Men of goodwill

Ruffy Magbanua

“The purpose of life is not only to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”–Ralph Waldo Emerson

 FOR over a year now, a group of professionals have been on their toes doing community service without much fanfare.

And they are not called men of good will for nothing. Their commitment  to serve humanity the Rotarian way is definitely out of the question.

Their variety of community engagements went beyond boundaries, reaching even in less road traveled with only one thing in mind: service above self.

These men of goodwill are active members of the Rotary Club of Opol, a newly-chartered club under Rotary International 3870.

Armed with nothing but their   unyielding commitment to serve, the RC of Opol has gone all the way from serving porridge to impoverished children, sent young participants in out-of-town youth development activities, helped established communal vegetable  gardens to extending medical, dental and even legal services to hundreds of local residents through the conduct of community outreach programs.

While this newest addition to the family of Rotarians is primary focused on capacity building and self-improvement, an integral  part of the club’s mission is to serve others with open hearts and minds.

And being true to its commitment to help build Opol town into a thriving, peaceful and evolving business hub, RC Opol has been working hand in hand with the local government build an inclusive economic growth through collaboration and sustained partnership.

The Rotary Club of Opol, led by by its ever dynamic charter president Max Seno, is already a recipient of several awards from Rotary International 3870.

The club considers itself a  part of a close-knit community and therefore it is always in the forefront of extending  help and support to the people it cared about.

Seno, who is also the reelected mayor of Opol, says the club finds it easy to get so wrapped up in helping others whenever it can primarily because of the solid commitment of the charter members.

The second-termer mayor is set to bow out this July as charter president after a year of outstanding service to the club.

He will be replaced by incoming president Nhanding Gurrea, a businessman with a heart ready to serve  the people of Opol.

This early, Seno already expressed gratitude to the club members for the support and time well spent so generously for completing a variety of projects for the community under his helm.

Already Gurrea has outlined RC Opol’s priorities following the six areas of focus of Rotary: peace and conflict prevention and resolution, disease prevention and treatment, water and sanitation, maternal and child health, basic education and literacy, and economic and community development.

As an organization of business and professional people committed to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations and help build goodwill and peace, RC Opol, though still in its infancy stage, shall bring out the best it can serve the community through sustained programs and projects this year and beyond.

Our humanitarian projects are aimed at addressing the community needs by providing sustainable, measurable outcomes   benefiting our community in particular and the country in general, says Gurrea, a geodetic engineer by profession.

With men of goodwill, RC of Opol is poised to continue serving the community by adhering to the four-way test of Rotary: Is it the truth? Is it fair to all concerned? Will it build goodwill and better friendship? And will it be beneficial to all concerned?

E-mail: ruffy44_ph2000@yahoo.com