23/08/2026
HERstory: Celebrating A Sister's Journey
Sis. Dr.Gracita P. Rabago
Eta Tau | Batch 1987B
I have worked beside Sis. Dr. Gracita โGraceโ P. Rabago in major medical missions where the day starts early, the line of patients keeps growing and everyone eventually reaches that point when exhaustion begins to show.
Those moments reveal a personโs true character.
When the work becomes tiring and inconvenient, some people slowly step back. Sis. Grace moves closer. She looks for the next patient, the next problem and the next thing that needs to be done.
That is the Sis. Grace I know.
She has never made service feel like a performance. There is no need for a spotlight, a camera or an audience. Her focus remains on the people who came seeking help, many of whom have limited access to medical care.
Having personally witnessed this, I have nothing but mad respect for her commitment and sacrifice. I have seen the work behind the certificates, the long hours behind the photographs and the genuine concern behind every medical mission.
That is why her growing list of honours does not surprise me. What makes me smile is that institutions are finally recognising what many communities have known for years.
Sis. Grace has dedicated almost two decades to medicine as an obstetrician and gynecologist. In 2025, during the magnitude 6.9 Cebu earthquake, she helped deliver a healthy baby by the roadside amid aftershocks, rain and limited supplies.
That moment made the news, but it also revealed something very familiar about her. When a frightened mother needed a doctor, Sis. Grace did not wait for perfect conditions. She assessed what had to be done and did it.
Her commitment to service reaches far beyond the hospital.
She served as President of the Metro Cebu APO Alumni Association from 2012 to 2014 and currently serves as President of the Eta Tau Chapter Alumni Association. In 2025, she became part of the APO National Service for Health Subcommittee for the Visayas, continuing years of work that brought medical care directly to underserved communities.
I am honoured to belong to the same Alpha Phi Omega Eta Tau Chapter of Cebu Doctorsโ University with her. That connection is something I carry with real pride, because Sis. Grace represents what our fraternity is supposed to mean when we speak of Leadership, Friendship and Service.
She also serves our country as a Captain in the Armed Forces of the Philippines Medical Corps Reserve. To balance civilian medicine, humanitarian missions, APO leadership and military responsibility requires a level of discipline and sacrifice that few people fully understand.
Then came the recognitions.
She received the CVAR Special Recognition Award in 2025.
In 2026, she received the Presidential Servant Leaders Award for her service as Visayas Coordinator of the Committee on National Service for Health.
The Cebu City Government honoured her through the PRAISE Award as Most Outstanding Employee of the Year in 2026.
That same year, the Office of the Surgeon General of the Armed Forces of the Philippines named her Junior Medical Corps Officer Reservist of the Year.
These are major achievements. Yet when I think about Sis. Grace, the awards are not the first things that come to mind.
I remember the person beside me during medical missions. I remember her willingness to serve when the work was difficult. I remember the calm professional who understood that behind every number was a real patient, a worried family and a community hoping not to be forgotten.
That is the part of her story no plaque can fully capture.
The achievements mentioned here are only the tip of the iceberg. They are merely some of the most recent recognitions among the many services she has already rendered over the past two decades and more. So much of what she has done lives quietly in the stories of mothers, children, patients, volunteers and communities whose lives became a little better because she showed up.
If I were asked to introduce Sis. Grace on the grandest awards stage, I would not begin by reading her titles.
I would simply say this. I have worked beside this woman. I have seen how she serves.
And I am incredibly proud to call her my sister in Alpha Phi Omega.
Sis. Grace, your chapter is proud of you. Your community is proud of you. Your country has every reason to be proud of you.
And from someone who has witnessed even a small part of your journey, this standing ovation is deeply personal and truly well deserved.
