The Philippine Coconut Authority extends its most heartfelt and resounding congratulations to our 𝗖𝗘𝗢 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗱𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿, 𝗗𝗿. 𝗗𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗥. 𝗕𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗱, for being recognized as an 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗻𝘂𝘀 at the Lyceum of the Philippines University-Batangas (LPU-Batangas) Outstanding Alumni Awards 2024.

The award stands as a testament to his relentless pursuit of excellence, his visionary leadership that continuously reshapes boundaries, and his unwavering dedication to driving groundbreaking innovation and unparalleled progress in all facets of his career.

We sincerely express gratitude to LPU-Batangas and LPU-Batangas Alumni Association for acknowledging the contributions of Dr. Buted, a distinguished alumnus whose exemplary achievements reflect the excellence that the institution instills in its graduates.

Dr. Buted's tenure was marked by a series of leadership roles that showcased his impact on the institution. He served as a faculty member, Dean of the College of International Tourism and Hospitality Management, and Director for External Affairs, before ascending to key executive positions, including Assistant Vice President for Academic Support Services, External Affairs, and Community Extension, Vice President for Lyceum International Maritime Academy (LIMA) Campus, and Vice President for Public and External Relations.

In his acceptance speech, he resonated with the very essence of leadership, speaking not just as an awardee but as a visionary who embodies the transformative power of education. He humbly shared how his time at the university shaped him into the leader he is today. Here’s an excerpt from his speech:

"𝐼 𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑠 𝑎 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚𝑠, 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑒, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑝𝑢𝑟𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑒. 𝐼 𝑎𝑚 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒 𝑎𝑛 𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑜𝑑𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛’𝑠 𝑢𝑛𝑤𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑓 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑝𝑜𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑖𝑎𝑙, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑢𝑐𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑡𝑠 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑖𝑡𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑜 𝑒𝑥𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒. 𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑚𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑠𝑐𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑠 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑠ℎ𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡; 𝑖𝑡 ℎ𝑜𝑛𝑜𝑟𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑗𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑛𝑒𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑎𝑛 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛, 𝑎 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑦, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎 𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 ℎ𝑎𝑠 𝑠ℎ𝑎𝑝𝑒𝑑 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑚𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠.

𝐼𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑢𝑟𝑠𝑢𝑖𝑡 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑛𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑠𝑝𝑖𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠, 𝐼 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑖𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑏𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑢𝑔𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑒, 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑔𝑎𝑖𝑛, 𝑛𝑜 𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑟 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑚𝑎𝑛𝑦 𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑒𝑠 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑐𝑘𝑠 𝑢𝑠 𝑑𝑜𝑤𝑛. 𝐼 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑡ℎ 𝑝𝑢𝑟𝑠𝑢𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑜𝑛’𝑡 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑢𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑡 𝑢𝑠, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑡 𝑜𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑎𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑢𝑠. 𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑡 𝑤𝑎𝑠 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒, 𝑎𝑚𝑜𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑎𝑐𝑢𝑙𝑡𝑦, 𝑠𝑡𝑢𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑝𝑖𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑚𝑒, 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝐼 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑖𝑧𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑖𝑐𝑒: 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑔𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐼 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑟 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑚𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑏𝑖𝑔𝑔𝑒𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑛 𝑚𝑦𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓.

𝑇ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑔𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑖𝑠 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑚𝑎𝑛’𝑠 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑖𝑠ℎ𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠. 𝐼𝑡’𝑠 𝑎𝑏𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑝𝑜𝑤𝑒𝑟 𝑜𝑓 𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑚𝑠, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝑜𝑓 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑚𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑦, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑝𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑑𝑟𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑠 𝑢𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑣𝑒𝑠. 𝐸𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑠𝑢𝑐𝑐𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝐼’𝑣𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑑, 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑎𝑐𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑎𝑑𝑒 𝐼’𝑣𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑒𝑖𝑣𝑒𝑑, 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒 𝐼’𝑣𝑒 𝑡𝑜𝑢𝑐ℎ𝑒𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ 𝑚𝑦 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘, 𝑎𝑙𝑙 𝑜𝑓 𝑖𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑐𝑎𝑢𝑠𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑒𝑑𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑤𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑑 ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒. 𝑇ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑒𝑑𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑙𝑒𝑑𝑔𝑒, 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑔𝑒, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑒𝑟𝑣𝑖𝑐𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑏𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑜𝑚𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑓𝑎𝑟 𝑔𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑛 𝐼 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑. 𝐴𝑛𝑑 𝑖𝑓 𝐼 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑎𝑐ℎ𝑖𝑒𝑣𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠, 𝑠𝑜 𝑐𝑎𝑛 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦 𝑠𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑙𝑒 𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑦𝑜𝑢. 𝑁𝑜𝑛𝑒 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 ℎ𝑎𝑣𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑒𝑛 𝑝𝑜𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑏𝑙𝑒 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑜𝑠𝑒 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑠𝑡𝑜𝑜𝑑 𝑏𝑦 𝑚𝑒: 𝑚𝑦 𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑠, 𝑚𝑦 𝑐𝑜𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑔𝑢𝑒𝑠, 𝑚𝑦 𝑓𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑦, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑙𝑒𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑖𝑣𝑖𝑑𝑢𝑎𝑙𝑠 𝑤ℎ𝑜 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑑 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑦 𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝑇𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑚, 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑟𝑒𝑐𝑜𝑔𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑏𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑛𝑔𝑠 𝑗𝑢𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑠 𝑚𝑢𝑐ℎ 𝑡𝑜 𝑦𝑜𝑢.

𝑇𝑜 𝑚𝑦 𝑓𝑒𝑙𝑙𝑜𝑤 𝐿𝑦𝑐𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑠, 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑖𝑠 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑙𝑒𝑔𝑎𝑐𝑦. 𝑅𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑚𝑏𝑒𝑟, 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑜𝑑𝑎𝑦, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑚𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡𝑙𝑦, 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑢𝑖𝑙𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡𝑜𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑟𝑜𝑤. 𝑆𝑜, 𝑠𝑜𝑎𝑟 𝑏𝑜𝑙𝑑𝑙𝑦, 𝑒𝑛𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑓𝑖𝑒𝑟𝑐𝑒𝑙𝑦, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑙𝑒𝑡 𝑔𝑜 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑓𝑖𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑑𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢."

His words were a powerful reminder that success is defined not by individual accolades but by the ability to lift others and create a lasting, positive impact. He emphasized that this award transcends personal achievement, representing the shared journey of all those who helped him rise and all those he continues to inspire. His speech ignited the belief that every individual, every dreamer, can overcome challenges and achieve greatness with resilience, passion, and a heart for service.

May you continue to inspire and uplift, as you lead us to even greater heights! Mabuhay ka!