sued. Weighing the balance between risks and opportunities, the team made quick and informed decisions. The risks involved transacting with less known suppliers, requirements for larger vol-umes of products, and upfront full or partial payments. But the great oppor-tunity was to secure much-needed PPEs and medical supplies to the hospitals urgently!

Just when we thought we had man-aged this hurdle, the next challenges began. With identified suppliers on hand and pre-payment checks ready to be is-sued, suppliers sometimes backed down in favor of more significant buyers. We had an order for 3,000 hazmat coveralls worth Php 3M but lost out to another buyer who came in with an order of 80,000 hazmat coveralls. We started at square one again!

This time with ingenuity and crea-tivity, Patti tapped on a colleague in the garment industry who had transformed into manufacturing PPEs and hazmat coveralls. Dee found herself not just sourcing, but storing temporarily more than 100 gallons of flammable, rubbing alcohol at her house. Other challenges ensued. When the bank payment system was constrained, and suppliers needed payment, we stepped up to make person-al payments and reconciled the differ-ences with our club bank account.

IPP and Club Trainer Raissa Hecha-nova-Posadas managed all aspects relat-ed to finance, budgeting, supplier pay-ments, PPE allocations to the hospitals (in coordination with Dr. Hazel) and logistics. If only you could see her Excel spreadsheets and everyone’s messages in the PPE suppliers Viber chat! The details and logic are impressive.

Service Committee Head Rina Lopez-Bautista focused her efforts on the importation of donations in kind.

80 hospitals served

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2,000 PPEs were donated by Singapore-based Asia Philanthropy Circle Co-Chair Stanley Tan in cooperation with ABS-CBN Foundation. Her cost-benefit anal-ysis in importing PPEs vs. local sourcing amidst shifting government regulations informed our decisions.

In the beginning, we had considered merely donating to the hospitals. Now we understand why hospitals preferred for us to do this work, so they can con-centrate on saving lives.

Our corporate experiences, business connections, and philanthropy partners helpd us source and buy PPEs, work with banks, map delivery logistics, ne-gotiate pricing and collect more funds.

AN EARTH ANGEL

As goods started arriving from China and other local suppliers, Ivy Santos, our club’s executive secretary, stepped up in a big way! Ivy volunteered her home as the delivery, packing, and distribution center. She counted, unpacked, sorted, and repacked more than 115,000 items into individual boxes for the 80 hospi-tals. Ivy made sure everything was disin-fected and labeled them by hand. She had bought so much packing tape that she jokingly feared the store might think she was a kidnapper!

When asked why such generous gesture, she humbly said, “It’s my con-tribution to the club’s kind deeds. I’m doing it for the frontliners and my coun-try.”

She has a new nickname. We call her “Earth Angel.”

24/7 OPERATION

We delivered over 115,000 PPEs and medical supplies to 80 hospitals. There were four rounds of hospital deliveries since the items arrived on a staggered basis. We found another angel in Play360, one of our suppliers. They agreed to deliver all our supplies for free. It did not matter whether the goods were sourced from them or not. This kind deed has saved us at least 320 Lala-move car trips! They also documented the deliveries with well-labeled photos that we used for social media communi-cations.

In addition to the thousands of basic PPEs like masks and gowns, we brain-stormed how else we could help. Dr.

Rodriguez hospital staffers receive the mattresses for health care workers

Philippine General Hospital receives their manual resuscitators and ventilator tubings

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Ospital ng Paranaque receives their face masks and aerosol boxes

Hazel reported on the dire consequences at critical care units. Immediately, we sourced and purchased medical supplies like ventilator tubings, ambu bags, suc-tion machines, and closed suction cathe-ters. We decided to also donate mattress-es for health personnel who had to quar-antine themselves after a 2-week duty.

We also collaborated with the Rota-ry Club of Makati to provide 3,800 face masks to 67 hospitals.

Our Public Image team accompa-nied all this work. Club PI Head Charilu Puno and PI committee members Leah Quesada, Toni Urrutia and Rachel Kelly Davis tied all our communications under one theme, “We Are One,” which Leah had conceptualized and articulated so well. Our communications embodied the collective spirit we all felt in our hearts.

Our club worked as a team 24/7. With members located in Manila, Los Angeles, and Monaco, we worked round the clock sourcing, buying, distributing, and communicating!

HELPING THOSE WHO STAY AT HOME

In addition to helping frontliners, how can we help the people quarantined at home? How about the health care work-ers themselves and their families? How are they taking care of themselves? How can their children be in school while sitting in their “sala”? How can they mentally and emotionally cope with this disruption?

We harnessed the professional ex-pertise of club members in medicine, mental wellness, and children online education, to name a few, to create vide-os to help people navigate their lives better during the lockdown. Through social media, these videos are shared and amplified to the general public. You will find two videos so far at our club YouTube channel.

1. What is COVID-19 AND What You Can Do, by Dr. Hazel Zuellig, neu-rologist

2. 5 Ways to Stay Grounded in Un-certain Times, by Patti Manuel-Go, for-mer family therapist

There are more in the hopper, which you will see in the next coming weeks.

Filipino children’s education can continue even while in quarantine.

The RCMPD team worked 24/7. With members located in Manila, Los An-

geles, and Monaco, we worked round the clock sourcing, buying, distrib-

uting and communicating.

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Our Public Image team accompanied all this work. Charilu Puno, Leah

Quesada, Toni Urrutia and Rachel Kelly Davis tied all our communica-

tions under one theme, “We Are One.” Our communications embodied

the common spirit we all felt in our hearts.

Governor Bubong Lacson of Negros Occidental receives RCMPD donation for his prov-

ince’s hospital.

Our Service Committee Chairman and President of Knowledge Channel Foun-dation, Rina Lopez-Bautista, will guide you through Knowledge Channel’s multi-media learning resources and their dis-tribution points on-air, online, and of-fline. These videos and games have been developed and tailored according to the Department of Education curriculum competencies.

How can leaders lead effective-ly in these uncertain times? Nikki Tang, Club President, will explain how the “3Cs: Communication, Collaboration, and Compromise” model works in eve-ryday life.

PEOPLE OF ACTION

The last few weeks have proven that even in physical isolation, we can be effective People of Action. The internet has enabled global collaboration amongst our club members, regardless of where they are. Our club’s COVID-19 activities resulted in the Rotary Year’s highest member engagement, at 81%, with members giving time, effort, money, and in kind.

