MARIA MERCEDES REINARES Y ARRASTIA-TUASON

The 2016 Most Outstanding Kapampangan Awardee in the Field of Government Service is Maria Mercedes Reinares y ArrastiaTuason.

Mercedes Tuason was born on September 27, 1930 in Lubao, Pampanga. She is a Philippine diplomat and ambassador to the Holy See.

An alumnus of Saint Scholastica’s Catholic College in Manila, Tuason has served in the field of Nutritional Sciences and was appointed plenipotentiary to the Holy See in 2009.

In the Philippines, Tuason is particularly known as an advocate of the Holy Rosary devotion and her roles in many charitable organizations, namely the Red Cross foundation.

In May 2003, Pope John Paul II awarded Tuason the Magistral dame of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. In May 23, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI awarded Tuason the Grand Cross of Merit for the title order of Pius IX due to her charitable works and diplomatic service to the Roman Catholic Church, a coveted title that was not granted to ladies until November 1993. Currently, the Order of Pius IX is the third to the highest-ranking order granted by the Pope through chivalry, the highest being the Supreme Order of Christ.

Prior to being appointed ambassador to the Holy See, Tuason attended Saint Scholastica’s Catholic College where she obtained a bachelor’s degree in nutritional sciences, where she had also received the Pax Award. Mercedes had six children with Jose Ramon Del Rosario Tuason, a prominent businessman. Together they had Jose, Ramon, Inaki, Rossana, Karen, Paolo, and Jingy. In 1993, Tuason was widowed when her husband Jose Tuason died in a plane crash. This left her with the responsibility of raising six children.

During the Martial Law established by former Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, Tuason later settled in the United States of America. The death of her husband brought her closer to the Church and various other religious activities. Tuason is known for her religious devotion and piety which she advocates in the restoration of the Holy Rosary in common practice among Filipinos in her country. Tuason also began her own charitable foundation, called Tuason Community Center Foundation, which she personally ran from 1992-1995. Tuason is among the top 100 list of men and women given prominent status and academic recognition in her alumni college.