Rotary Club of San Mateo Highlands

19/09/2026

Happy Birthday, PP Donaliza!

Wishing you a wonderful year filled with happiness, good health, love, and countless blessings.

18/09/2026

Happy Birthday, Rotarian Tristan Nash Yabut!

Wishing you joy, good health, and continued success. May you keep inspiring others through friendship, and your commitment to service.

Cheers to another meaningful year ahead!

16/09/2026

A Celebration of Service, Leadership, and a Year United for Good

Congratulations, Immediate Past District Governor Gina Sanchez! 💙🌟

As the Governor of Rotary District 3800 during the 2025–2026 “Unite For Good” Rotary Year, you showed us what it truly means to bring people together in the spirit of fellowship, service, and shared purpose.

These remarkable accolades are more than awards—they are a reflection of your hard work, passion, dedication, and unwavering commitment to Rotary. They represent the countless hours, meaningful connections, difficult decisions, and selfless service that defined your leadership.

You led the Unite For Good year not simply as a theme, but as a way of bringing Rotarians together—uniting clubs, leaders, and communities toward a common goal: creating meaningful and lasting change through service.

You truly deserve every one of these accolades, and without a doubt, you are one for the books! 📖

District 3800 is incredibly proud of you, IPDG Gina.
And for the Rotary Club of San Mateo Highlands, it has been a privilege to witness firsthand your journey, your dedication, and all that you have done for our District and the communities we serve.

Congratulations, IPDG Gina Sanchez, on these well-deserved recognitions! May they forever remind us of a remarkable year when District 3800 came together to Unite For Good under your leadership.

With immense pride and gratitude, your Highlanders family celebrates you. 💙🌟

Service Above Self. United for Good. A legacy that continues.

15/09/2026

FROM HEALING TO HOME: REBUILDING A HOME FOR ARA AND HER FAMILY (BEHIND THE SCENES)

Behind every restored home is a story of compassion, teamwork, and people who quietly choose to help.

For our little girl “Ara” from Pangasinan, the journey from healing from an imperforate a**s to rebuilding continues—not only for her, but for the place she calls home.

While much of the attention may be on the finished project, there is a lot happening behind the scenes. Local workers and volunteers are hard at work rehabilitating the house—and creating a proper toilet for the family as part of our WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) project, helping provide a safer and healthier living environment. They are repairing what needs to be repaired, strengthening what needs to be strengthened, and slowly transforming the space into a safer and more comfortable home for her family.

Making this possible on the ground are Rotarians Elisa Cacho Vinluan and Rose Mary Mamaril Carino, who have been closely working with the local workers and volunteers, coordinating the work and helping ensure that every effort brings Ara and her family one step closer to having a home they can once again feel safe and proud of.

Their hands-on involvement reminds us that service is not always about being seen—it is about showing up, getting the work done, and making a difference where it matters most.

From healing to home, this is Rotary in action.

One little girl. One home. Many caring hands. One community coming together to make hope feel like home.

15/09/2026

📖 THE HIGHLANDERS | AUGUST ISSUE

✨ The Power of Membership Starts With You.

What makes a Rotary club stronger? Members who show up, connect, serve, and inspire.

We invite you to read the August Issue of The Highlanders and discover how the power of membership begins with each one of us.

But there’s more!
Inside this issue, you’ll also get a glimpse of the meaningful initiatives, impactful service projects, and inspiring activities of the Rotary Club of San Mateo Highlands—stories of members turning commitment into action and service into lasting impact.

📚 Read. Be inspired. Be part of the story.

Because when membership starts with YOU, the possibilities for service are limitless.

The Highlanders Vol. 15 Issue 2:
The Power of Membership Starts With You
August 2026

PDF Version:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1rECdy69LNdbGd7SaZpQ_HEuZKu3Wv4Of/view?usp=drivesdk

Flipbook Version:
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14/09/2026

Lubos na Pasasalamat! 💙

Our heartfelt thanks to the Zone 10A Public Image Awards Committee, to our District Leaders for
their guidance and wisdom, and to all our Highlanders for your unwavering support and dedication.

This recognition belongs to all of us—and to every community we have reached, served, and touched through Rotary.

Thank you for being part of our journey. Together, let us continue to Create Lasting Impact! 🙏💙💛

14/09/2026

🏆 Highlander Pride: A Year of Service, A Night of Recognition
Zone 10A Public Image Awards 2025–2026

The Rotary Club of San Mateo Highlands, proudly brought home seven prestigious recognitions at the Rotary Zone 10A Joint Regional Membership, Rotary Foundation & Public Image Awards Ceremony, held on September 12, 2026, at Casa Ibarra, Pasay City, for Rotary Year 2025–2026.

With more than 3,000 entries nationwide, the awards celebrated the passion, creativity, and dedication of Rotary Clubs across the Philippines during the “Unite For Good” year.

