Former ConGen dedicates Gawad Mabini award to Filipinos in Northeast
Months after his retirement from the Foreign Service, former Consul General to New York Mario De Leon, Jr. was awarded the Gawad Mabini Dakilang Kamanong (Grand Cross) by President Rodrigo Duterte at a ceremony in Malacanang Palace on September 13.De Leon was the Consul General in New York from 2011 to 2016 where one of his flagship projects was Build A Shelter, benefitting families displaced by typhoon Yolanda.
“I dedicate this prestigious Gawad Mabini Grand Cross Award to the Filipino and business community in Northeastern USA,” he said in a statement. “There is no doubt that it was their utmost and wholehearted support to my various initiatives as the former Consul General that paved the way for this Presidential Award and recognition.”
De Leon assumed the position of Consul General in New York on March 1, 2011. Foremost in his agenda was to bring reconciliation among various sectors and encourage cooperation among organization leaders within the “rather fractious” Filipino American community.
He was known to reach out to younger FilAms and bridge generations. One of his initiatives was engagement with Filipino student organizations in universities across the 10 states under his jurisdiction, namely Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
For organizations that have been around for decades, such as the PIDCI, NaFFAA and the Philippine American Chamber of Commerce, he has made gentle reminders about the importance of “infusing new blood” within their ranks. De Leon believed in developing new-breed leaders who would introduce new ways of thinking, and carry on their organizations’ mission to ensure their survival.
He liked to remind the community how the three “pillars” of foreign policy — economic diplomacy, national security and assistance to nationals in distress — were the principles that guided his leadership.
In New York City, the largest consular post in the world with 120 foreign consulates, De Leon became head of the Society of Foreign Consuls from 2013 to 2014.
The Gawad Mabini, established by virtue of Presidential Decree No. 490, s. 1974, is conferred on Filipinos who rendered distinguished foreign service or helped promote the interests and prestige of the Philippines abroad.
A career diplomat, De Leon was the Assistant Secretary for Financial Management Services in the Department of Foreign Affairs prior to his retirement from government service last June 15, 2017.
He was previously the Ambassador to Pretoria in South Africa; Minister and Consul General to London from 2000 to 2006; and Consul and Member of the Investment Promotions Unit of the Philippine Consulate General in New York from 1993 to 1997.
He served as Third Secretary then Second Secretary in the Philippine Mission to the United Nations in New York, and was a Vice Consul in San Francisco.
Before joining the Foreign Service, he had wide experience in the Philippine corporate world having worked at the SGV Group and Wyeth-Suaco Labs Inc. He served as Assistant Corporate Planning Manager of the Export Processing Zone Authority. He earned his MBA from the Ateneo School of Business.
He is an alumnus of the Ateneo de Manila University graduating with honors with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Psychology in 1974. He went to San Beda College for his elementary education. He is married to Eleanor De Leon and has four daughters.
© 2017 The FilAm