Some stories do not need grand moments to leave a mark. Sometimes, it is the quiet decisions, the ones made when no one is looking, that speak the loudest.
It was October 10, an ordinary day for the monthly water meter reading inside Calamba Premiere International Park. As one of the meter readers went about his rounds, a small accident happened when the bag carrying the device for the readings slipped from his grasp and fell somewhere along the road.
Not long after, Mr. Aljor Marco, a driver from Cherich Shuttle Services for Samsung Electro-Mechanics Philippines Corp., happened to be around. A faint thud caught his attention. That was when he found the bag.
Inside was a cellphone used for water meter readings. It was unlocked and had no password. Mr. Marco could have easily left it behind, but he understood how important the device must be to its owner. He even mentioned that it would surely be an unfortunate situation for the water meter reader, knowing how crucial the device was for their work.
Guided by that thought, he checked the phone for any way to contact someone from CPIP. The only numbers he found were landlines, but as he looked through the gallery, he noticed something familiar—an employee wearing a CPIP uniform. That small clue was enough to lead him in the right direction.
He reached out to the park and insisted on returning the phone himself. When asked why, he simply said it felt right, that since he was the last to hold it, he wanted to make sure it found its way back.
Later that day, he met Mr. Krister Po, Head of CPIP’s Environmental Relations Department, and personally handed over the device. It was a small act, done quietly and without expectation.
To express gratitude, CPIP offered humble tokens for Mr. Marco, a man who reminded everyone what integrity looks like in action.
Because this is not just a story about honesty. It is about doing what is right even when no one is watching. It is about the kind of integrity that does not ask for recognition, the kind that exists simply because it matters. And perhaps, stories like this remind us of something we can all do: to choose kindness, even in the smallest ways; to act with integrity, not because we must, but because it’s the right thing to do.
At CPIP, progress is not measured only by growth or innovation, but also by the values that bind its people together. Mr. Marco’s gesture may have been simple, but its impact reaches far, reminding us that integrity, in its purest form, is what truly builds a community worth belonging to.
