A Time to Pass the Torch
When I accepted the presidency of UPERDFI two years ago, I did not set out to make history. My goal was much simpler: to leave the Foundation a little stronger than I found it.
The office normally changes hands after a year. I was entrusted with a second term, and for that confidence I will always be grateful. Those extra months proved to be a gift. They gave me time not only to help move programmes forward, but to listen more carefully—to our trustees, our alumni, our faculty, our students and our partners. Somewhere along the way, I realised that leadership is less about having all the answers than asking the right questions.
One question stayed with me throughout my term: What should UPERDFI become in the years ahead?
Not simply, What projects should we support? Or How much should we raise? Those are important questions, but they are not the most important one. The better question is this: How can UPERDFI make itself indispensable to the future of Philippine engineering?
That question changed how I viewed our work.
Scholarships, faculty grants and research support are not ends in themselves. They are investments in people. Partnerships are not trophies to display. They are bridges to opportunities that none of us can build alone. Even our conversations on student well-being, industrial policy and innovation were driven by the same conviction—that engineering matters only when it improves lives.
That is why Engineering Better Lives gradually became more than a tagline. It became the lens through which we made decisions and the standard against which we measured our work.
Looking back, I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude.
To my fellow trustees, thank you for your wisdom, friendship and steadfast support. To our Executive Director and Secretariat, thank you for the professionalism and quiet dedication that kept the Foundation moving every day. To our donors, partners and volunteers, thank you for believing that investing in education, research and young people is among the most meaningful ways to serve our nation. And to our students and faculty, thank you for reminding us—every single day—why UPERDFI exists.
Whatever we accomplished during these two years was never the work of one person. It was the result of people choosing to work together, often without seeking recognition, because they believed in a cause larger than themselves. I have simply been privileged to serve alongside them.
Of course, no presidency ever finishes the job. If anything, these two years reminded me how much remains to be done. We need more alumni to become active participants, not just proud graduates. We need younger leaders to step forward with confidence. We need to continue backing research that addresses our country’s most urgent challenges. And we must never allow UPERDFI to become comfortable simply because it has been successful.
Good institutions do not stand still. They renew themselves, one generation at a time.
As I pass the torch, I do so with confidence and optimism. The next leadership team will bring fresh ideas, renewed energy and a new perspective. They deserve our trust, our encouragement and our full support, just as I was fortunate to receive yours.
Although my term as President comes to an end, my commitment to UPERDFI does not. This Foundation has become part of my life, and I will continue to support it in whatever way I can. Leadership may be temporary, but service is not.
There is a saying that we plant trees whose shade we may never sit under. That, to me, is the work of a foundation. We invest in futures we may never personally witness, trusting that those who come after us will inherit something stronger because we cared enough to build it.
If these past two years have contributed, even in a small way, to that enduring purpose, then I consider myself truly fortunate.
Thank you for your trust. Thank you for your friendship. Most of all, thank you for giving me the privilege of serving UPERDFI.