Collaboration efforts with organiza-tions such as Play380 and ABS-CBN Foundation allowed us to scale by ex-tending our efforts to more hospitals and deliver with greater agility.

Being physically apart has not hin-dered any fellowship activities, either. We threw a surprise Zoom party for Raissa’s birthday. We all wore green, her favorite color. To add fun, we wore wigs and hats!

MORE CONNECTED THAN EVER

The pandemic crisis has physically sepa-rated us. Ironically, it has connected us more than ever. Joined by a shared pas-sion for serving others, we did what it took to help protect those who are sav-ing other people’s lives. As nations, we are as strong as the weakest link. And so, we also support those who are at home safely to stay informed and remain grounded.

Like most things in life, this too shall pass. One day, we will look back to this time and reminisce about the small lvic-tories we have won. But what will re-main is the feeling of gratitude that we have been of service. In this fight against COVID, we are one!

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by HAZEL ZUELLIG, MD

hat do you call a frontliner

who is a thousand miles away

from the battlefield? I struggled

with this thought from the very first day

of this Covid-19 pandemic. I knew I was

going to be stuck in Europe, minutes

away from two of the most critical epi-

centres, Italy and France. I knew return-

ing home was not an option.

Yet from the social media posts of

my medical school classmates, my col-

leagues in the clinic and in the hospital, I

felt restless. While I was safely en-

sconced where I was, my fellow doctors

were fighting a brutal, unseen enemy.

Many of them exposed and quarantined,

like boxers badly beaten. But they would

get up again after two weeks of quaran-

tine and go charging back to the action.

My teachers were dying, esteemed con-

sultants who taught me while I was in

training. Friends were begging for help

and all I could offer were prayers and

words of comfort.

The news reports brought back

memories of my nearly ten years in the

Philippine General Hospital. Seventy-

two-hour duties, barely eating and sleep-

ing. We would eat out of a cellophane

bag using tongue depressors in place of

spoons. And we would lie comfortably

for short naps on top of three monoblock

plastic chairs put together. We were bat-

tle-tested and prepared to save lives in

emergency rooms and ICUs. Especially

the poorest of the poor who could only

pay us back with appreciative smiles.

I was ready for the fight with Covid.

But it was physically impossible for me

to be there where the action was.

Thankfully, my friends in the

Rotary Club of Makati Premier gave me

a recalibrated sense of purpose. We

started to put together our personal funds

and formulated our own battle plan. It

helped that many of us had the corporate

experience and the business connections

to find PPE suppliers, deal with banks,

negotiate deliveries, source more funds,

haggle for discounts and put together

quite an impressive operation to deliver

much needed support for hospitals and

healthcare workers all over the country.

No one had to designate roles. It was as

if we knew where each one of us had to

position ourselves, making use of our

talents, working together virtually day

and night to make things happen.

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Pretty soon we were delivering

thousands of masks and gowns, gloves

and face shields, ventilator tubings and

resuscitation bags. Boxes and boxes of

precious medical aid for at least 70 hos-

pitals. Even mattresses and paper towels

for health personnel who were forced to

sleep in the hospitals during the crisis.

Ideas were flowing, each one encourag-

ing everyone else with prayers and good

words.

It is true that we are a small club. And a

young one at that. But who would have

thought a medical crisis would define

what we could do together. We had the

biggest of hearts and we knew we were

going to do what it took to help those

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who were putting their lives on the line

to save the sick and the dying.

My patients with dementia always talk

about the war and it is amusing to listen

to their stories. But someday, when we

all could be physically closer again,

when we could snuggle and enjoy our

glasses of wine, we would look back at

what we did during the days of the

Covid lockdown. And we, as RCMPD

members, would definitely look back

with fondness and pride of what we had

accomplished.

I may be a soldier far, far away from the

battlefront. But Rotary gave me the spir-

it to be part of it all.

This, definitely, will make for good

memories someday.

_________

When the Rotary Club of Makati Prem-

ier District gathered the members’ re-

sources to help the Philippine hospitals

in the battle against Covid-19, Hazel

Zuellig, her husband David, and her

sisters-in-law based in Europe, contrib-

uted their personal funds totalling Euro

200,000 or Php 11.8 million to the

club’s fundraising efforts.

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Hazel Zuellig, MD: A passion for helping others

IN HER younger days, Hazel Zuellig, MD, had already stood out from among her peers. She graduated valedictorian from the Manila Science high School, then breezed through college and medi-cal school at the University of the Philip-pines (UP) and the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) through scholarships. While in school, she worked on the side by tutoring younger students in mathe-matics, chemistry and physics. Since UP-PGH caters to “the poorest of the poor,” Dr. Hazel often used her personal baon (pocket money) to buy medicines for the indigent patients.

She is an accomplished neurologist and an expert in epilepsy. Her added areas of expertise are healthcare man-agement and lately, public health. Dr. Hazel was president of the Philippine League Against Epilepsy, training rural doctors and encouraging them to estab-lish epilepsy clinics in far-flung areas. She is frequently invited to lecture in local and international medical conferences. She held clinic at the cardinal Santos Medical Center for 17 years, during which she stablished a foundation which financially supported the operation and treatment of brain and spine tumors of underprivileged patients. She is a profes-sor in Public Health at the University of the Philippines and is also engaged in the Duke-NUS Medical School in Singa-pore. With an MBA degree, she used to lecture at the Asian Institute of Manage-ment (AIM) at which the Stephen Zuellig Graduate School of Development Man-agement in 2014, named in honor of her husband David’s father in 2014.

Some 15 years ago, an expatriate insurance agent from the Zuellig Group arranged a blind date between David Zuellig and Dr. Hazel Paragua, thinking they would make a good pair since he was “too serious” and she “worked too much.” Over an elegant dinner at Le Souffle, the two conversed until the res-taurant closed. She was impressed that David, unlike other men of affluence, held a deep interest in helping the poor and improving health conditions in the Philip-pines.

David, who was born in Manila, was based in Singapore and would visit his family’s Philippine businesses one every month, and so he and Dr. Hazel would meet during these rare Philippine visits. Their conversations centered on their advocacies and philanthropic activities — which kept the interest strong. After ten years of such conversations, they decid-ed to get married. In 2014, the marriage

took place in a small, private ceremony in Singapore. The bride wore an elegant lace gown, and the groom wore barong tagalog designed by Filipino couturiers. A few days later, they celebrated with fami-ly, friends and colleagues at The Manila Peninsula, at which the late Washington SyCip offered a toast, and Lea Salonga sang accompanied by the ABS-CBN Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Gerald Salonga.

