Coming from a poor family, the young Jesus Veneracion worked his way through medical school in Manila. Upon the invitation of his brother, Dr. Veneracion moved to General Santos City where they saw an opportunity to put up a hospital as there was no hospital operating in the city then.
Their staunch commitment to serve had always guided the entrepreneurial zeal of the two brothers in setting up St. Elizabeth Hospital in 1962. The 25-bed primary hospital was the very first medical facility in General Santos City.
“When you’re a doctor and you work in a hospital, you have to remember that you are always serving people who are in pain,” says Dr. Veneracion.
In spite of their commitment to be of service to people, Dr. Veneracion admitted that for St. Elizabeth Hospital, it was an “uphill journey.”
But through persistence and with help from people who believe in them and the support of partners such as Landbank, Dr. Veneracion made it through the birth pains of founding a medical facility. From its modest beginnings, St. Elizabeth Hospital is now a full-service and ISO-certified institution.
The story of Dr. Veneracion and St. Elizabeth Hospital is among countless others that have been part of Landbank’s continuing journey towards the fulfillment of its countryside development mandate.
And as one of the featured stories in the book, St. Elizabeth Hospital, represented by Dr. Veneracion, was honored during Landbank’s regional launch of “Harvest of Heroes” in Davao City held last October 29.
“We are very happy with this recognition and we are grateful to Landbank for their help,” Dr. Veneracion said during the event.
“Harvest of Heroes” features some of the most inspiring stories of growth and success in Landbank’s history, as it hopes to celebrate the legacy of service and partnership by honoring a representative crop of outstanding clients and partners — the heroes of its 52-year story.
“As we mark 52 years of meaningful operation, Landbank stands as proud witness to dreams fulfilled, lives changed and communities revitalized. Some of these are captured in this book, Harvest of Heroes, which we launched today. This is the first of a series to chronicle inspiring stories of our clients and partners,” said Landbank President and CEO Gilda E. Pico.
The book launch is one of the highlights of the Client Appreciation Event held in Davao City, which gathered the Bank’s partners from the province and the rest of Eastern Mindanao. The event also honored other successful clients which weren’t featured in the book, such as Malagos Chocolate that recently received two global recognitions this year.
This is the fourth leg of a nationwide launch, following a successful kick-off held at the Philippine International Convention Center in Manila in September.
The other Eastern Mindano-based clients featured in the book are farmers Ruben Ragas of Cabadbaran, Agusan del Sur and Jennymar Edombingo of Tulunan, North Cotabato; Spouses Aileen and Jonathan Suy of Davao City and Spouses Josephine and Jose Dela Vega II of Tagum, Davao del Norte, both from the SME sector; and Matling Multi-Purpose Cooperative of Malabang, Lanao del Sur. These clients belong to Landbank’s mandated and priority sectors.
As of October this year, Landbank’s loan portfolio in Mindanao reached P40.7 billion, where 83.6 percent or P34 billion were lent to the Bank’s mandated and priority sectors, including farmers and fishers, microenterprises and SMEs, agri- and aqua-businesses, agri-aqua related projects of LGUs and GOCCs, housing, utilities, and livelihood projects.
Landbank also continues to expand its network in Eastern Mindanao, where it now has 42 branches and extension offices (EO) complemented by 194 ATMs. Apart from its branches and EOs, the Bank also operates a treasury hub in Davao City to service its clients’ investment needs. The Bank also offers various loan programs to assist with clients’ various financing needs through lending centers located in Davao, Agusan del Norte, North Cotabato and South Cotabato. pr
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