Why Dr. Fe del Mundo is someone to look up to
They rose. They lifted others.
A pioneering pediatrician and National Scientist who devoted her life to Filipino children and trained generations of doctors to serve them well.
Some people achieve greatness through what they accomplish.
Others become truly extraordinary through what they are willing to give up for others.
Dr. Fe del Mundo did both.
One of the great pioneers of Philippine pediatrics, she devoted her life to the health and welfare of Filipino children - particularly those with the least access to medical care.
She conducted important research on childhood diseases, trained generations of physicians and health workers, and helped bring medical services to underserved communities.
But one part of her story tells us perhaps more about her character than all her titles and awards:
She Sold Her Own Home And Personal Belongings To Help Finance A Hospital For Children.
In 1957, she established her pediatric hospital in Quezon City, today known as the Dr. Fe del Mundo Medical Center.
Her concern for children outside well-equipped hospitals also inspired practical solutions. She designed a simple, inexpensive bamboo incubator for communities where conventional equipment was unavailable.
Her achievements brought great honors.
In 1977, she received the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Public Service.
In 1980, she became the first woman to be named a National Scientist of the Philippines.
But those honors are not the principal reason I include her here.
It is what she did with her excellence.
She taught others.
She built institutions.
She served children who had little.
And when service demanded personal sacrifice, she gave from what was her own.
That is the kind of greatness I want our young people to see.
Success is not only about how far you rise.
It is also about how many lives you lift along the way.
That is why Dr. Fe del Mundo is one of my FILIPINOS TO LOOK UP TO.
Dr. Fe del Mundo devoted her life to the health and survival of Filipino children.
A pioneering pediatrician and National Scientist of the Philippines, she helped advance child healthcare in the country and founded the first pediatric hospital in the Philippines.
But achievement alone is not why we honor her.
She cared for poor children, served families in need, and helped train generations of Filipino doctors, health workers, and caregivers. Her legacy lives on not only in the institutions she helped build, but in the people she prepared to continue serving others.
This is why Dr. Fe del Mundo is one of our Filipinos To Look Up To.