In 2017, David and Dr. Hazel estab-lished the Centre Medicale Internationale (CMI), the country’s first and only VIP concierge medical clinic. Located at the 9th Avenue in Bonifacio Global City, the facility’s beautiful lobby with floor-to-ceiling glass windows wlecomes patients — who do not wait in line, are served snacks, and given access to medical experts from a wide range of specializa-tions. She says, “It’s the healthcare equivalent of a premium private Swiss bank.”

Dr. Hazel is a relatively new Rotari-an. She was invited to join the Rotary Club of Makati Premier District (RCMPD) by the club’s Charter President, Carol Mercado, with whom she walks the run-way as one of the Philippines’ Best Dressed Women. Within the same week, RCMPD’s president-Elect Rina Lopez, a co-member in the Singapore-based Asia Philanthropy circle, also invited her. She likes RCMPD because, although it is a small club, it is composed of hard-working members who truly respond to the call of service.

Dr. Hazel is presently prevented from leaving he home in Monaco by the spread of COVID 19. The couple moved there last December because David has always wanted to live again in Europe where he spent part of his childhood. His family spent many memorable years in the south of France and his father, Dr. Stephen Zuellig, held the positon of Hon-orary Consul General of the Philippines to Monaco for more than three decades. Now, it is David’s turn to be nominated to the position. Had they been caught by COVID 19 in the Philippines, Dr. Hazel would certainly be among the frontliners in the hospitals.

From Monaco, Dr. Hazel closely coordinates with her former colleagues in UP-PGH to inquire what hospitals need in the fight against COVID 19. She relays these information to her club, and togeth-er, she and the club members source these PPEs and vital medical supplies and distributes them to more than 80 hospitals all over the country. In this

manner, her club is able to deliver the hospital’s genuine needs.

David and Dr. Hazel shuttle between their three homes — in Monaco, Singa-pore and the Philippines. She says, “We are not drinking people. We are not party people. We work.” Between David’s busi-ness activities and Dr. Hazel’s profes-sional commitments, the couple contin-ues to enjoy a common passion for help-ing others. — SUE STA. MARIA

Top: David and Hazel Zuellig person-ally conduct medical missions in Vigan, Ilocos sur. Above: David and Hazel Zuellig own Centre Medicale Internationale, the country’s first VIP medical clinic in Bonifacio Global City, providing specialized preventive care and personalized medical ser-vices that suit individual needs.

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For Doctor Olivia Reyes, fighting COVID-19 is a privi-

lege. It has given her the chance to be the kind of doc-

tor she never knew she could be.

An active part in the response to the pandemic, Reyes

has been attending to emergency room patients since

before the enhanced community quarantine was im-

plemented on Luzon island. Affiliated with Philippine

General Hospital (PGH), The Medical City (TMC), and

Centre Medicale Internationale, Reyes is a pediatric

emergency practitioner, trained in addressing the

needs of sick children in the emergency room. In the

last few months, however, she has been providing

emergency care to all emergency room patients. The

sheer number of people coming into the hospital has

necessitated an all-hands-on-deck approach.

The numbers are a big part of the challenge

“The initial challenge of COVID-19 was the transmissi-

bility and severity of the disease,” shares Reyes, “along

with the patient surge that came with it.

Dr. Olivia Camille Reyes, MD. is a personal friend of Rotary Club of Makati Premiere District member, Dr. Hazel Zuellig. She works with two of the hospitals our club donated PPE and medical supplies. Dr. Reyes shares her expe-rience as a frontliner as she shares her views on the medical landscape in the country.

While both institutions I work with are used to efficient-

ly handling much more than this number, the handling

of COVID 19 patients is very different, especially in the

emergency setting. Severe patients are equipment and

labor intensive, and the sheer number of patients that

were admitted at the same time quickly overwhelmed

the system. The enhanced community quarantine al-

lowed us to curb this, which in turn has enabled hospi-

tals to adapt their operations to the current situation

by creating hospital policies for infection control, pro-

tocols for management, ensuring that the healthcare

workers are protected and creating separate patient

flows into COVID and clean areas. I say that this is still

a challenge because once quarantine is lifted, there

still remains a threat of a surge once again which may

not be manageable despite the changes that have

been implemented.”

During the start of

the pandemic,

the number of very

sick patients rose

from zero to 20

in a day.

FRONTLINER FEATURE: OLIVIA CAMILLE REYES, MD by RACHEL KELLY DAVIS

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The Philippine Medical System in Crisis

Daunting as the numbers are already, these are just

the tip of the iceberg and just a glimpse into a true

problem in the Philippine’s medical system. “For as

long as I can remember,” Reyes says, “the Philippines

has been functioning with two completely separate

healthcare systems – a rundown public, government

service that treats the masses and an advanced private

healthcare delivery system for those who can afford it.

These two systems rarely intersect and function sepa-

rately. When the crisis hit, the lesser equipped govern-

ment hospitals had to step in because the private

healthcare delivery system was overwhelmed by the

number and severity of cases. The COVID experience

shows us that we cannot continue to run disjointed

government and private health services and expect to

efficiently handle crises like these.”

Looking towards the future

“Improvements in government services should mirror,

if not be better than the private sector. If we can find a

way to equilibrate the weight between the two, then

maybe, this means better health for the majority of the

Filipino people. Improvements can be made because

there is money in the government.

Professionalizing

the way

government

hospitals are run

in order to achieve

a level of fiscal

responsibility that

can generate

revenue for their

own improvement

and maintenance

is a place to start.

Unification of standards of patient care between the

two is easier said than done, but should be the goal.

The two separate systems should work closely togeth-

er, and COVID has set the tone. Changes towards this

direction may seem insurmountable, but I have always

believed it can be done. It will take a lot of work, but it

can be done.”

Improving the healthcare system is a matter to be at-

tended to at a future date. For now, Reyes is focused

on the matter at hand: flattening the curve and lower-

ing the mortality rate. Reyes recognises that the expe-

rience has made her a better doctor.

A doctor’s heart

“Being a frontliner at this time has softened my edges.

