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Meet our Leaders
Year after year, we honor the leadership of great men and women Rotarians who selflessly offer themselves to the mission of Rotary International. Behind the successes of District 3850 are servant leaders who lead with zeal and great examples of compassion to serve others, especially the less privileged ones.
John Michael "Kano" Ng
District Governor, RY 2022-2023
Imagine Rotary
John Michael Ng is a Filipino-Chinese businessman with interests in the wholesale and retail distribution of tires, batteries and lubricants via the family-owned Iloilo Lucky Auto Supply primarily based in the southern city of Iloilo in Western Visayas, Philippines.
Popularly known as Kano in both business and civic circles, the district governor-elect of the Rotary International District 3850 earned his primary and secondary education at the Huasiong College of Iloilo and tucks a degree in commerce with major in management at the Central Philippine University.
His baptism in the world of Rotary came when he was in high school as president of the Interact Club of the Rotary Club of Metro Iloilo in 1997. He officially joined his home club during Rotary Year 2002-2003 right after graduating from college. He went on to lead the club in 2007.
Since then, DGE Kano has been actively involved with various socio-civic organizations, among them the Philippine Red Cross Iloilo Chapter, the Iloilo Dinagyang Foundation Inc., Huasiong Alumni Association Inc., Iloilo Federation Fire Brigade Inc., Sta. Maria Responsible Chinoys Association and the Panay Kang Ha Uy Family Association.
He served RI 3850 as district secretary for Past District Governor Ronnie Gabalda, Governor’s Group Representative and Zone 3 Assistant Governor to Past District Governor Edgar Sy. He also either chaired or served as member for various strategic committees in the district, including annual giving and fundraising and the Rotary World Peace Fellowship.
DGE Kano is married to the former Krystle Te, with whom he has children Jude Marquis, Jarvis Mateo, Celestia Michela and Calista Milana. All members of his immediate family, including parents Johnny and Luisa, are Paul Harris Fellows.
He is a major donor of The Rotary Foundation.
Future Governors
Maria Ester Espina
District Governor-Elect
RY 2023-2024
Maria Ester Espina from the Rotary Club of Bacolod Central was recently chosen as the District Governor Nominee of District 3850. She is D3850’s Public Image Chair and RI Convention Promotion Chair and will serve as one of the Assistant Rotary Public Image Chair for Zone 10-A for this Rotary Year as well.
Popularly known as Matè joined Rotary in 2003 and became Club President in RY 2006-2007 under the term of Past District Governor Ramon (Toto) Cua Locsin. That same year, she chaired the Council of Presidents in Negros and has since served the district in various capacity among which as GML Editor for RY 2014-2015, as District World Community Service Chair for RY 2009-2010 and Assistant Governor for RY 2019-2020.
In 2018, she was appointed as Rotary Friendship Exchange (RFE) Team Leader to District 2410 that covers Latvia and Sweden and in 2019, she joined the RFE Team to District 5110 in Oregon, USA. She is bilingual and can speak fluently in Italian, having lived in Brescia, Italy for six years.
Matè comes from a family of journalists and artists. She was a reporter for The Manila Times for over a decade and contributed to various international news wires. At present, she runs her own PR consultancy firm and continues to write as a columnist for Digicast Negros and Panay News. She is proud of her lineage as a descendant of Ilonggo hero and writer, Graciano Lopez y Jaena.
She had a short stint in government service as Executive Assistant to the late Negros Occidental Governor Alfredo Maranon Jr.
She has a degree in AB English from La Consolacion College Bacolod under the ETEEAP program. She was a recipient of a Fellowship by the International Leadership Program at the University of California, Berkeley, USA, a Fellow of the Institute of International Education at the University of San Carlos-Cebu, and a Fellow of the Leadership Development Program-Philippines.
Matè is a former member of the Philippine Bayanihan Dance Co. and Tanghalang Pilipino, both resident companies of the Cultural Center of the Philippines. She has performed in various Fiipino musicals and theater productions both here and abroad and stage-managed and directed the re-staging of Noli Me Tangere: The Musical, in Los Angeles in 2015 and 2016 respectively.
She is blessed with two sons, Julio, 31 who works as Business Development Manager in Manila and Giancarlo, 28, a chef in Singapore. She is Nana Tè to 7-year old granddaughter, Ava.
Richard "Voting" Centino
District Governor-Nominee
RY 2024-2025
DGN Richard “Voting “ Centino finished his elementary education in Langcangan Elementary School in 1976 and Misamis Occidental National High School in his secondary in 1980 both schools in the City of Oroquieta.
He graduated from Misamis Institute of Technology in 1984 with the degree of Bachelor of Science in Marine Transportation.
Subsequently after graduation, he passed the 3rd mate licensure examination.
At his early age, he was already teaching maritime courses in his alma mater for 5 years.
Pursuing his chosen career, he worked with William Lines Incorporated , the country’s leading shipping company at that time as third officer on board.
Believing that knowledge is a never-ending journey, he pursue taking the board exam for 2nd mate and has served the company as 2nd officer on board. From the said position, he laddered up to the 1st mate (chief officer position) in the company up to the time of the merging the William-Gothong-Aboitiz(WGA) group of shipping companies.
As lover of knowledge, he subsequently took the board exam for master mariner(ship captain). Immediately after passing the exam, he was hired to take full command of the super ferry vessels of WGA as the youngest captain of the fleet at very young age of 30 taking command of both passenger and cruise ships. Because of his proven competence and dedication to his field of work, he had been commissioned by the company to go abroad to send in and to command the transport of the newly purchased vessels.
After 10 years of remarkable experience in maritime industry, PP Voting Centino expanded his professional service to the public as he took another higher level of board exam for harbor pilotage in which he hurdled with flying colors.
Immediately after, he started his higher maritime career as the youngest harbor pilot in the Philippines covering the areas of Lanao del Norte, Misamis Occidental and Zamboanga del Norte acting as alternate chief pilot of the Iligan harbor pilotage services incorporated and serving as one of the owners of the Venus marine services incorporated, a well-known tug boat services in the Philippines.
Being patented of his unquestionable experience in maritime industry and safety of life at sea, he had been the public’s favorite resource speakers in various learning activities on the said areas.
PP Voting Centino’s life in public service is not only enclosed to maritime industry but also to local governance as well. He served as board member in the 2nd district of the province of Misamis Occidental from 2016-2019 handling various committee chairmanship.
He joined with Rotary Club of Ozamiz North in 2007 , the only surviving rotary club in the city and served as club president in the Rotary Year 2011-2012. He served District 3850 as assistant district governor in the rotary year 2012-2013 during the term of DG Rafael “ Biboy” L. Jocson with the theme Peace Through Service.
PP Voting Centino is happily married to Roselyn Ybanez Centino an educator whose parents are also Rotarians. Their marriage is blessed with three children Kent Richard( a past president and once an assistant district governor) , Kathleen ( once a past president of the Rotaract Club of Ozamiz North) and Kristine, (a law graduate). Rotary spirit had been engraved in the entire family of PP Voting Centino as all his family members including his grandchildren Chelsi and Chase are all Paul Harris fellows.
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