|
Clearly, in true
Maryknoll tradition, Margot leads a life
that seeks to make a positive difference
in other people’s lives.
MARGARITA GO
SINGCO-HOLMES
GS ‘64, HS ‘68
Margie Holmes is a clinical
psychologist, a well-loved professor at
the
University of the Philippines, a
sought-after lecturer for various
symposia,
a multi-media practitioner, a
best-selling author, a widely-read
columnist, and a
savvy blogger.
She
has revolutionized the way Filipinos
think and talk about sexuality by
becoming the foremost
psychologist specializing in sex
therapy who answers the toughest and
most
relevant questions. She hosted the
first-ever Philippine-based show to deal
with sexual and psychological issues.
Her no-holds-barred approach
freed many Filipinos from their
repressions and opened many minds to
accept broader ideas about beauty,
family, relationships, spirituality,
and, yes, sexuality.
Margie
reflects the Maryknoll spirit by
pioneering and advocating a field which
was once considered taboo by Philippine
society.
CATHERINE SY
GO
HS ‘67, COLL ‘71
Considering the
choices she has made, Catherine S. Go
does not seem to belong to this time - a
time marked with materialism, obsession
for beauty and glamour and a constant
race to own the latest technological
gadgets.
Cathy was then a high-ranking
officer in the country’s second largest
bank and living in an upscale Makati
condominium when she made a
life-changing decision – she resigned
from her job, left the comforts of her
home and took the position of Treasurer
of Tuloy Foundation, Inc. and moved into
a simple room in the compound of Tuloy –
a room which was less than 1/10th of her
former home.
Tuloy Foundation is a
non-profit organization which helps
street children by providing them with
food, clothing, shelter, health care,
education and skills training.
Prior to joining the Foundation,
Cathy’s involvement was limited to
sending donations anonymously.
She apparently felt that that was
not enough and in her desire to do much
more, she resigned from her job in the
bank and joined the Foundation in 1998
on a full-time basis as its Treasurer
and Trustee.
When asked by a friend with
disbelief why, Cathy explained that at a
certain point in one’s life, one looks
for significance and meaning in one’s
life.
She said simply – “Giving my
life, working and living with the poor
and abandoned children to give them a
better future has brought great
significance in my life.”
Cathy is a Maryknoll
paradigm – socially aware, selfless and
committed.
She deserves not only the
recognition but more importantly, the
emulation, of other Maryknollers.
MARIA CARMINIA
LOURDES CYNTHIA A. GUTIERREZ
COLL 2002
Dubbed by Time
magazine as one of the region’s Asian
Heroes for 2003, “Chin-Chin”, as she is
more popularly called, has carved out a
name for herself not only as a
consummate artist
but also as a staunch advocate
for the causes of Mother Earth. In the
eight years that she has earnestly
pursued the cause of protecting,
conserving and preserving the
environment, she has been acknowledged
by both peers and the public as a living
icon of the Filipina woman’s global
consciousness. Through her skillful use
of her unique gifts in song, dance,
drama and poetry, she has promoted a
heightened ecological awareness in
today’s progressive yet often apathetic
world. Aside from her numerous awards
from local cinema, Chin Chin is a 2004
TOWNS Awardee for Environmental Advocacy
and a delegate to the 1st United Nations
Environmental program “Sustainability
Training Workshop for Southeast Asian
media and communications Professionals”
held in Thailand. Her independent
cultural project “Uyayi:
A Collection of Philippine
Heritage” won for her the 2004 Catholic
Mass Media Awards for Best Secular Album
and a Special Citation for Exemplary
Work. Despite a tragic fire that injured
her, consumed her entire home and all
her worldly possessions, and aggravated
the illness of her ailing mother who
died 23 days later, Chin Chin continues
to profess her unwavering faith and
surrender to God in the face of
seemingly insurmountable odds, thereby
inspiring others by being a living
example of her cause.
CYNTHIA C.
IGNACIO-VALENCIA
GS ‘57
HS ‘61
Dr. Valencia has
committed her scientific skills for the
betterment of society, starting out as a
research chemist at the International
Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Los
Banos, Laguna where she analyzed more
than 10,000 rice varieties coming from
different parts of the world to
determine the levels of protein content
and amino acid composition. Her work
helped in determining
which rice varieties had strong
potential for having acceptable protein
and essential amino acid content.