It has allowed me to be kinder, to listen better, to see

patients more openly and warmly and to find more

ways to connect. Given the myriad of human experi-

ences and hardships we are privy to,

I have become

more sensitive

not just to patients,

but to the people

around me,

recognizing that

we are all

suffering in some

way or somehow,

during this time.

17

An enhanced community quarantine does not mean

separation nor isolation from friends and loved ones.

Remote digital socializing can help maintain human

connection during this pandemic.

There are many helpful video meet-apps. Each has a

free or trial version. You pay for extended capabilities.

1. Starleaf can do up to 20 participants; 46 minutes

for each meeting.

2. Jitsi Meet handles up to 75 participants. It inte-

grates with Google Calendar and Office 365.

3. Whereby takes up to 4 participants with screen-

sharing and the ability to lock the room.

4. Google Hangouts video-chat takes up to 10 partic-

ipants. Voice-chat is for up to 150 people..

5. Cisco Webex handles up to 100 participants. It

has unlimited meeting time.

6. Zoom Cloud Meetings app is most popular and

can accommodate more than 100 participants with

breakout rooms, screen-sharing, and dual-screen

support.

Socializing online is made easy with some of these ide-

as:

1. Book club chats. Share and recommend books

2. Distance party - dance or sway to the rhythm with

your friends online!

3. Virtual reunion and get-togethers with anyone

from anywhere in the world!

4. Meditation or yoga classes online allow you to

breathe deep and slow, stretch, and relax

5. Karaoke or band meet-ups is a nice way to jam

together!

by JOY EJERCITO

6. Virtual playdates for kids with cousins and

friends.

7. Virtual fitness challenge with friends is a good

way to stay in shape

8. Virtual cooking or baking class helps you learn

new recipes

9. Praying together or having your bible-reading

online helps during this time of crisis.

10. Game nights to play cards like Uno online, Explod-

ing Kittens.

11. Virtual drinking while playing games of “Never

Have I Ever”, “Beer Pong”, “Name That Tune”, or the

Philippine charade of “Pinoy Henyo”.

12. Have virtual meals together with your extended

family and friends. Share stories while having your

meal.

Staying safe at home could be fun. We are all in this

together. Like everything, this pandemic too shall

pass.

You may also view my vlog in YouTube on Tips for Vir-

tual Meet-ups at https://youtu.be/nNbvTGI40oI.

Stay safe and healthy!

18 WAYS TO STAY CONNECTED DURING THE QUARANTINE

18

Heavenly Father

In these dark and difficult times of social distancing, frequent hand washing, use of hand sanitizers and protective masks, and en-hanced community quarantine or lockdowns, please come powerful-ly to heal our nation.

As we seek for the flattening of the curve, please slow the spread of this virus throughout our land. Please protect the vulnerable from its deadly touch.

Please lay your healing hands up-on those who are now infected, whether symptomatic or not. Please restore them to health and strength.

Please comfort the families of those who have died from this dis-ease. Some of them we knew and were even close to us. Please fill their hearts with your presence, and may they gather support from friends, family, and neighbors who will comfort them in their time of loss.

We thank you, Heavenly Father, for the gift of technology and modern medicine, may we now find the elusive cure and vaccines against the Sarscov2 Coronavirus.

We thank you for the passion and dedication of all health workers, other frontliners, and the support people everywhere. We pray for the market vendors, grocery staff, bank tellers, police and military enforce, the security and village guards, the funeral people, the gar-bage collectors, the repairmen, the delivery drivers, our household helpers and staff, and many more. Please give each one of them your wisdom in every decision they make; please protect and sustain them and provide them with the strength, energy, and courage they need to carry on.

A PRAYER FOR THE PHILIPPINES IN THE TIME OF THE SARSCOV2 CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC

by DR. JONATHAN A. DIZON

We pray for our officials, please provide them wisdom, and guide the minds of our leaders in the de-cisions they make that will affect all our lives. Please lead them to act wisely and carefully. And in the best interests of all Filipinos and all of the communities in the world. Please shine your light on the path ahead.

Please draw close to the anxious hearts and troubled minds of those who now face high financial stress; please protect them and their families from long term eco-nomic damage and guide them day by day and step by step through this crisis.

We pray for our displaced students who can't go to school. May they find the passion for continuous learning from the confines of their homes.

We pray for Rotarians, especially the members of our RCMPD family, and all other families elsewhere. Please give each one of us the calmness and wisdom we need to carry us together, through the days, weeks, and months ahead.

May we find it in our hearts to un-derstand one another and have the ability to forgive forget and move on in the spirit of camarade-rie.

Please plant into the heart of every Rotarian, every Filipino and all citi-zens of the world, the spirit of lov-ing our neighbors as ourselves. May they follow in the footsteps of our Lord, in caring for those around us—friends and strangers alike—as you draw our community together in love.

We pray for those who are alone or troubled at this challenging time. Calm their bleeding hearts, ease their troubled minds, and move their friends, family, and ac-

quaintances to call them to en-courage and support them.

We pray that something great and good comes out of this malefi-cence.

(Altogether)

And we ask all these things for our country and our people, we share and love in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Amen.

19

One of our club's advocacies is early literacy and nu-

meracy. Our goal is to help transform children into life-

long learners because we believe that education is a

path out of poverty. Every child can grow up to be a

valuable contributing member of society.

The Covid-19 Pandemic has presented new

challenges.

Suddenly, children had to stay at home, and parents

assumed an additional role of being their teachers. As

club Service Committee Chair and president of

Knowledge Channel Foundation, we had to address

this challenge. Knowledge Channel created the "Stay at

Home, Learn at Home" campaign, which serves as an

alternative means of learning using television.

We encourage parents and children to continue learn-

ing while at home. For self-paced learning, Knowledge

Channel Foundation provides DepEd K-12 curriculum-

based educational videos organized by grade level and

subject.

I have created a video that provides information on

how online learning can easily be accessed. You will

find this video at bit.ly/RCMPD-home-learning.

Unpredictable times do not have to be disruptive.

Rest assured, we will continue to support the Philip-

pine Department of Education so that Filipino children

will continue learning despite being at home.

The Rotary Club of Makati Premier District had the

foresight to support Filipino children's learning

through the Knowledge Channel Foundation. We are

here to be of service to the Filipino people.

