BPPR volunteers arrive to serve public Montessori schools

During the month of March, around 15 employees of Banco Popular de Puerto Rico (BPPR) carried out volunteer work in three schools: Luis Muñoz Rivera in Rio Piedras, Juana Rodríguez Mundo in Canovanas and Francisco Matías Lugo in Carolina.  

At the Juana Rodríguez Mundo school in Canovanas, volunteer Brenda Díaz Sánchez supported the school principal with data entry and administrative tasks. She, along with Carmen Santiago, Emma Véliz, Marie J. Pierre Canales and Joselyn García, organized and prepared more than 200 backpacks with school supplies that students will receive as recognition of their efforts during the school year. 

''The volunteer work at the Juana Rodríguez Mundo school was a very pleasant experience for me, from the beginning the treatment was excellent. Both the director and the two school maintenance employees were very cordial and were all the time giving us support with the materials to prepare the backpacks and helping us to identify the groups. It was hard work but with the support we had it was not difficult at all. I felt satisfied to be able to give them a hand in completing the backpacks for each student so that the school administration could be ready for the delivery activity. It was good to take that weight off them!'' said Marie J. Pierre Canales.

In the case of the Luis Muñoz Rivera school in Rio Piedras, Irmary Reyes, Lilliana Méndez, Brenda Lebrón, Maribel Barreto and Arlene Vilá supported the school in its goal of reaching a greater number of students enrolled. They did this by calling parents and guardians inviting them to complete the online registration of their sons and daughters, and extending the invitation to visit the school to receive assistance in the process.

At the Francisco Matías Lugo School in Carolina they received Jessika Rivera and Mary Ann Rivera who offered talks and self-esteem activities to students from 5 to 9 years old. “The activity was good and of great personal satisfaction. Being in contact with the children, without a doubt, was rewarding. Seeing them laugh and get excited about the simple things in life, such as loving each other as they are, is an invaluable satisfaction,'' shared Mary Ann Rivera. 

We also have to highlight the 10 BPPR volunteers who volunteered for us in the Puerto Rico Open Golf Tournament and its foundations program, giving us the opportunity to receive a financial contribution for the Instituto Nueva Escuela. 

''Our volunteers are the best! They are always ready for volunteer service with joy and enthusiasm. It is gratifying for me to meet, guide and accompany Banco Popular employees during their volunteering and to see how committed they are to our mission of school transformation. In the Banco Popular employees, we have volunteers with great professional and human excellence,” shared INE's Volunteer Program Coordinator, Neysha Murphy. 

In this alliance with the Banco Popular Foundation, to date, 30 BPPR employees/volunteers have completed volunteer work for a total of 190 hours. In the coming weeks and months, we will have more volunteer activities in the schools.