The late Rotary Club of Dumaguete President, Demetrio “Pororoy” Larena III, was a dedicated, loyal, and persistent leader.
Each member and spouse of the Mother Club would receive at least two text messages from the President himself reminding them of a meeting or of a community service activity.
Pororoy or Roy was a tireless fund raiser, recruiter of new members, and earnest in his efforts to improve on what has been the traditional activities of the club.
Asst. District Gov. Anesio Pinero, being golf buddies with Roy, had recruited Pororoy into Rotary, and after two years, Pororoy was elected president of the Rotary Mother Club.
During Roy’s incumbency starting June 2011, he had recruited at least 20 members. He turned monthly fellowship meetings into fun parties, a fund raiser, and showcase for possible recruits. His efforts paid off in a big way: he accomplished a lot in the four months of his presidency.
In the Rotary family, Roy was a patient and eager understudy of Immediate Past President Col. Nehru Yurong. During meetings, he counted on the counsel and guidance of Past President Rodolfo “Jun” Gonzalez Jr., secretary PP Bong Gaitera, and treasurer PP Lando Obanana. Roy studied, observed, and planned to raise funds to sustain the Mother Club’s on-going projects like the NOPH Dialysis Unit, and the regular medical missions to various barangays, the latest of which was the Medical Mission in Bindoy.
Roy was quick and generous in supporting other NGOs, civic and religious groups asking for assistance from the Club.
It seems that Roy was always guided by his strong work ethic when faced with responsibility. When asked about the secret of his success, he said: “I am not very intelligent, so I engaged in a business that is simple and easy to manage; you buy something, and sell it at a profit!”
He was his own man, and not very many people knew that he was the grandson of the first-ever Negros Oriental Gov. Demetrio Larena who, together with Dr. David Hibbard and Dr. Horace Silliman, founded Silliman Institute on land donated by the Larena family.
Roy’s death in the morning of Oct. 20 in the hands of ruthless, lawless criminals is tragic, as it highlights the level of violence in our community. Many innuendos have been set forth, but what remains is the simple fact that the perpetrators had no get-away car. They had planned to take Roy and his car with them, but fate intervened. These are strong indicators of botched kidnap-for- ransom jobs.
The present state of crime and lawlessness is unacceptable. The Rotary Club of Dumaguete joins the call for justice, as we call all civic clubs and government officials to come together and address the problem through community action.
Justice for Pororoy! Justice for all!