STAY AT HOME, LEARN AT HOME

by RINA LOPEZ BAUTISTA

20

My mother began homeschooling us before it was cool. She started in the year 2000 when I was ten years old. Our family had just relocated to the quaint town of Limay, Bataan, closer to my father, who worked there as a contractor. Before the big move, we lived in Ma-nila, studying at Montessori de Manila. For my mother, enrolling us in a school in the province was not an op-tion. Like every protective mother, she had her fears—that we'd be culture-shocked by the change or bullied by our peers. She didn't trust the academic integrity of the so-called "best private school in the province," even after learning that the Governor sent his children there. Homeschooling, then, seemed like the best op-tion; she began to crack open the books for her four children, aged eleven, ten (me), seven, and five.

I WAS A HOMESCHOOLED CHILD By TONI URRUTIA

As a child, I didn't question my mom's choice to home-school us. I justified it by thinking we were somehow different: we were in some exile- we lived in a house by the sea, after all!

For the next four years, our fluid schedule was bol-stered by structured activities: we studied at all inter-vals of the day, making time for chores, for playing out-side, for reading and crafts. Our mother cheered us on with her support, buying us books on math, science, history, and English. We played with puzzles, board games, flashcards, and just about any type of educa-tional material we could get our hands-on. We were encouraged to watch educational shows on the Na-tional Geographic, Discovery Channel, History Channel, and Knowledge Channel. She instructed us to write essays and draw illustrations based on what we watched.

My siblings and I still have fond memories of our moth-er sitting on the porch, a Reader’s Digest open on her lap. She’d go through a list of idioms, quizzing us on their meanings. Other times, she would challenge us with unfamiliar English words, urging us to define and use them in a sentence. This is how we would spend our weekend afternoons.

This new mode of learning

was filled with challenges,

but it had its merits. “

“ As my brother Billy’s older sister, I knew I could teach him a few lessons myself. My older sister Francy and I soon became teachers of our own for our younger sib-lings. For one of Billy’s science projects, we went out-side to pluck a gumamela flower from the garden. As we sat on the pavement, I pointed to all the parts of a flower: the petals, the calyx, the sepals, the anther. When we returned inside, I asked him to paste the flower on an illustration board and label all the parts I had shown him. For his zoology class, we caught grass-hoppers and dragonflies, examining the insects’ body parts.

Learning wasn't just confined to the study table. “

“

We found ways to learn through games, from TV, and

even from friends and family who would share their

knowledge of foreign languages. We learned the Ko-

rean alphabet from a neighbor and Italian from an un-

cle who made annual visits. Most importantly, with

my mother’s guidance, as siblings we learned from

each other. The academic discipline ingrained in us

during our years at Montessori coupled with the flexi-

bility and adaptability of homeschooling proved stra-

tegic to our learning.

Even our love for the arts and extracurriculars was

endorsed. At seven years old, my sister Iza would al-

ready be writing and drawing her own comic book

21

strips. She delighted everyone she knew with realistic

portraits of themselves. My sister Francy designed

and sewed dresses for our Barbie dolls. Billy proved to

be athletic and would eventually join the village's jun-

ior basketball team. As for me, I enjoyed creative writ-

ing and was published in an Australian journal at 12

years old. I have my mother to thank for her unyielding

support of our intellectual, athletic, and creative pur-

suits.

Here’s what I would tell all the newly minted home-

schooling teachers that this pandemic has brought

about: first of all, relax. There are advantages to

homeschooling. There are creative ways to support

your child's learning, which will be even easier with the

help of the internet. Take this time to learn about your

child’s individual interests and help cultivate them.

Let them look back on

this experience with

you with great

tenderness, as a time of

intellectual and creative

exploration with the

ones they love most —

you.

“

“

Read with them. Do crafts with them. Spend time out-

side and teach them about nature. Catch some grass-

hoppers. Look up at the sky and teach them about

constellations, the way of the planets. Let this time be

a memorable one.

In 2009 I acquired my Professional Regulation Commis-

sion (PRC) license to teach. Having graduated with a

degree in Psychology and acquiring a Certificate in

Special Education, the latter being something I’d fallen

in love with while conducting my senior thesis on deaf

children, I felt that teaching was a definite path for me.

Life, however, had other plans, and I never formally

practiced teaching beyond teaching art to kindergarten

students, multimedia to young teens, and English to

European executives who signed up for distance learn-

ing.

Fast forward to today, an enhanced community quar-

antine that has left schools with no choice but to ask

parents to continue the school year for them, and par-

ents no choice but to try their best for their children at

home. When it was first announced, I thought: Hey, I

know this. I was once licensed for this. And boy was I

wrong!

Even if the school provides suggested activities it still

falls on parents to make sure those activities are done,

done properly, and that learning actually takes place.

Frustrations abound on both sides at least once a

week. It is, undoubtedly, difficult for a child to adjust to

REFLECTION: HOME SCHOOLING IN QUARANTINE by RACHEL KELLY DAVIS

Homeschooling

while juggling

working from home,

has not been a walk

in the park.

“ “

22

mom not just being mom, but also being their teacher

as well; difficult for a child to realise that their home--a

place of fun, refuge, and time for rest--is now also their

school.

Frequently I feel at a loss when I see the boundary be-

ing blurred or when I am given a question I cannot an-

swer. Harder still are the questions no one can answer,

such as: “When will Coronavirus end?” or “Can I go back

to school and see my friends?” or “Can we play in the

park today?”

As a parent it has given me a great insight into my

child’s personality. Watching her learn, observing how

best she learns (the techniques she responds to best),

and discovering together the things she naturally ex-

cels in have given me clarity into a facet of her that I

might have not had otherwise.

On one particular day, I realized that my daughter has

a natural wonder towards botany. When gardening,

she didn’t stop at asking how different plants grow, but

she pursued it further by wanting to try it and insisting

on doing so. She then followed her experiments to see

which would thrive. (Spoiler: They all died from being

over-watered despite our warnings). The deaths did

not phase her, though, as they often do new plant par-

ents. She tried again. This gave me a realization that

apart from the natural love for science and experimen-

tation, she is willful and determined despite failure,

and a trait like that can be applied to so many other

subjects and facets of life. This deeper understanding

is something for which I am very grateful. Not to men-

tion the fact that I feel it may give me an upper hand

when she becomes a teen!

Kids will not be returning to school until August, and

even then it is likely to be a mix of online learning,

home learning, and classroom learning. In short: par-

ents are not off the hook for the foreseeable future!

The learning victories are also a reminder that we are

healthy and we have each other as we live in this ex-

traordinary time in history, where everything we know

is changing.