Proudly representing RCSMH was Good President Lerma Membrado, receiving:

🏆 1st Place – People of Action Photo – October
🏆 1st Place – People of Action Photo – November
🏆 1st Place – People of Action Photo – December
🏅 Finalist – People of Action Photo
🏅 Finalist – Best Rotary Hymn
🏅 Finalist – Best Public Image Campaign
🥉 3rd Place – Best Broadcast Media

These awards are a testament to the Highlanders’ hard work, creativity, and determination to amplify the voice of Rotary and share the inspiring stories behind every act of service.

The achievement is also part of the remarkable success of Rotary International District 3800, hailed as a Beacon of Rotary, with recognitions including Most Outstanding District Governor DG Gina Sanchez, Most Outstanding District in Public Image, Champion District in Foundation Giving, and Distinguished Leadership Award in Membership.

Congratulations, Highlanders! 🎉

Every award carries the collective effort of every member who served, supported, participated, captured moments, shared stories, and believed in what we can accomplish together.

This is our story. This is our service. This is the Highlander spirit!

💙💛 Together, we continue to amplify Rotary, inspire action, and create lasting impact.

08/09/2026

A Double Distinction for a Dedicated Public Servant

The Rotary Club of San Mateo Highlands proudly congratulates its Charter President, Atty. Prisco S. Rivera, Jr., Regional Director of the Civil Service Commission Regional Office XI, for being recognized as a Natatanging Lingkod Bayan during the 3rd Datu Tampurong Awards held in Digos City.

CP Prisco was honored for his exemplary contribution to public service. Adding distinction to the occasion, he also served as the Keynote Speaker of the awards ceremony, sharing his insights and inspiring fellow public servants.

His recognition is a testament to a career defined by dedication, integrity, leadership, and service—values that have likewise been at the heart of his journey with Rotary.

Congratulations, CP Prisco! Your Rotary family is proud to celebrate this well-deserved recognition with you. May your continued commitment to public service inspire many more to lead with purpose and serve with excellence.

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01/09/2026

WHEN WE EDUCATE, WE ELEVATE

This September, Rotary celebrates Basic Education and Literacy Month, highlighting the power of knowledge, reading, and learning to transform lives and strengthen communities. Rotary recognizes education as a key area of focus, supporting initiatives that expand access to learning and improve literacy for children and adults.

For the Rotary Club of San Mateo Highlands, this is an opportunity to turn the value of education into meaningful action—through community libraries, learning resources, support for schools and learners, and programs such as Alternative Learning System (ALS).

Every book shared, every learner supported, and every opportunity to learn can open a door to a brighter tomorrow.

Because when we invest in education, we invest in people.
And when we empower people, we create lasting impact.

31/08/2026

PROJECT ARA: FROM HEALING TO HOME

Some stories begin with a challenge.
Others begin with hope.

Remember “Ara” (not her real name), our brave young girl from Anda, Pangasinan, her story began with a hardship. Born with an imperforate a**s, she faced a long and delicate journey that no child should have to endure alone.

But Ara was never alone.

Part 1: Giving Hope for a Better Life

In August 2024, the journey of Project Ara began.

Through the compassion, generosity, and determination of the RCSMH, help was extended to Ara and her family so she could receive the medical care she desperately needed.

What seemed like a difficult road ahead slowly became a journey filled with hope.

Part 2: The Healing

Ara underwent a series of delicate operations and a long period of recovery while staying in one of the Highlander’s home in San Mateo, Rizal.

There were uncertainties. There were challenges. But there was also something stronger, people who refused to give up on her.

After years of living with a colostomy bag, Ara’s long-awaited final medical procedure—the takedown of her colostomy—was successfully performed on February 23, 2026, at Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center in Manila. For ten years, Ara had lived with the challenges and limitations of her condition, having undergone the colostomy when she was just one year old.

With the continued support of the Highlanders and everyone who became part of her journey, Ara successfully recovered and went back to Pangasinan last March 2026.

Today, she is now 11 years old, a 6th grader, growing, learning, and looking forward to a better life.

Her story became more than a story of healing.

It became a reminder that when compassion becomes action, lives can change.

Part 3: From Healing to Home

But our journey with Ara does not end with her successful operation.

Because healing is not only about medicine.

Healing also means having a safe and decent place to live.

Last Aug. 21, 2026, we returned to Anda with another mission.

Their home was damaged by the typhoon, leaving the family in need of a safer and more secure living environment. And so, the Highlanders are once again stepping forward—not simply to rebuild a house, but to help rebuild a sense of security, dignity, and hope.

As part of our continuing commitment, we will help rehabilitate Ara’s modest home and construct a decent toilet facility, supporting her continued healing, proper hygiene, and overall well-being.

From the operating room…
to the road of recovery…
and now, to the place she calls home.

Project Ara continues.

Because giving hope is not a one-time act.

It is a commitment to walk with someone until they can finally stand stronger on their own.

And sometimes, the greatest gift we can give a child is not simply another chance to heal but a safe place where she can grow, dream, and live a dignified life.

This is Ara’s continuing saga.

From Healing to Home.
From Hope to a Better Life.