Lucienne Gigante, SVP of Doral Bank, Addresses Importance of Empowering Hispanic Community at the 34
Lucienne Gigante, SVP of Doral Bank, Addresses Importance of Empowering Hispanic Community at the 34thAnnual Convention of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- "At Doral, we take great pride in being a leading community bank. To us, that means making a difference in the lives of our clients and community. Our strategy is simple—substitute advertising dollars for Corporate Social Responsibility dollars. We believe in creating long-term community programs that empower, educate and provide opportunity. We also believe that driving women's economic development has a multiplier effect on the economy and is a solution out of fiscal problems," Lucienne Gigante, Doral's SVP of Marketing, Public Relations and Community, said in her address to the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, during the premier luncheon at which Michelle Herrera Mulligan, Editor-in-Chief of Cosmopolitan for Latinas, was awarded the USHCC's Women in Business and Leadership Award.
Ms. Gigante, with the support of Doral's CEO, Glen Wakeman, and the entire executive leadership team, has been instrumental in formulating dynamic entrepreneurial and community programs across Puerto Rico, reflecting Doral's commitment to the communities which it serves. Mr. Wakeman's vision for community initiatives centers on providing economic and financial support to those who often do not receive it. The Mujeres de Exito (Women of Success) program, a cornerstone of Doral's local outreach, is a community program committed to supporting the entrepreneurial and professional pursuits of women in Puerto Rico.
Ms. Gigante emphasized in her address that, "The number of highly educated women - women with the potential to start scalable ventures - has reached record levels in Puerto Rico and the US. Yet not enough women are being encouraged to take entrepreneurial steps, or exposed to appropriate opportunities because, among other conditions, their support structures and networks continue to be limited. We want to change this reality.
Over the past two years Doral has invested nearly $3 million in the communities of Puerto Rico, to support the development of women professionals and entrepreneurs through our Mujeres de Exito (Women of Success Program). Mujeres provides capital for women to start or grow a business, while making education, mentoring and networking opportunities available to help them succeed.
In the last year alone, Doral has enabled the creation of 30 women-owned businesses. In fact, just two weeks ago, we injected approximately $1 million into twenty additional high-growth, women-owned businesses."
In addition to addressing the luncheon, Ms. Gigante moderated a panel discussion at the Convention on gender inclusion and leadership, which featured distinguished female Hispanic business leaders, including Carmen Castillo, Beatriz M. Manetta and Nina G. Vaca.
Full Text of Ms. Gigante's Speech:
Good afternoon. On behalf of Doral Financial Corporation and our CEO Glen Wakeman, it's an honor to be addressing each of you today. We applaud you for your tireless efforts on behalf of Hispanic communities across the US and Puerto Rico, my home.
At Doral, we take great pride in being a leading community bank. To us, that means making a difference in the lives of our clients and community. Our strategy is simple—substitute advertising dollars for Corporate Social Responsibility dollars. We believe in creating long-term community programs that empower, educate and provide opportunity. We also believe that driving women's economic development has a multiplier effect on the economy. And is a solution out of fiscal problems.
The number of highly educated women - women with the potential to start scalable ventures - has reached record levels in Puerto Rico and has been for years in the US. Yet not enough are taking entrepreneurial steps, or being exposed to appropriate opportunities because, among other conditions, their support structures and networks continue to be limited.
We want to change this reality.
Over the past two years Doral has invested nearly $3 million in the communities of Puerto Rico, to support the development of women professionals and entrepreneurs through our Mujeres de Exito (Women of Success Program). Mujeres provides capital for women to start a business or grow a business. And, it provides education, mentoring and networking opportunities to help them succeed.
In the last year alone Doral has enabled the creation of 30 new women-owned businesses. In fact, just two weeks ago, we injected approximately $1 million to twenty additional high-growth women-owned businesses.
I am pleased to be joined today by two successful Hispanic women who have benefited from the Mujeres de Exito program. Marisol Santiago's was a single mother of two with three jobs, when she was let go of her pharma employment. She reinvented herself and started a pharmacy, and now, after Doral's capital injection, she has opened an infusion center, finding new niches and growing her successful business for the betterment of the community. Meanwhile, Alessandra Correa owns Pique Mi Madre, a hand-made high-quality hot-sauce from Puerto Rico. With the financial support she received from Doral, Alessandra will start exporting her product, starting with Whole Foods in Florida.
Marisol and Alessandra are a testament to the power that Hispanic women can have on their local economies when properly supported by financial institutions. There are millions of bold and ambitions Hispanic women just like Marisol and Alessandra. Providing them with the tools and encouragement to succeed will substantially drive economic development, and truly change the lives of many women and their respective communities.
To learn more about Doral's community initiatives, please visit http://www.doralbank.com/en/community/doral-community-involvement.aspx
About Doral
Doral Bank is a leading community bank based in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Doral serves its customers both in Puerto Rico and in the US mainland. On the U.S. mainland, Doral has branches in Florida and New York and its national online bank, Doral Direct. Doral Bank is a member of the FDIC and a wholly owned subsidiary of Doral Financial Corporation (NYS: DRL) .
Doral
María M. Rodríguez Matienzo
787-474-6497
KEYWORDS: Caribbean Puerto Rico
INDUSTRY KEYWORDS:
The article Lucienne Gigante, SVP of Doral Bank, Addresses Importance of Empowering Hispanic Community at the 34th Annual Convention of the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce originally appeared on Fool.com.
Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Copyright © 1995 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
