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New Year message from UPMASA President, Dr Lou Publico
January 1, 2022
Dear Fellow Alumni,
Happy New Year!
While we would have wanted to say good-bye to both 2021 and Covid 19, we are instead disappointed that most of us are back wearing those cumbersome PPEs as we enter “contact-airborne precautions ”-labeled doors again.
Add to this the anguish we feel about the devastation wreaked by Typhoon Odette.
However, we turned the page to 2022 with positivity and gratitude to the many members who responded with utmost generosity and empathy, clicked the “donate” button in our website and kept our treasurer Dr.Glenn Batiller and bookkeeper Coty Santos busy, fielding calls and receiving credit card information. Your Executive Committee has ongoing conversation on how soon, how fast and which avenues to course our precious dollars.
In the December 16 UPMAS business meeting I attended by Zoom, I was amazed and gratified to learn how UP Manila Chancellor Carmencita “Menchit” Padilla, UP College of Medicine Dean Charlotte Chiong and PGH Director Gerardo “Gap” Legaspi, achieved so much despite the pandemic. We hope they can tell us in person at the July AGC in Boston.
I was impressed by the work done by UPMAS, how the officers jiggered the whole celebration, involved alumni from all over the world, conducted a well-participated Pabidahan and innovated a virtual tour of the campus. I was also intrigued about the idea of picking an Alumna of the Month.
We are starting a conversation on UPMAS-UPMASA collaboration on projects of mutual interest and benefit.
One of the earliest reveals of my term was how UPMASA seems to be unknown to a lot of alumni. Some still think we are only about socials/the gala and others seem to believe we are Fort Knox that can dispense huge amounts at the sleight of a hand.
I grab every opportunity to talk up UPMASA and am proud to share with you a video where Dr. Jennifer Yang of class 1999 brought my power point presentation to life. The background instrumental interpretation of Awit ng UPMASA is by Dr.Winston Umali.
Please feel free to share it with your family and friends.
May 2022 be a year of good health, comfort and joy for all of us.
Best,
Lou Publico,MD,MPH
UPMASA National President
