The passing of a Skålleague is always difficult to come to terms with. Even more when it is someone whose life’s journey left a profound mark, not only on the organisation, but also on the lives of those of us who had the privilege of sharing his path.

Fernando Medina Milburn was one such man.

Last May, Skål International honoured him for his 50-year career and Skål spirit. The ceremony in Montevideo was attended by the Director of Region 4 Latin America, Ian Gillespie, who travelled there specifically at the invitation of the World President, Andrés Hayes. The award was presented alongside the President of the Latin America Area Committee, Mario Costa, the National President of Skål International Uruguay, Alejandro Vitalis, and the President of Skål International Montevideo, Daniel Reboredo.

Fernando spent more than five decades working in the Uruguayan aviation sector, holding positions with major airlines such as Pan Am, British Caledonian, Ecuatoriana, Alitalia and American Airlines.

In 1976, he joined Skål International Montevideo during the tenure of its founder, Vladimir Perse, and under the sponsorship of Ulrich Larsen. Since then, his commitment to the organisation has been unwavering.

In 1990, he was given his first major challenge by the World Executive: to coordinate ‘Operación Esperanza’ (Operation Hope) an initiative that continues to this day and enables children from rural schools in the interior to visit Montevideo, explore its main attractions as tourists, share a lunch with Skål members, and return to their communities with educational and recreational materials for themselves and their schools.

Fernando was its permanent patron and relished every edition with a sense of excitement that is hard to describe. Those who accompanied him recall the sparkle in his eyes at the sight of those children’s wonder and joy. In 2026, Operation Hope will reach its 36th edition, becoming one of the most beautiful legacies of his life as a Skålleague.

He was President of Skål International Montevideo, President of the Uruguayan National Committee and National Honorary President – a distinction he held uniquely for the country’s three Clubs: Colonia, Montevideo and Punta del Este – and a Knight of the Order of the Mate and the Bombilla of Skål Montevideo.

He took part in countless Latin American congresses and attended the most recent one held in Montevideo in April 2025, where he was honoured by representatives from across the continent and officials from Skål International.

His career also received significant recognition outside the organisation, including the Sol de Oro from the Uruguayan Chamber of Tourism and an award from the Ministry of Tourism, as well as numerous tributes from tourism, trade and social organisations.

But Fernando belonged, quite simply, to everyone.

His good nature, his smile and that brotherly embrace with which he welcomed every Skålleague, no matter where they came from, were part of who he was. He used to say: “If you’re a Skålleague, you’re a good person”.

He also often repeated a piece of wisdom that takes on even greater significance today: “The real task lies with Skål; it lies with human values. Business comes and goes, but friends are forever.”

And he dreamt of a Skål looking towards the future, built on the pillars of its meaning: Friendship, Happiness, Health and Long Life – to which he always added one essential word: Love.

Today, Fernando will no longer be physically present at our meetings, our congresses or at every ‘Operación Esperanza’. But he will be present in every embrace between Skålleagues, in every child who discovers Montevideo, in every gesture of friendship and in every act that keeps alive those values he championed for half a century.

We are sharing a video from ten years ago in which Fernando expresses, in his own words, what Skål meant to him. We also remember his contribution to the book *History of Skål Uruguay*, which he supported and edited at various stages, even across a twenty-year span.

His story has been recorded. But, above all, it lives on.

Because Fernando Medina Milburn was not just part of Skål Uruguay’s history.

For many, Fernando was part of the story of their own lives.

Video: https://youtu.be/LQcIRGfonbs?si=G4BT43S8QIJPfvQ4

https://www.skalmontevideo.org.uy/img/links/libro-skal.pdf