BBVA Compass Foundation to donate $250,000 to aid recovery efforts in Texas, will raise up to $250,000 more
BBVA Compass, whose holding company is headquartered in Houston and which has a significant presence in the city, announced today that its foundation will donate $250,000 to the American Red Cross and the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund to aid disaster recovery efforts in Texas. The bank also plans to raise, online and at its branches, up to $250,000 in employee and customer contributions to the two organizations for a total contribution of up to $500,000.
It will be one of the bank’s biggest philanthropic responses to a natural disaster since BBVA Compass formed in 2007. The devastating flooding from Hurricane Harvey is estimated to be the worst the area has ever seen, and officials are saying it will take months to recover. BBVA Compass itself is still assessing its property damages from the storm, with some flooding reported in its branches, and has mobilized a Disaster Relief Fund for its employees who are reporting property losses. The funds for the American Red Cross and the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund, administered by the Greater Houston Community Foundation, will come both from the BBVA Compass Foundation, and from employee and customer donations.
“People have suffered greatly, and this is a time when we all must come together to put the pieces of our communities back together again,” said BBVA Compass CEO Onur Genç. “These donations are designed to help as many people as we can rebuild their lives.”
Genç: People have suffered greatly, and this is a time when we all must come together to put the pieces of our communities back together again
The latest cost assessment from the American Red Cross to provide its disaster relief and recovery operations is more than $20 million and growing in the region. The BBVA Compass Foundation's donation to the American Red Cross and Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund will help support overall response and relief efforts, including shelters’ meals, social services, financial assistance for affected families, neighborhood cleanups, and ongoing counseling and casework efforts to determine how many residents have lost their homes. The funds are designed to assist rebuilding efforts in the 54 counties that are now on the Governor’s State Disaster Declaration.
BBVA Compass also plans to make limited-time offers to consumers and small business clients to assist as they rebuild. Details will be available soon at branches and by calling (800) 266-7277.
For more stories and articles related to Hurricane Harvey, click here.
Click here to make a contribution to those affected by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. The BBVA Compass Foundation will match donations up to $150,000.
For more information on how BBVA Compass is helping those impacted by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, click here.