Fifth Third Features African American History Makers

Fifth Third Bank is honoring the accomplishments of African Americans during a month-long campaign in February. The Bank is partnering with Orlando’s Star 94.5 (WCFB-FM) radio station to highlight an African American history maker each weekday in February.

The 20 featured individuals are well- and lesser-known African Americans whose unique contributions to society helped shape American history. Among the featured history makers will be:

• Mary McLeod Bethune, the daughter and sibling of slaves, who founded Bethune-Cookman University in Florida and served as an advisor to President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

• Ralph Bunche, diplomat, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1950 for his mediation in Palestine in the late 1940s.

• Thurgood Marshall, lawyer, who was the first African American to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States.

• Sojourner Truth, an escaped slave, who was the first African American woman to win a case against a white man who was responsible for illegally selling her son to an Alabama slave owner.

In addition, Fifth Third Bank will sponsor a promotion in which the radio station DJ will invite listeners to call in for a chance to win a $50 MasterCard® gift card from Fifth Third Bank. The daily winners will be automatically entered in a Fifth Third Bank-sponsored, on-air drawing at month’s end for $1,000 and an additional $2,000 to go to an African-American focused local charity of the winner’s choosing.

“These campaigns are a testament to Fifth Third’s culture of diversity and inclusion and a way in which to honor the life-changing contributions of African Americans during Black History Month,” said Reagan Rick, president and CEO for Fifth Third Bank (Central and North Florida). “It not only underscores the commitment Fifth Third Bank has to serving all customers in our market, but also enables us to give back to a non-profit organization that serves the important, specific needs within our local community.”

Fifth Third Bancorp is conducting these campaigns throughout its 12-state footprint in the United States, partnering with local radio stations in each of its affiliate markets.