After obtaining her medical
degree, she
immersed herself in
work in the depressed
barangays
of Irosin, Sorsogon, to do
research on
schistosomiasis, a fatal
parasitic disease that afflicted
endemic communities in the Bicol,
Visayan and Mindanao regions. The
research work, which was eventually
published in the Southeast Asian Journal
of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in
1981, led to the discovery of a
diagnostic method in parasitology that
enabled the fast detection and
identification of schistosome eggs.
During her involvement with the
World Health Organization (WHO) in 1978,
she continued to study the once-drug of
choice (Niridazole) for schistosomiasis
and isolated the toxic metabolite in the
drug that caused seizure in infected
patients.
Her further research work at Case
Western Reserve University in Cleveland,
Ohio was able to confirm the efficacy
and safety of Praziquantel, the current
drug of choice for schistosomiasis.
Sacrificing the financial rewards of a
lucrative position in the pharmaceutical
industry, she opted to dedicate her life
to public service. As current Chair of
the
Department of
Pharmacology & Toxicology of
the U.P. College of Medicine, she
staunchly advocates Good Clinical
Practice (GCP), an international set of
standards that govern the ethical and
scientific conduct of clinical trials of
drug products in volunteer patients,
promoting the protection of patients’
rights and welfare under the principle
of Primum Non Nocere (“First Do No Harm”
). She
also propagates the protection of the
integrity of clinical data to maintain
validity and credibility.
Joanne de Asis-Benitez
COLL ‘70
A multi-awarded global
investment banker, financial adviser and
entrepreneur.
After a successful
career on Wall Street in investment
banking and finance, Joanne founded and
chaired her own global investment firm
initially based in New York and Manila,
which later on expanded into a
partnership in Stuttgart, Germany.
In 1996, Joanne
received the “Tribute to Excellence’
award from the Asian American Federation
in New York for her pioneering efforts.
She serves as a Board Member on a number
of prestigious institutions including
the Advisory Board of the Harvard
Medical School, United Way, the
Philippine American Chamber of Commerce,
the Asian Cultural Council and the
Association of Foundations in the
Philippines.
One of Joanne’s many
triumphs lies in her having succeeded in
an intensely competitive field where
women were once not expected to prosper.
She espouses both hard work and
resilience, characteristics which she
believes are essential to survive and
succeed in today’s very complex world.
She has passed this legacy on to her
daughters, who have followed closely in
her footsteps.
MA. CECILIA E.
OREÑA-DRILON
GS ‘75
In an industry
dominated by men and characterized by
power and corruption, Ces has managed to
stay above it all.
In
her 21-year career as a broadcast
journalist, she has covered some of the
most memorable events in the country’s
recent history such as the Philippine
government’s negotiations with the
CPP-NDF in 1986 and the MNLF in 1987,
the bloodiest coup against the Aquino
government in 1989, the killer quake in
1990, the Mt. Pinatubo eruption in 1991,
the ambush of Joe Pring by the CPP’s
Alex Boncayao Brigade (a story which put
her directly in the line of gunfire) and
the landmark peace talks between the
Philippine government and the Muslim
separatist group, the MILF, in Tripoli,
Libya. Rather than going into the more
glamorous field of journalism by
covering society events, Ces opted to
cover relevant issues affecting
Philippine society. She realized early
on that the influence of television can
bring about positive social change.
In 2004, Ces was among
12 women to receive the TOWNS Award.
She was cited “for upholding high
standards of credibility, integrity and
incorruptibility in broadcast
journalism”. In 2005, Ces was also cited
by the Reproductive Health Advocacy
Network and the Social Acceptance
Project for her efforts to educate the
public about reproductive health and for
her advocacy for population management.
Estrella T.
Tiongson-Magno
HS ’57
COLL ‘61
Teah Magno personifies
the Maryknoll spirit of community
service and social awareness.
Rather than using all of her
knowledge and time in a lucrative
professional practice in Clinical
Psychology, Teah also devotes time and
energy into volunteer work.
She is a volunteer therapist for
Crisis Line and the AFP Medical Center’s
Neuro-Psychiatric ward.
When called upon, she does not
hesitate to render pro bono work for the
rehabilitation of rape victims and
abused and battered women and children.
In the recent
much-publicized Subic rape case, Teah
willingly and voluntarily assisted the
DSWD.