For all its challenges,

however, the set-up is not

without its perks.

“ “

Given that, all the more do I need to encourage myself

with the small victories, and I

encourage other parents to do the

same.

“

“

23

Rotary recommends five basic committees in its Club structure: (1) Service Projects, (2) Rotary Foundation, (3) Membership, (4) Public Image and (5) Club Administration. However, Clubs can add, eliminate or combine commit-tees or subcommittees according to their interests, activities and number of members.

In addition, Clubs are encouraged to have a Trainor, typically a Past President, and as a young growing club with a need to have effectively Rotarized members in our roster, this is all the more a very important role. Our Club Trai-nor is Past President Raissa Hechanova - Posadas.

The Club Committees are the life force of our organization. Whether you are an appointed committee chair or serve as a committee member, you can help develop leaders, improve communities, and make RCMPD a positive, thriving and exciting place.

THE RCMPD COMMITTEES

24

The Service Committee of the Rota-

ry Club of Makati Premier District,

as in most Rotary clubs, is one of

its main pillars and reason for be-

ing. We identify our members’ indi-

vidual and collective strengths,

which we can harness and address

the needs of our communities. We

plan, we implement, and we evalu-

ate projects made possible

through collaboration and mobili-

zation of resources. Our four ave-

nues of service are vocational,

community, international, and

youth services.

Vocation Services: Members uti-

lize their professions and skills to

serve others. They educate co-

members by giving classification

talks. They contribute their exper-

tise to help people and communi-

ties.

Community Services: This ave-

nue focuses on improving the qual-

ity of life, particularly in poor com-

munities.

International Services: We seek

partnerships with clubs in various

regions around the world and put

in place collaborative projects. We

hope to be more active and take

part in more international commu-

nication exchanges.

SERVICE COMMITTEE by RINA LOPEZ BAUTISTA, SERVICE COMMITTEE CHAIR

Youth Services: Knowing the fu-

ture is in the hands of our youth,

we empower youth and young pro-

fessionals through leadership de-

velopment programs such as Rota-

ract, Interact, Rotary Youth Leader-

ship Awards, and Rotary Youth Ex-

change.

The Service Committee of RCMPD

is exceptionally dynamic. The

members are action-oriented and

very productive. Each member

plays up his/her strengths and ap-

plies these in the various projects

we conduct. The teamwork and

collaboration among the members

are truly amazing and heartwarm-

ing. All this is the wellspring of my

inspiration to be a part of RCMPD’s

Service Committee.

If you have the passion, the skills,

and interest in significantly elevat-

ing the living condition of the peo-

ple we serve, especially during this

time of extreme need, please join

us!

25

The Rotary Foundation (TRF) and Global Grant are two different ave-nues. The responsibility of the TRF Chair is to encourage donations to TRF of Rotary International. These donations are used by TRF in fund-ing Grants worldwide.

This Rotary year, we received the approval of three Global Grant pro-jects, first 2 are our flagship pro-jects, “Rotary, Fighting Cancer! Sav-ing Lives!,” “Building the Nation Through Enhanced Basic Educa-tion,” and “Let’s Save the Brain,” the latter in cooperation with RC Makati Century City, a project which aims to help save the lives of stroke patients at the Philippine General Hospital. For these, the club thanks to its generous mem-bers, RC Makati, We are currently waiting for the approval of our fourth Global Grant on Cancer Part 2. Our members continue to do-nate US$100 every year to the Ro-tary Foundation.

Passion and joy in helping lead us to apply for Global Grant Projects that significantly alleviate the lives of the people we serve. We share our knowledge on Global Grant to help other clubs successfully apply for their good projects.

We have a power cast team to im-plement our Global Grant Projects:

Primary Host Contact - CP Carol Mercado, Secondary Host Contact - TCP Nikki Tang, Treasurer - Dir. Jose Marie Yupangco, Mobile Clinic Operation - Dir. Joni Dizon, Promo-tion of Projects - Rtn Joy Ejercito, Monitoring and Coordination of Education Videos with Cooperating Organizations — Rotarians May Muñoz and Tin Reyes.

CLUB TRF COMMITTEE “Global Grants Help Change the World to a Better Place”

by CP CAROL MERCADO, CLUB TRF COMMITTEE CHAIR

MOU signing for our GG project, “Rotary, Fighting Cancer! Saving Lives!” with District 3620 Korea for our GG on Cancer Project held at Last Chukker, Manila Polo Club. L-R: District 3830 DGSC CP Carol Mer-cado, DGSC Baek, Phil. Cancer Society’s Medical Director Dr. Rachael Rosario and Mr. Jason Huang

Global Grant Committee Meeting with Cooperating Organizations Feb 18, 2020

26

Knowing Rotary Fundamentals is

key to the club's success. We as-

sure that new club members are

on-boarded properly and mem-

bers stay informed. We strive to be

true Rotarians in actions and deed.

I am inspired to be the Club Train-

er because my dad, Past RI Direc-

tor Paing Hechanova, advised my

batch of Club Presidents during the

District Training two years ago,

that there is no such thing as an

overnight Rotarian. He said we

start off as merely members of a

Rotary Club before we can truly be

Rotarians. And for this reason, I

was challenged to help our mem-

bers develop and transition to be-

coming true Rotarians.

Also, under the new RI Strategic

Plan and the District’s thrust for RY

2020-2021, I appreciated the need

for more members to be engaged

rather than have a contest on who

brought in more members. There

are many reasons why members

around the world and in the dis-

trict are not engaged and I saw

that as another challenge. The

streamlined scorecard system in

the next RY provides us with a lot

more flexibility in addressing these

concerns. It is also for this reason

that I agreed to head the Member-

ship Committee in RY 2020-21.

Club Trainors are typically Past

Presidents but if you have passion,

skills and the following interests,

join the training team and the RY

2020-2021 Membership Commit-

tee!

TRAINING COMMITTEE by PP RAISSA HECHANOVA-POSADAS

Learning New Things

Opening up to a greater Rotary

World

Organizational Dynamics

Team Building

Leadership Development

Teaching and Coaching

27

The Committee is in charge of

membership recruitment and re-

tention, orientation, and member

training, mentoring, and member-

ship assessment and planning.

Regarding recruitment, the Com-

mittee is responsible for pro-

cessing membership proposals

submitted by sponsoring members

and assigning and managing classi-

fications. It is also responsible for

periodically doing a health check of

the club and reviewing member-

ship profiles, statistics, and needs.

