A patriot, revolutionary hero, historian, and exemplary public official these are some of the commendations suited to the one sterling son produced by the Filipino race - Don Mariano S. Ponce.

Let us remember how great this man was during the Philippine Revolution.

Mariano S. Ponce was born in Baliwag, Bulacan on March 23, 1863. He finished his studies at the Colegio de San Juan de Letran in 1885. He enrolled at the University of Santo Tomas but went to Spain in 1887 where he finished his medical studies at the Universidad Central de Madrid in 1889. Ponce was very active in pursuing the Filipino campaign for reforms. He helped unify the Filipino expatriates by coorganizing the Associacion Hispano-Filipina. He also cofounded in early 1889 the newspaper La Solidaridad, the mouthpiece of the Filipino reform movement and served as its managing editor. He contributed many articles to La Solidaridad, using the pseudonyms Kalipulaku, Naning, and Tigbalang.

Ponce was of the prominent figures of the Philippine Revolution. He helped lay the foundations of the Reform Movement and actively fought for the Filipino Republic. Dr. Jose P. Rizal, Marcelo H. del Pilar, and Ponce formed the Grand Trinity of the Reform Movement. Their partnership propelled the libertarian struggle of the Filipino people and the end of foreign rule in the country.

The following are some of the highlights to be remembered during his time:

• Appointed as official representative of the Filipino Republic to solicit the help of the Japanese government, especially in securing arms and personnel.
• Succeeded in buying two shiploads of arms and ammunition from the Japanese government.
• Devoted his remaining years to writing to sustain the gains of the Philippine Revolution and awaken Filipino national consciousness.
• Became a director of the El Renacimiento, first Filipino nationalist newspaper.
• Co-founded El Ideal, mouthpiece of the Nacionalista Party.
• Entered politics and was elected assemblyman of the second district of Bulacan.

He was also lucky to be invited by the founder of Modern China, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, but fell ill and died on May 23, 1918 on his way.