Bersamin to TOYM awardees: Make PH a land worth living in and loving

Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on Thursday called on The Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) for 2022 to continue their advocacies and make the country a “land worth living in and loving.”
 
Bersamin was the guest of honor and speaker at the awarding of TOYM 2022 held at Malacañang Palace.
 
"And so I raise a challenge not only to the 10 of you awardees, but as well to the countless others who had been so honored before you, to keep up the excellence you have shown," Bersamin said in his speech.
 
"It is encouraging for me to note that many of you do not consider financial success as the ultimate measure of achievement. Because to you, it is rather the lives you have improved and positively affected that matter above all," he added.
 
Bersamin said the awardees have subscribed to the enduring ideal of all humanity being objects of love and service.
 
"The world must be preserved through peace and harmony and kept safe for generations to come. Continue to be relevant. Continue to do more. Continue your advocacies and make our country a land worth living in and loving," he said. 
 
Bersamin told the awardees that the ceremony should not be the finish line of their hard work in their respective fields and advocacies. 
 
"Our country desires you to continue individually in the fields [in which] you have been recognized today. Better still, I urge you to act as one group of inspiration and motivators for others," he said. 
 
The recipients of TOYM 2022 award include the following:
 
1.  Dr. Paul Gideon Lasco: a physician and expert in medical anthropology, for Education and the Academe;
2.  Manix Abrera: creator of Kikomachine Komix, for Literature, Culture and the Arts;
3.  Dr. Beverly Lorraine Ho: Department of Health (DOH) Assistant Secretary and Director of Public Health Services Team (PHST), for Health and Medicine;
4.  Dr. Ramon Lorenzo Luis Guinto: one of the world’s pioneers in the new field of planetary health, for Health and Medicine;
5.  Dr. Ronnie Baticulon: a pediatric neurosurgeon, for Health and Medicine;
6.  Rico Ancog: an environmental educator, for Education and the Academe;
7.  Victor Mari Baguilat Jr.: founder of the social enterprise Kandama, for Literature, Culture and the Arts;
8.  Kristian Cordero: a Bicolano writer and filmmaker, for Literature, Culture and the Arts;
9.  Shawntel Nicole Nieto: founder of One Cainta Program, for Humanitarian, Civil Society or Voluntary Leadership; 
10.  Joanne Ascencion Valdez: a city councilor of Candon, Ilocos Sur, for Humanitarian, Civil Society or Voluntary Leadership 
 
TOYM is an annual recognition given to Filipinos aged between 18 and 40 who have made significant contributions to their field or community.  —VBL, GMA Integrated News