Apparently endowed with the gifts
of humor, compassion and the ability to
help people let go of all that is
negative in their lives, Teah helped
keep tempers, psyches and emotions
within limits, thereby earning her the
respect of lawyers involved in the case
and perhaps averting what could have
been an unpleasant and explosive legal
battle.
In 1990, when the
earthquake devastated Nueva Ecija, Teah,
together with other volunteers, traveled
north to help the victims recover from
the trauma and anguish of that tragedy.
Their efforts were deeply
appreciated by the Filipino people and
were recognized by then President
Corazon Aquino who conferred the Andres
Bonifacio Rehabilitation Medal on the
team.
The following words
from a person helped by Teah perhaps
best describe the person that Teah is:
she listens with her
soul
she loves with her heart
she takes out my fears and binds up my
wounds
If only there were
more human beings like Teah, this world
would be a happier and brighter place.
Ma.Teresa A.
Medrano-Ganzon
GS ‘68
HS
‘72
Tess Medrano-
Ganzon finished her Masters in
Entrepreneurship at the AIM envisioning
her business to be “an instrument that
would be at the service of God and man,
an instrument of unity, a business whose
profits would help meet the needs of
people in our ecclesiastical community
worldwide, living for the dream of
presenting to society a community of
Christians who were of one heart and one
mind.” With faith in God and a sincere
love for her fellowmen,
she turned her vision to reality
through her Banko Kabayan, formerly
known as the Ibaan Rural Bank in
Batangas, founded by her father. After
its turn-around from near bankruptcy,
the bank has been Tess’s
instrument to help alleviate poverty by
providing hundreds of small folk obtain
collateral-free loans for livelihood and
self-sufficiency. Tess and her husband,
Francis, adhere to the paradigm of
“economy of communion” where the profits
of enterprise are channeled towards
three goals: to help the poor, to
develop the business and to build
structures that would ensure the
continuance of the business in order to
be of service. Tess continues to make a
difference in the lives of more than
10,000 small entrepreneurs and their
families in Batangas province who would
not otherwise have access to credit. The
assurance of repayment even among the
hard-up members of the community is
based on her faith in God and the mutual
respect that has developed between her
and her clientele. Her advocacy goes
beyond merely providing micro-financing
but in building a long-term support
through training programs which enable
them to be self-reliant. Tess and her
husband are survivors of the Dos Palmas
kidnapping, an experience which only
strengthened their faith in God and
their love for their
fellow-men.
LUPITA AQUINO
KASHIWAHARA
COLL ‘57
Award winning movie
and television director. She was a major
pioneer of Philippine Television and
contributed to its being elevated to an
art form.
Lupita used the medium not only
for entertainment but also for education
and information with shows like Magnolia
Sunday Party, Family Theater with Fr.
James Reuter SJ, Balintataw, and Insight
with her brother Senator Benigno Aquino.
A member of the politically
prominent Aquino clan, she stayed away
from the political limelight, and used
her leadership qualities and visionary
prowess to fight for her beliefs behind
the lens of a camera, not an easy feat
for a woman during those dark days of
Martial Law.
Brave, idealistic and
patriotic, Lupita went on to direct
films and blazed a trail for female
directors with the unforgettable “Minsan
may Isang Gamu-gamo”, a movie that
condemned the Marcos-supported US bases
in the Philippines and garnered a
Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and
Sciences (FAMAS)
Best Director award in 1976.
Her other memorable films include
Alkitrang Dugo, Magandang Gabi sa Inyong
Lahat, and Ibalik Mo ang Araw sa Mundong
Makasalanan, Hati Tayo sa Magdamag and
Babae, her comeback film after a 10-year
hiatus.
She currently divides
her time between Manila and San
Francisco, where she worked as Assistant
Producer/Director in KGO-TV’s critically
acclaimed special “San Francisco
Superstar” which was honored with an
Emmy nomination.
She is active in Philippine
politics, assisting in the election
campaigns for Cory Aquino in 1985, Ramon
Mitra in 1992, Alfredo Lim in 1998, and
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in 2004.
Lupita continues to
involve herself in projects with a
social message, such as the
highly-acclaimed “Bisperas ng Kasaysayan”
a drama depicting the turmoil leading up
to the 1898 revolution, and “Higpitan Mo
ang Yakap Mo” an insightful and
informative drama designed to increase
AIDS awareness.
|
|
