MANILA, Philippines - Two alumnae of Class ’56 of the College of the Holy Spirit are among the school’s Centennial Awardees: Dr. Lily Lim-UyHam, chairman of the Department of Radiology at MacLaren Medical Center in Michigan, and former Mayor Mary Jane Crisanto-Ortega of La Union.
The school honored 100 of its outstanding alumnae in the fields of education, business, governance, medicine, and science with a testimonial dinner and awarding ceremony recognizing their professional competence in their respective fields and for exemplifying in their lives the school motto: Veritas et Caritae.
Both completed their high school education at the Holy Ghost College in Manila with Dr. Lim UyHam as first Honorable Mention. Dr. Lim pursued her college education at Letran College with highest honors and immediately after entered the University of Santo Tomas College of Medicine, where she obtained her Doctor of Medicine degree in 1963. For a year, she worked at the Chinese General Hospital after which she went to Michigan for her internship at the Wayne County General Hospital. In 1968, she finished her radiology residency at the University of Michigan Medical Center and after a year, obtained her board certification in Radiology. Her medical career in the United States included a practice in Flint, Michigan, serving as the first neuro-radiologist in the region and at the Hurley Medical Center, and as an assistant clinical professor at Michigan State University.
She served as president of the Diagnostic Radiology Associates of Flint, PC, until her retirement in 2005. She also was managing partner of Michigan Diagnostic Imaging and became chairman of the Department of Radiology at MacLaren Regional Medical Center. She established the area’s first “information highway†in the hospital X-ray department, now known as teleradiology.
Dr. Lim is a lifetime member of the American Medical Association, and a senior member of the American Society of Neuroradiology. She is also a member of the American College of Radiology and the Radiological Society of North America.
Lily says she is at her best serving at the UyHam Hui-Keng-Lim Boon Hai Memorial Foundation, which was established by her husband, Dr. Rodolfo UyHam, a UST College of Medicine graduate and board top-notcher in l963. In l988, he incorporated the Hui-Keng Pua UyHam Memorial Foundation in honor of his mother and became its president. The foundation has set up a scholarship fund to support the schooling of underprivileged children and provides incentive funds through ICT Colleges Foundation Inc. for the medical needs of the elderly, the construction of school buildings and the reconstruction of churches. The foundation has likewise been actively involved in the housing needs of the homeless poor through Gawad Kalinga.
Mary Jane Crisanto-Ortega, former mayor of the City of Fernando, La Union is wife to Rep. Victor Ortega of the First District of La Union. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in Spanish and English from Letran College and pursued a Master of Arts in language teaching at the Ateneo de Manila University.
She is the first Filipino awardee of the Habitat Scroll of Honor Award, United Nations Centre for Human Settlements, Fukuoka, Japan; Konrad Adenauer Medal of Excellence (KAME III); the Saranay Award, Highest Award of the Provincial Government of La Union; Likas Yaman Award, Department of Environment and Natural Resources; Outstanding Woman in Good Governance Award, National Council of Women of the Philippines (NCWP); and Outstanding Mayor, for her full support and various activities for the development of the “Social Welfare and Development Sector,†presented by Association of Local Social Welfare Development Officers of the Philippines. She is widely known for her waterless toilets in San Fernando, La Union.
She has served government, private and civic organizations like the Zonta Club, Inner Wheel Club, Congressional Spouses Foundation, Inc., National Council of Women of the Philippines; League of Cities of the Philippines; Philippine Red Cross; Girl Scouts of the Philippines, She is currently a member of Global Executive Council of ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability; member of the board of directors of Nayong Pilipino; board of directors, St. Louis College, San Fernando City; consultant on Legislative Affairs, League of Cities of the Philippines; and adviser to the Executive Committee, International Council of Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI).
The former mayor is likewise an accomplished writer, having authored works like the History of San Fernando and Pindangan Ruins, the Beginnings of a City of San Fernando and The Vanishing Breed: A Biography of Francisco I. Ortega. Her articles, “Miss Saigon†and “Our Lady of Namacpacan†were published in Taipan and Weekend Magazine, respectively.
Past awardees of Class ’56 are Belinda Olivares-Cunanan for Journalism, Dr. Nenita Lee-Tan for Medicine and former PUP President Ofelia Morabe-Carague for Education.