One amazing day, made possible by Rotary

By Teodora Lucero, Rotary Club of Sta. Rosa Centro, Laguna, Philippines. This is the second in a series of blog posts about women making a difference in Rotary leading up to International Women’s Day 8 March.

When I was serving as president of the Rotary Club of Sta Rosa Centro, a big storm damaged and ravaged my community, sending a couple of thousand people to five school buildings which were turned into evacuation centers.The next day, members of several Rotary clubs including my own began distributing relief supplies. Suddenly, I heard a shout. “Help! My wife is about to give birth!” 

I saw the pregnant woman already lying down and fully dilated. My midwife instinct instantly kicked in. There was no time to send her to my birthing clinic or the hospital; the baby’s head was already visible. I knelt down and successfully delivered the baby with the cotton and alcohol available on hand.

Fortunately, my birthing clinic was quite near, so I sent for my surgical tools and cut the newborn’s umbilical cord with the proper tools, giving the new mother some form of dignity, I felt. I also gave the baby one of the spare pieces of clothes and blankets I always keep handy at the clinic. Women go there to give birth without even a piece of layette.

What an amazing day! It started out with a busy morning and afternoon of distributing relief supplies, and ended with an unexpected opportunity to use my vocation to help others. If I were not in Rotary, would this amazing experience have happened?