As we ponder on the year that is about to end in a couple of days, we would like to share this life experience of a remarkable man, who we met some time ago, and whose sincerity radiates from his entire being.
One speaker that commanded attention and respect from his audience because of his powerful, engaging, and animated message and delivery was Menardo “Butch” Jimenez Jr. who, at that time, was senior vice-president of the Retail Business Group/Media and Strategic Communications of Philippine Long Distance Telephone (PLDT) and OIC of SMART Marketing and Sales. He was then the youngest speaker ever invited to address the graduating class of Silliman University. When he was invited to be the commencement speaker at the University of the Philippines-Diliman in 2003, he also went down in its history as the youngest speaker ever invited.
“After U.P., I said to myself that the only school or university I would ever speak to again would be Silliman University. I waited for almost three years for this invitation and I could have waited another 30 years until the invitation from (Board of Trustees) Chairman (Leonor Magtolis) Briones arrived at my desk one day,” enthused Jimenez whose family also owns GMA Network, Inc.
A professional scuba diver, he has been to Dumaguete a number of times with his family and gone to some of the more famous diving spots in the province. “Aside from Silliman University being known for its Christian roots and heritage, I actually love the place. And, I am not saying this because I am here now, but because I have visited some of your well-known tourist spots. If you don’t believe me, check out my blog and you will find that I have been writing about how beautiful Dumaguete is since a few years ago,” he confessed.
A product of the International School in Manila for his high school, he went to the University of the Philippines where he finished a degree in economics in 1986. In 1984, he went on a one-year stint at Sophia University in Tokyo on a Japan Airlines scholarship where he studied, among others, the Asian economic systems and Japanese management.
As the eldest of four children of TV executive Menardo “Nards” Jimenez Sr. and the former Carolina Gozon, the young Jimenez was brought up steeped with the values and virtues that we still hold dear today, but which, unfortunately, may have been taken for granted by many young people today.
Even if he was into the manor born, he lives by two attributes which have served as his guiding principles at work, and these are the attributes of discipline and execution. “If you don’t have discipline, you don’t deserve to dream. I actually got this from an inscription on a T-shirt worn by a good friend of mine, Fred Uytengsu, who is president of Alaska. And part of discipline is your work ethic. You should also be the ‘go-to guy’ in the workplace, meaning, your bosses can rely on you because you can make things happen and you can get things moving,” exhorted Jimenez.
Although he has accomplished much at such a young age, his deeply Christian background allows his feet to be firmly rooted on solid ground. This was also evident in his unassuming ways and down-to-earth nature, opting to sound like an overly excited youngster as he took some video footage of the 800-strong members of the graduating class before he started his speech, saying “it’s actually for my children.”
True to his desire to re-visit Dumaguete at all costs was his coming over despite the fact that his wife (the comely Gospel singer, Tricia Amper) was scheduled to deliver their fourth child by Caesarean section the day after they would have arrived in Manila. The couple is blessed with three boys – Migs, Benjamin, and Joaquin Gabriel.
He also reminded the graduates to “descend into greatness, instead of ascending into greatness because as you ascend to the top, all the more you have to be humble because you have become a servant of God and of the people.”
More than their degrees, Jimenez likewise made an appeal to the graduates never to lose hope for our country, especially with the many seemingly insurmountable problems besetting our government.
Short of thinking aloud, he asked the graduates how they think they can best serve the country. “If you ask me how you can serve the country, I’ll ask you in return – why don’t you stay? But, if you choose to go out of the country and work abroad, that’s fine with me. Fine, you can go but I beg of you, go out and tell them how great the Filipinos are. And if you plan to come back – which I’m sure you will be doing once you hit it big abroad – don’t just plan to come back, but plan to give back to the country,” he continued, a statement that brought a resounding applause from the audience that included his mother, Carolina.
Above anything else, he realized too that in his years of existence on this earth, despite the accolades and the achievements, “there is no destination beyond the reach of those who walk with God.”
Everyone could only nod in agreement, with some of the graduates wiping a tear or two as he ended his speech, thus: “I will meet you, guys, at the top and nowhere else!” | NWI
