For more than forty years we have been serving Puerto Rico and promoting the vision of our founder Rafael Carrión, Jr., (Don Papi): true progress rooted in the community and led by its members.

We were initially incorporated as the Fundación B.P.P.R. Inc. on December 21, 1979, although the dream of creating it had been born much earlier. The initial injection of $500,000 was the result of an excess reserve from a complicated transaction in which Popular acquired part of the Banco Crédito y Ahorro Ponceño. Don Papi understood that a philanthropic structure was necessary to amplify Popular's social commitment value.

The legacy of Don Papi’s dream transcends program funding, financial figures, and the number of people impacted. Instead, is to highlight the wealth of knowledge that Puerto Rican communities own on how to solve problems and overcome challenges.

Today and tomorrow, we reaffirm our goal of amplifying community voices and honoring the experiences of those most directly affected by inequality. 

The historic investment of $50 million in more than 300 organizations that have impacted tens of thousands of youth, children, and adults who deserve to live in a more caring and prosperous Puerto Rico is a shared achievement. The respect we feel for our partners and the genuine admiration for their unwavering commitment is our reason for being. 

By 1982 we were ready to award grants. Centro Escape, an organization that helps children victims of negligence and abuse, was the first grantee, receiving an investment of $38,000.

Shortly after, a grant was given to the Tomás Blanco public school in the Juan Domingo neighborhood in Guaynabo, followed by other organizations, such as the Centro San Francisco, Fondita de Jesús, Iniciativa Comunitaria and the Sociedad de Niños y Adultos Lisiados. In our first 20 years, these projects received almost a third of the funds.

These first contributions set the groundwork for the development of Fundación Banco Popular.

For many years, Rafael Carrión Jr., “Don Papi”, had the aspiration in his mind and heart to contribute to the integral development of the children of Popular’s employees. Such dream was made possible thanks to Carrión Jr.’s accumulated funds in his Deferred Compensation Plan as well as his savings in the Rafael Carrión Jr. Employee Credit Union. After “Don Papi’s” death on December 31, 1991, his children generously donated the funds for this noble purpose.

The Voluntary Contribution Program was created to integrate Popular’s employees in the Foundation’s work and to expand our scope of impact. The generosity of Popular's colleagues is manifested every year through their voluntary contribution, which is automatically deducted from each payroll and their participation in volunteer activities.

We began to provide the Escuelas Libres de Música with laboratories to equip them with the necessary tools to prepare their students, using the latest technology in music education. Thanks to the funds obtained through the sales of Popular’s yearly holiday music special, six laboratories were initially established.

The first Día de Hacer la Diferencia was celebrated with great enthusiasm, in which, through hundreds of community projects, Popular’s employees honor the tradition of service that characterizes the institution from its beginnings.

Every year, employees and their families give their best to improve their communities in projects such as garbage collection, visits to the sick or the elderly, remodeling projects and clothing donations, among others.

This award recognizes the educational performance of students who have completed their senior year of hight school and who also achieved the top scores on the College Admissions and Assessment Test and passed two or more Advanced Placement Program test. 

We joined the Luis A. Ferré Foundation to create a donation campaign of musical instruments that are later distributed to organizations, bands, orchestras and choirs, among others, to bolster musical education in Puerto Rico.

We began collaborating with Berklee College of Music, the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world, to offer educational experiences to talented Puerto Rican youth interested in a musical career.

At the beginning of the new decade, we reaffirmed our commitment to our non-profit organizations while we implemented a more rigorous evaluation process. Specific progress indicators were added for each focus area. 

Also, the first formal alliances materialized, which contributed to the future development of proprietary programs with a focus on partnerships, education and community development.

With the inauguration of our new facilities in Hato Rey, the Community for Collaboration and Social Innovation (CCIS by its Spanish acronym) was born. The CCIS provides work and meeting areas that facilitate the exchange of ideas, questions and solutions between different sectors to promote social change in Puerto Rico.

A unique Montessori educational project that seeks excellence, the dignified remuneration of its staff and the integration of economically disadvantaged children from neighboring communities.

Following the devastating hit of Hurricanes Irma and María through Puerto Rico and neighboring islands, we developed the Embracing Puerto Rico initiative to support affected communities and contribute to the reconstruction process.

This effort has allowed us to collaborate strategically with new philanthropic partners, which has resulted in valuable and lasting partnerships.

This summer boarding program was created to offer an opportunity to talented youth with high achievement in the performing-musical arts, to continue their development to the fullest through sessions with local music teachers and experts.

As a long-term recovery strategy, the Puerto Rico Big Ideas Challenge was launched, in alliance with the Hispanic Federation. This is the first competition for social innovation in Puerto Rico that propels bold proposals for community transformation and solutions to address our society’s most pressing challenges.