Leadership Messages
President
Maria Regina Flores, MD
Dear Thomasian Family,
In 2024, the USTMAAA Foundation continued its unwavering commitment to our alma mater, the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, and its affiliated hospital. Your generosity fueled transformative initiatives that uplifted medical education and provided critical care to indigent patients.
From equipping the UST Medicine Simulation Center to funding life-saving cardiac procedures, our donors and volunteers have made a tangible impact.
This year, we faced the stark reality of UST Hospital’s challenges—a declining patient census and outdated equipment threatening its legacy. Yet, through your support, we’ve taken bold steps toward revival, ensuring our hospital remains a beacon of excellence. Together, we are not just preserving a legacy but building a future where every Thomasian can thrive.
With gratitude,
Maria Regina C. Flores, M.D.
President
Executive Director
Stella Evangelista, MD
Dear Fellow Alumni,
The year 2024 marked a pivotal chapter in our journey to restore the University of Santo Tomas Hospital to its premier status. Thanks to your generosity, the Foundation Endowment Fund is now over $7 Million dollars from its original goal of $1 million dollars established in 1990. Only the interest earned from this fund is used to support grants to benefit the school, its students, the UST Hospital Clinical Division and the indigent patients it serves.
USTMAAA Foundation is committed to improving the Census at the Clinical Division; Providing free medical/surgical care to indigent patients; Providing Teaching materials for students, interns, residents and fellows and attracting Thomasian graduates to take up internship and residency at STUH. The Foundation has NO OVERHEAD expenses. Since its inception, all administrative and office expenses, rent and secretarial are borne by the Executive Office, so all donations go to the endowment fund 100%.
To date, we have donated over $10 million dollars towards various projects and infrastructure improvements thru various Class Legacies and Chapter Legacies. Your contributions have been the heartbeat of these initiatives and more:
1. Medical Simulation Lab – donation of $1M
2. Tulong at Alaga – First-ever in-house Surgical Mission
3. Thomasian Alumni Center
4. St. Martin De Porres Indigency Trust Fund
5. Save A Heart In-Hospital Mission
6. Grant-funded projects
As we look to 2025, we invite you to join us at the 33rd USTMAAA Grand Reunion and Clinical Convention in San Francisco, CA to celebrate our shared legacy and chart the path forward.
In service,
Stella S. Evangelista, M.D.
Executive Director
Founder
Jose L. Evangelista, MD
As a proud alumnus of the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Medicine and Surgery (USTFMS), you understand the enduring value of the exceptional medical education and training we received. Our time at USTFMS not only prepared us for our careers but also instilled within us a sense of commitment to excellence and a responsibility to give back to our community. We now have the opportunity to participate in a monumental endeavor that reflects our deep gratitude and ongoing commitment to our alma mater.
Here’s how you can make a difference:
• JOIN THE FATHER MIGUEL DE BENAVIDES SOCIETY: We have introduced a new level of giving at $200,000 and above. This is an opportunity for those who have achieved financial stability to showcase their generosity and gratitude for the education we received.
• CONTINUE YOUR CONTRIBUTION: For our valued donors, we encourage you to consider adding to your previous gifts. Contributions are cumulative, ensuring that every act of generosity further solidifies your legacy.
• HONORING COMMITMENT: This Wall of Honor will serve as an enduring testament to those who have participated in sustaining USTFMS’s mission. It is a lasting acknowledgment of your support and commitment.
• PERPETUAL IMPACT: Managed in the United States by a reputable financial institution under USTMAAA Foundation board oversight, this endowment fund will exist in perpetuity, regulated as a 501(c)(3) organization by the Internal Revenue Service. The principal continues to grow while the interest generated at a conservative rate of 5% annually, will be used to fund our projects in perpetuity. Remarkably, 80% of this amount will benefit directly the USTFMS and the UST Hospital, with the remaining 20% going back to the principal for inflation and growth, Thus we are positioned to distribute at least $400,000 or P22 million pesos each year, ensuring sustainability of our essential programs and services in perpetuity. Your generous involvement will ensure that the spirit of UST continues to thrive and that healthcare delivery in the Philippines, especially to marginalized communities, is continually improved. It’s an opportunity to create a meaningful legacy that resonates well beyond our lifetime.
• WALL OF HONOR: As part of our broader goal to reach a $10 million endowment fund— equivalent to 58 million pesos, the USTMAAA Foundation is upgrading the Wall of Honor Monument to include new donors. The monument will be permanently displayed in a prominent location at the USTFMS. We hope to have the BLESSING of the monument by January 2026.
We deeply appreciate your consideration and anticipated cooperation in this noble cause. Let us come together to honor the past, support the present, and secure the future of UST.
Thank you for your steadfast support and commitment to this transformative initiative.
Jose Evangelista, MD, FACC, FACA, FACP, FRCP (C)
Founding Father, USTMAAA
Co-Founder, USTMAAA Foundation
Past President, USTMAAA and USTMAAA Foundation