08/07/2026
𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙧 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙨 𝙖 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙨 𝙖 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙝𝙤𝙥𝙚.
For three remarkable days, hope was restored, lives were transformed, and countless smiles were renewed through the dedication and generosity of 𝙎𝙪𝙞 𝙂𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙨 𝙈𝙞𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨, 𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙂𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙣𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙎𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙣 𝙇𝙚𝙮𝙩𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙎𝙖𝙡𝙫𝙖𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙊𝙥𝙥𝙪𝙨 𝙔ñ𝙞𝙜𝙪𝙚𝙯 𝙈𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙫𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙃𝙤𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡 (𝙎𝙊𝙔𝙈𝙋𝙃).
To every surgeon, physician, ophthalmologist, anesthesiologist, dentist, nurse, volunteer, partner, and supporter—your kindness reached far beyond the operating room. Every procedure performed, every hand held, and every life touched is a testament to the power of compassion, excellence, and selfless service.
We extend our heartfelt appreciation to Governor Damian G. Mercado and Vice Governor Emilia Milai Mercado for their steadfast leadership and unwavering support in making this life-changing mission possible. Our sincere gratitude goes to Medical Center Chief I, Dr. Ionne Castillones, for her visionary leadership, guidance, and unwavering commitment to ensuring the success of this endeavor. We likewise thank 𝑴𝒓. 𝑱𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒑𝒉 𝑫𝒖𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒆, 𝑺𝑶𝒀𝑴𝑷𝑯 𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝑴𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏, for his outstanding leadership, coordination, and tireless efforts in the successful implementation of the mission.
We likewise recognize the invaluable contributions of 𝐃𝐫. 𝐑𝐨𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐲𝐧 𝐎𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐎𝐈𝐂-𝐌𝐂𝐂, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐃𝐞𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐢𝐥 𝐀𝐫𝐚ñ𝐚, 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐃𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐝, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚 𝐒𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐚𝐧, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑴𝒐𝒐𝒏𝒚𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝑩𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒄, 𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒇 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬, 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝑴𝒓. 𝑳𝒚𝒏𝒅𝒐 𝑩. 𝑪𝒂𝒍𝒗𝒂, 𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒇 𝑵𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑴𝒔. 𝑫𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒂 𝑼𝒚, 𝑨𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒆𝒇 𝑵𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆 whose dedication, collaboration, and commitment to patient care during the screening, clearance, admission, and post-operatively greatly contributed to the success of this humanitarian mission.
Our profound gratitude goes to the 𝑺𝒖𝒊 𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒔 𝑴𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝑴𝒂𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒏 2026 𝑻𝒆𝒂𝒎, led by 𝑬𝒙𝒆𝒄𝒖𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑫𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓 𝑯𝒐𝒏. 𝑱𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝑮𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝑭𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑬𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑴𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑫𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓 𝑫𝒓. 𝑯𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒚 𝑪. 𝑪𝒉𝒖𝒂, whose vision, leadership, and commitment brought this humanitarian mission to the people of Southern Leyte.
We also extend our sincere appreciation to the dedicated leaders and members of every SGM team:
• 𝙀𝙮𝙚 𝙏𝙚𝙖𝙢, headed by 𝑫𝒓. 𝑷𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒏𝒐 𝑳𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒂𝒛𝒂𝒃𝒂𝒍 𝑰𝑰𝑰, together with 𝑫𝒓. 𝑬𝒅𝒖𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒐 𝑵𝒊ñ𝒐 𝑩𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒐, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑱𝒆𝒇𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒚 𝑹𝒐𝒃𝒍𝒆, the ophthalmology nurses, and support staff, for restoring the precious gift of sight.
• 𝑺𝒖𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝑻𝒆𝒂𝒎, led by 𝑫𝒓. 𝑨𝒓𝒏𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝑻𝒂𝒏, 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑫𝒓. 𝑯𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒚 𝑪. 𝑪𝒉𝒖𝒂, 𝑫𝒓. 𝒀𝒖𝒍 𝑮𝒆𝒗𝒓𝒆𝒌 𝑩𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒂, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌 𝑱𝒐𝒉𝒏 𝑬𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒛𝒂𝒓, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑴𝒊𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒆𝒍 𝑪𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒂𝒂𝒏, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑨𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌 𝑮𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒛, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑹𝒖𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝑨𝒅𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑶𝒃𝒆𝒏𝒛𝒂, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑪𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒏 𝑬𝒍𝒖𝒎𝒃𝒂, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑫𝒐𝒏 𝑬𝒅𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝑹𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒐, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑭𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒍𝒂 𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒂, 𝑫𝒓. 𝑷𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒂𝒐, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑴𝑰𝑺 𝑭𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝑫𝒓. 𝑨𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒏 𝑷𝒂𝒏𝒖𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒐, for giving patients a new chance at healthier lives through expert surgical care.
• 𝗔𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗮 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺, headed by 𝐃𝐫. 𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐀𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐀𝐥𝐬𝐚𝐲, 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐫. 𝐉𝐚𝐜𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐙𝐨𝐬𝐚, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐀𝐥𝐟𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐥 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐨, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐊𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐀𝐥𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐬 𝐃𝐞 𝐋𝐚 𝐕𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐨 𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐫. 𝐄𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐮𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚 𝐈𝐬𝐚𝐡, for ensuring every procedure was carried out safely and with the highest standard of care.
• 𝗗𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺, led by 𝐃𝐫. 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐧, 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐫. 𝐉𝐚𝐧 𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐨, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐫 𝐀𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐧𝐚, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐉𝐨𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞 𝐑𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐋𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐚𝐲, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐑𝐞𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐎𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐞, 𝐃𝐫. 𝐑𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 𝐀𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐫, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐫. 𝐉𝐚𝐲𝐝𝐞𝐞 𝐆𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐨, for restoring healthy smiles and improving the oral health of our community.
• Our sincere appreciation also goes to the dedicated 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐨𝐨𝐦 𝐍𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐬, 𝐒𝐆𝐌 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐍𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐀𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦, 𝐁𝐢𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦, 𝐋𝐨𝐠𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐃𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚, 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐮𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐎𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, whose hard work behind the scenes ensured the smooth and successful delivery of every service throughout the mission.
To the 𝗦𝗢𝗬𝗠𝗣𝗛 𝐝𝐨𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬, 𝐧𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐬, 𝘀𝗼𝘆𝗺𝗽𝗵 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗻𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝘀, 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐬, 𝐚𝐝𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐥, 𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐥, 𝐈𝐓 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐟𝐟, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐎𝐘𝐌𝐏𝐇 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲, thank you for your unwavering dedication, teamwork, and commitment. Your tireless efforts ensured that every patient received not only quality healthcare but also compassion, dignity, and hope.
To every 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗿, 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿, 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆—thank you for proving that when compassionate hearts come together, lives are forever changed.
Together, we didn't just perform surgeries—we restored hope, transformed lives, and created a legacy of compassion that will continue to inspire generations to come.
𝑭𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒖𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝑺𝒂𝒍𝒗𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝑶𝒑𝒑𝒖𝒔 𝒀ñ𝒊𝒈𝒖𝒆𝒛 𝑴𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝑯𝒐𝒔𝒑𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒍 (𝑺𝑶𝒀𝑴𝑷𝑯), 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝑺𝒖𝒊 𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒔 𝑴𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔. 𝑾𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒆𝒍𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒂𝒔 𝒘𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒆 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒐𝒇 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆, 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒒𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒕 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕. 💙
