Fifth Third Bank is honoring the accomplishments of Latinos during Hispanic Heritage Month, September 15-October 15, 2011. The Bank is partnering with Orlando’s WNUE-FM (98.1) radio station to highlight a Hispanic history maker each weekday during that time period.
Fifth Third also has created a full-color brochure describing all 20 Hispanic history makers and will feature it in participating branches. The 20 featured individuals are well- and lesser-known Hispanics whose unique contributions to society helped shape American history. Among the featured history makers will be:
- Carlos Juan Finley, a Cuban physician and biologist, who discovered the cause of yellow fever. He and Walter Reed, an American surgeon, developed a vaccine to conquer the disease.
- Felisa Rincon De Guatier, mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico from 1946-1948, who was the first woman to hold such office in the Western Hemisphere. She also served as goodwill ambassador during the terms of four U.S. presidents.
- Ritchie Valens, a Mexican American singer, songwriter and guitarist, who is known as the forefather of the Chicano rock movement. His song, La Bamba, was a huge hit in 1958.
- Loreta Janeta Velazquez, a Cuban-American soldier, who disguised herself as a man in order to fight for the Southern Confederacy in the Civil War.
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 $5,300 to go to a 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 life-changing contributions during Hispanic Heritage Month,” said Karen Dee, Florida regional president.
