Thousands of members of MARE Foundation, a non-government organization headed by former senator Luisa “Loi” Estrada, wife of President Mayor Joseph Estrada, attended the oath taking of Jackie Ejercito as the new chairperson of the organization.
The new board includes Senator Jinggoy Ejercito-Estrada’s wife Precy V. Ejercito as Vice Chairperson, Corina Ponce Enrile Yenko as Treasurer, and Maria Cristina Tantoco Morada as Corporate Secretary.
Also present at the induction were the new Board of Directors Fr. Edward M. Lavin, Ma. Rowena O. Ejercito, Gabriel Ma. J. Lopez, Precy V. Mathav. Willin C. Chan, Evelyn R. Carballo, and Benita Tanyag.
During the formal rites at San Andres Sport Center, Loi Estrada handed the MARE flag to her eldest daughter that symbolized its commitment to serve the hundreds of thousands of poor and less fortunate individuals through medical, scholarship, rehabilitation, livelihood and feeding program among primary level students for at least 20 years.
Throughout the years, it has implemented pro-poor programs, it had helped thousands of men and women, seniors and youth through its’ free medical, surgical and dental missions, medical assistance program, feeding programs, livelihood projects, scholarships, and relief assistance to families who are victims of flood, fire and other calamities including conflict situations.
Founded in 1996 with the vision to help improve the quality of life of underprivileged Filipinos, it was established by then Vice President now Manila Mayor Joseph Ejercito Estrada with his wife, former Senator Loi Ejercito-Estrada. MARE was able to hold more than a hundred medical and dental missions, benefiting some 250 thousand indigent individuals. Almost everyday, a team of volunteer doctors, dentists, nurses, and health promoters attend to the health concerns in the City’s most depressed areas, at the same time teaching proper hygiene and nutrition. Equally worth mentioning is the Dialysis Center Project of the Foundation, in partnership with the City Government of Manila, which provides free dialysis sessions to poor Manilenos. This project started at the time when Dr. Loi Estrada was still the First Lady, wherein she helped build a dialysis center in Malacañang.
When Mayor Joseph Ejercito-Estrada was first elected Mayor of San Juan, he focused on the need of the urban poor. He launched a city wide feeding program for children in all public schools and distributed free medicines. He also spearheaded a referral program that enabled children to avail free consultation at major hospitals. Some of the major campaigns he championed were programs for proper hygiene, nutrition, livelihood and urban gardening for poor barangays.
MARE’s collaboration with the Manila Dialysis Center, the biggest dialysis center in the country, is considered as the organization’s landmark project. It can be recalled that it was Sen. Loi who was the first First Lady to put up free dialysis treatment in Malacanang during the latter part the ‘90s.