Fe del Mundo

1977 Ramon Magsaysay Awardee for Public Service from the Philippines. Educated as a doctor from the premiere state university in the Philippines as well as receiving her advanced studies abroad and being able to work at American top universities and hospitals, Dr. Fe del Mundo returned home to her country, the Philippines, on the eve of the Pacific War. According to her, she could do nothing about the occupation of Manila then but she could do something for the children of the prisoners-of-war. Somehow, she managed to established a home for them. Since the care of the child and its mother had been her preoccupation from the beginning, it was inevitable that she should establish the Children's Medical Center even if she had to donate her own property to realize it. The crying need of the underprivileged Filipino mother and child also compelled her to establish the Institute of Maternal and Child Health to train doctors, nurses and paramedics. Later on she helped established the Center for Tuberculosis for Children. Today, her prowess as a doctor, dedication and compassion is the living inspiration in transforming her center for children into making it as the leading pediatric center of the 21st century.