Inspiration is something that moti-

vates me to be better and do bet-

ter.

Different things inspire different

people. When I entered Rotary

I would say God was my greatest

motivation. Likewise, when I joined

the Membership Committee, I felt

somehow He would want to use

me to inspire others to see the es-

sence of being a Rotarian. Moreo-

ver, in this world, I will say my

greatest inspiration is my parents.

They taught me core values like

love, respect, justice and charity,

and values that I live by and also

embodied in the Rotary Four-Way

Test. To this day, everything I do,

for myself or others, is for God's

greater glory, and by doing so, I

make my parents proud.

If you have skills and interests in

leadership, mentoring, assessing

members' advocacies and needs –

please come join us!"

MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE by DR. JONI DIZON, MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE CHAIR

28

PUBLIC IMAGE COMMITTEE

This RY 2019-2020 has so far been

an eventful and fulfilling year for

the Public Image Committee,

backed by a lean and mean group

of talented individuals in my re-

warding task of steering it to the

force it has become today.

We are bolstered by the guidance

of TCP Nikki Tang, tireless support

of PP Raissa Hechanova-Posadas,

administrative assistance of Ivy

Santos, and more significantly, the

exemplary projects and activities

that the outstanding RCMPD mem-

bers themselves delivered, espe-

cially during times of crisis and

challenge. All these inspire the PI

Team to generate and disseminate

news and features that faithfully

tell our unique story!

The PI pack is vibrant with commu-

nications, digital marketing and

photography practitioners and afi-

cionados – Leah Quesada, Rachel

Kelly-Davis, Eric Quiason, and Toni

Urrutia. They breathe life into our

Premier monthly newsletter, keep

our social media platforms current

and animated, and assure our

website is a welcome destination

for club information.

The PI initiatives connect us as a

club and make us effective and

responsive to the nation's needs

and pleas. Our Rotary District

heads took notice and have pub-

lished RCMPD articles in the Gover-

nors Monthly Letter, and honored

us with a cover story on the Philip-

pine Rotary Magazine no less!

by CHARILU PUNO, PUBLIC IMAGE CHAIR

Along with our latest PI committee

signup from new member radio

host Dorelene Dimaunahan, we

invite everyone to be a part of our

creative machine!

If you are news hungry, audience

minded, a great storyteller, a per-

suasive connection cultivator – we

want YOU!

29

Club meetings define a member's Rotary experience. We help facili-tate a great experience by prepar-ing the meeting agenda, encourag-ing members to attend, including fellowship opportunities, and keep-ing members informed of meeting content.

The challenge to head club admin-istration came three years ago - the need was presented, the chal-lenge accepted, and the decision to serve at our best was made. And my what a ride it has been! While there was a good share of hiccups encountered as the young club went through its organizational birth pains, persistence, a positive attitude, and inspiration to carry on came from many fronts.

We derived joy from executing an idea to its minutest details, har-nessed resources, collaborated, problem-solved, kept a cool head when faced with panic. We drew up a 100 line list of responsibilities to ensure the club's wheels were well oiled. We strove to keep as our goals: execute flawlessly, main-tain respect and harmony, and have fun.

Countless behind the scenes ne-gotiations ensued, back and forths, coordinating speakers and other club's schedules because members needed to stay informed, engaged, and relevant.

We worked with an energized, workaholic, detail-oriented, OC team, which included the three presidents we served. We invited rookie Ivy Santos to join us. We watched her bloom into a true Ro-tarian's executive secretary - not just efficient, hardworking with "malasakit", but passionate and dedicated, imbibing Rotary values.

CLUB ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE by CORINA KALAW, ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEE CHAIR

Most importantly, the current crisis brought a defining moment as we pulled resources and efforts to de-liver assistance to our frontliners. A most informative and fulfilling endeavor, anchoring productivity with a more profound sense of purpose.

Ultimately, Inspiration came from the desire to help this dynamic group of like-minded members who want to give back, and believe in the path of "service above self."

As we find ourselves engulfed in an unprecedented crisis, we rise to

the new normal, continually prob-ing to find ways to push the club forward. We welcome Joy Ejercito and the new team to a vibrant year ahead in these transformative times.

If you have the passion, skills, or interests in planning, organizing, hosting, and learning all of the Ro-tary organization and policies, with communication, internet, and presentation skills, we would in-deed be honored to join our dy-namic committee.

30

Despite the ECQ lockdown, we

were able to gather for two Regu-

lar Club Meetings on the 19th and

the 26th of May 2020 via Zoom

video conference. These were held

alternately at 4pm for the first

meeting and at 11am for the sec-

ond from Manila, so as to accom-

modate the U.S. and European

time zones of our members resid-

ing abroad.

TCP Nikki Tang called the meetings

to order and led the well organized

proceedings, where each commit-

tee chair gave their accomplish-

ment reports and members were

updated on the latest announce-

ments and activities of the District.

The RCMPD also held its first-ever

Online Induction with multi-

faceted business and media pro-

fessional Dorolene “Dore” Dimau-

nahan taking her oath in the virtu-

al presence of her co-Rotarians.

Her sponsoring member Club

Treasurer JM Yupangco looked on

proudly, garbed in PPE head shield

and face mask, as the ceremony

took place.

The Club knew it was welcoming a

very special person in Dore to its

fold, as she gamely delivered a talk

on just her second meeting as a

member. She graciously respond-

ed to questions about her person-

al life and advocacies. Her topic

“COVID Diaries: The Millennial Col-

laboration” was of keen interest as

shown by the lively Q &A discus-

sion that ensued.

MAY CLUB MEETINGS AND FIRST ONLINE INDUCTION

31

The membership committee led by Dr. Joni Dizon sur-

veyed club members. The 5-minute survey started with

a few demographic questions about membership ten-

ure and the desired time spent with club activities. The

study also explored the members' advocacies, interest

in club projects, and ideas of future club projects.

It is interesting to note that ideas for future club pro-

jects align very nicely with the club's current three ad-

vocacies: education, healthcare with cervical cancer

testing, and community development - with an added

relevance to the new world order of a pandemic.

This data is useful in determining future club endeav-

ors that will not only interest club members but also

be relevant to current day challenges while being

aligned with Rotary International's Six Focus Areas.

Thank you to the Membership Committee members.

We are one in this journey in making a difference!

