President’s Message
Good evening, distinguished guests, and members of the Filipino American Nurses Organization of Grand Canyon State, better known as FANOGCS. Today, we are celebrating a milestone anniversary and induction ceremony. We witnessed the induction of the newly elected officers for the term 2024-2026, and I am honored to be part of this momentous occasion.
I just want to share my personal experience. In 2003, I migrated to the United States on my own. I left behind my family in the Philippines. Despite feeling alone in an unfamiliar environment, I found comfort in the support of the Filipino community. This inspired me to join this organization and give back to the community.
When I joined this organization four years ago, my primary aim during that period was solely to participate in the Medical Mission. The idea of becoming the President of this organization had not crossed my mind. With my predecessors, Melody Orillo and Donnabella Maglalang, having set high standards, I recognized that leading this organization as President would demand unwavering dedication and time commitment. However, I never felt isolated in this endeavor since FANOGCS functions as a team. Fundamentally, this is what this organization stands for.
At FANOGCS, our mission is to promote and advance the profession of nursing through leadership, education, community service, and global outreach. We have helped a lot of charitable institutions through our disaster relief, community assistance and healthcare projects. We had our medical mission last year in the Philippines, with the next one in January 23-25, 2026, in El Salvador City, Misamis Oriental near Cagayan de Oro. In my term, I will focus also on education and leadership.
Each term, the President creates his or her own mantra. I called my mantra: the Triple A: Act, Advance, Advocate.
- ACT – One of the key pillars here at FANOGCS is that we aspire to achieve our mission and ACT on it with collective responsibility as a member-led, member-driven organization.
- ADVANCE – As a professional nursing organization, we constantly aim to ADVANCE the growth of our nursing profession through leadership development and educational programs.
- ADVOCATE – One of our main objectives is to be an ADVOCATE in serving the community through our local and global outreach as a nonprofit organization.
We kindly invite all healthcare workers in this room who are not members of our organization to consider joining us in our mission to serve. If you have a passion for helping others, we welcome you to approach any of our FANOGCS members to learn more. Moreover, we encourage each of our existing members to recruit just one new member each. Imagine the impact we could make if we doubled our members to two hundred.
Now the time has come to end the torture I have all given you. Let me end my talk with a funny, but true story. But this story proved how we, as a community, work as a team and support each other. I remember very vividly 21 years ago, on my very first day working as a nurse here in the U.S. My mentor was Filipino, our charge nurse was Filipino, and our CNA was Filipino. The four of us went to a room, with a confused patient. He was unsteady on his feet but kept getting out of bed. When he finally lay down in bed, the charge nurse asked the patient: “Do you know where you are right now?” The patient was looking at me, looking at the charge nurse and kept looking at the four of us. Finally, he answered and said: “I don’t know. Maybe in Japan?”
Thank you for this golden opportunity to speak in front of you and have a wonderful evening!
Respectfully,
Alain De la Cruz MSN, CMSRN
President 2024-2026
President’s Anniversary Fundraiser Speech
Good evening, everyone. Your participation in tonight’s Filipino American Nurses Organization of Grand Canyon State’s 5th Anniversary celebration means the world to us. We are also delighted to have Mr. Michael Herring as our keynote speaker. Thank you for accepting our invitation, Sir. On behalf of the FANOGCS community, it is a privilege to celebrate our 5th year Anniversary as a nursing organization. We recognized the collective efforts that have brought us to this remarkable achievement.
As a nursing organization, let me reaffirm our mission statement, which is to promote and advance the nursing profession through leadership, education, community service and global outreach. What progress have we made as a nursing organization over the past five years? Our projects have been carefully aligned with our mission statement, driving meaningful impact. Highlights include a transformative two-day leadership retreat in 2024, three large-scale educational conferences, and various community service initiatives, including Feeding My Hungry Children, adopting a family during Christmas, and providing essential aid during Covid. Our medical mission in the Philippines in 2023 was a crowning milestone, and we continued to make a difference with health screening during the Philippine Independence Day celebration.
Tonight, I am going to say a few words. (Well not really a few words. A lot of words). I mentioned the FANOGCS community because, well, it is the best community ever, right? (Love your own). Being part of this community gives us a sense of belonging, and that is what makes it so special. Let us be real, our community is all about social support. We got each other’s backs, sharing experiences, and having a good time at the same time.
Let me share a personal story. Thirty-five years ago, I applied to a nursing program at Central Philippine University, the 1st nursing school in the Philippines. During my interview, as part of the requirements, the Dean of Nursing asked me about the age-old question: “why do you want to become a nurse?” I gave her the standard answer about serving humanity, but the DON was not convinced, perhaps she heard that typical answer all the time. So, she asked me again: “why do you want to become a nurse?” So, I had to think on my feet. I paused and reflected on my life, wondering if I really wanted to be a nurse. The truth was, I wanted to work abroad to help my family, and nursing was the steppingstone to accomplish that goal. Finally, I told her that truth. It paid off and I got accepted somehow. (And look at me now! I’m kidding).
Looking back at that moment, maybe the Dean of Nursing did not see the genuine passion in me to serve humanity at the time. But then again, I have come to understand that is the true essence of nursing – the very spirit of service, caring for the sick and guiding them back to health, a beautiful testament of service to humanity.
This evening, we are not only celebrating the FANOGCS 5th year Anniversary. We are also conducting a fundraising campaign for our upcoming Medical Mission in El Salvador City, Misamis Oriental, in the Philippines scheduled for January 21-23, 2026. We are all gathered here because we firmly believe in this cause, which aims to provide medical care and support to our underprivileged and underserved fellowmen.
Together, we are not only raising essential funds, but also, we are making dreams come true. We are deeply grateful for your kindness, generosity, and commitment to our mission. Let us unite to bring about a meaningful change to people who are struggling and those who are facing difficulties.
To end my speech, through out our five-year escapades, we have seen it all – from electrifying victories to challenging setbacks. Yet, through it all, one thing remained constant – we never surrender. Lastly, let us all congratulate ourselves, as we tap into our energy, creativity and drive to reach even greater success.
Thank you and please enjoy the night!
Respectfully,
Alain de la Cruz, MSN-Ed., CMSRN
FANOGCS President