WE ARE ONE IN MAKING A DIFFERENCE A MEMBER SURVEY

Charts by Toni Urrutia and Billy Urrutia. Infographic by Leah Quesada.

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Aloha, Honolulu Promotion Team: We hope that you are all continuing to do well and thank you for your effort to continue to promote Now More Than Ever, Rotary Connects the World: The 2020 Rotary Virtual Convention. The purpose of this correspondence is to give you the most recent news and information regarding the June 20 – 26, 2020 Rotary Virtual Convention.

Now Is the Time to Watch www.riconvention.org: As you know, the schedule of events are posted for the June 20 and 21 General Sessions and the week of breakouts that follow. Also, members of Rotary can sign up to receive timely e-mail updates regarding the convention by going to the website.

Why Is it Important to Watch www.riconvention.org now? Over the next week to 10 days, we expect to release exciting news about our speakers, and more detailed information about our pro-gram. Further, we are getting very close to being able to an-nounce the registration process. We know that every member of Rotary throughout the world is eager to receive announcements on both of these items. We ask YOU, as members of the Virtual Convention Committee, to let them know that the Convention team is pushing as hard and fast as possible to make these an-nouncements and that they will be made soon. When these items are posted on the Convention website, Rotary will be sending out messages using every means we have available. Keep your eyes and ears open!

Post-Convention Events: The June 20 – 26 Virtual Convention will be followed by a number of exciting events, including the Rotaract Convention and the Youth Exchange conference. In addition, breakout sessions will be held that are organized by various Rotary programs (RAGS, Fellowships, etc.) More infor-mation about all these events will be announced shortly.

Excitement is building and that is a good thing! Our members of Rota-ry should be excited about the first, ever Virtual Convention. Remem-ber, President Mark and Gay, Chair Celia Giay, the Convention Com-mittee and our dedicated staff believe we can set an attendance record at this convention. We just need your help to build awareness, interest and excitement to join us as we set this record. Mahalo for all you are doing. Until the next update, Aloha Rotary, P.T. Prabhakar Bradford R. Howard Co-Promotions Chairs, 2020 Rotary Virtual Convention

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July 2019 New Leadership Month August 2019 Membership and New Club Development Month September 2019 Basic Education and Literacy Month October 2019 Economic and Community Development Month 7-13 October — Rotary Alumni Reconnect

Week 24 October — World Polio Day November 2019 Rotary Foundation Month 4-10 World Interact Week December 2019 Disease Prevention and Treatment Month

Calendar of Rotary Observances

January 2020 Vocational Service Month 19-25 January — International Assembly, San

Diego, California, USA February 2020 Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution Month 23 February — Rotary's anniversary March 2020 Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Month 9-15 March — World Rotaract Week 28 March — Presidential conference, Rotary

Day at UNESCO, Paris, France (CANCELLED) April 2020 Maternal and Child Health Month May 2020 Youth Service Month June 2020 Rotary Fellowships Month 5-6 June — Rotaract Preconvention, Honolulu,

Hawaii, USA (CANCELLED)

5-6 June — Youth Exchange Officers Precon-

vention, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA (CANCELLED)

5 June — Presidential conference, Honolulu,

Hawaii, USA (CANCELLED)

6-10 June — Rotary International Convention,

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA (CANCELLED)

30 June — Rotary Citation for Rotary Clubs

Award nominations are due

RCMPD June 2020 Meeting Schedule

June 16 Club Meeting

June 27 Club Recognition Night

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JANUARY 8 Buster Virata 19 Merci Padolina 22 Raissa & Monet Posadas Anniversary 23 Bong Arjonillo

FEBRUARY 4 Robina Ko Tan 11 Dee & Joey Chan Anniversary 14 Leah Quesada & Bruce Kellet Anniversary 15 Dee Jalandoni Chan

MARCH 4 Hazel Zuellig 8 Baby Cheng 14 Baby & Steve Cheng Anniversary 19 JM Yupangco 19 Robina and Eric Tan Anniversary 25 Patti Manuel 26 Corina Kalaw

APRIL 5 Ravi & Shirley Daryanani Anniversary 10 PW Agcaoili 12 Annabel Uy Braganza 12 Joy and Don Ejercito Anniversary 16 Raissa Hechanova Posadas 18 Dore Dimaunahan 24 Ricky Trinidad

MAY 11 Mukesh Advani

JUNE 1 Toni Urrutia 25 Carol & Jojo Mercado Anniversary

MILESTONES

BIRTHDAYS and ANNIVERSARIES

JULY 2 Ludeth Cruz 3 Buster & Malin Virata Anniversary 15 Rina Lopez Bautista 17 Tin Reyes

AUGUST 7 JM & Emillie Yupangco Anniversary 8 Kat & Tres Lleander Anniversary 11 Dr. Joni Dizon 13 BJ Thompson 22 Sonie Aguilar 25 Kat Lim-Lleander

SEPTEMBER 10 Joy Ejercito 22 Carol Mercado

OCTOBER 1 Leah Quesada 10 Eric Quiason 14 Rachel Kelly Davis 19 Nikki Tang 20 Tom Drilon 27 Eric & Bern Quiason Anniversary

NOVEMBER 6 May Muñoz 13 Charilu Puno 15 Ludeth & Nathaniel Cruz Anniversary

DECEMBER 6 Sonie & Mike Aguilar Anniversary 8 Ricky & IC Trinidad Anniversary 8 Bong & Carol Arjonillo Anniversary 11 Hazel & David Zuellig Anniversary 16 Ravi Daryanani

“Friendship was the foundation rock on which Rotary was built and

tolerance is the element which holds it together.”

— My Road to Rotary

Paul P. Harris, Founder of Rotary

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President Nikki Tang

Immediate Past President Raissa Hechanova-Posadas

Charter President/TRF Chair Carol Mercado

President-Elect/Internal VP Enrico Trinidad

External VP Mercedes Padolina

Secretary Jose Luis Agcaoili

Treasurer Jose Mari Yupangco

Service Projects Chair Rina Lopez Bautista

Service Projects Vice- Chair Teresa Cheng

Public Image Chair Rosario Lourdes Puno

Membership Chair Dr. Jonathan Dizon, MD

Administration Chair Maria Socorro Kalaw

Administration Vice- Chair Joy Gladys Ejercito

Honorary Member Bro. Armin Luistro FSC

Former Secretary of Education

OFFICERS & DIRECTORS ROTARY YEAR 2019-2020