Landmark Gift Benefits First-Generation, College-Bound, Hispanic Students
NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Nov. 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — The Orange County Hispanic Education Endowment Fund (HEEF) is honored to receive its largest ever single donation supporting first-generation, college-bound scholars. MUFG Union Bank (Union Bank), which is expected to be acquired by U.S. Bank on December 1, 2022, is contributing nearly $70,000 as the culmination of a long-term investment in HEEF. This gift is comprised of $60,000 for the HEEF Endowment and $10,000 for 2023 student scholarships.
Union Bank’s landmark gift comes at a historic moment for both HEEF and Union Bank. Next year, in 2023, HEEF will mark the 30-year anniversary since its establishment by a group of visionary community and corporate leaders in Orange County. Similarly, 2023 will be Union Bank’s 20-year anniversary since initiating the Union Bank of California Hispanic Scholarship Fund with HEEF, with the intention of supporting high school seniors and community college transfers majoring in Business, Finance, Marketing, or a related major. Since its inception, the Union Bank fund has provided over $90,000 in scholarships to 45 scholars, bringing Union Bank’s overall investment to $160,000.
Union Bank Director, Foundation and Community Service Officer and HEEF Advisory Council member, Rossina Gallegos, states, “In 2003, Union Bank created a HEEF Scholarship Fund and joined approximately 30 partners to secure scholarships that will be available for Latino students in perpetuity. To continue this legacy, Union Bank wants to make this contribution now into the HEEF’s endowment to help HEEF’s mission of increasing access to higher education for underserved Latino students in Orange County,” Gallegos says. “As a member of the HEEF’s Advisory Board, I’ve had the opportunity of reviewing scholarship applications and know that these scholarships are critical for these students to reach their goals of higher education.”
J. Torres, a 2021 beneficiary of the Union Bank scholarship, studying business administration at California State University, Fullerton, says, “The scholarship takes some pressure off of my shoulders so that I can focus on my studies. I am grateful for this assistance – and when I graduate, I hope to make an impact in people’s lives the same way Union Bank of California has impacted my life.”
About MUFG Union Bank, N.A. (Union Bank)
As of June 30, 2022, Union Bank operated 297 branches primarily on the US West Coast. The company provides a wide spectrum of corporate and retail banking and wealth management services. It also offers an extensive portfolio of value-added solutions, including investment banking, personal and corporate trust, global custody, transaction banking, capital markets, and other services. Union Bank is a proud member of the Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (NYSE: MUFG), one of the world’s largest financial institutions. For more information, visit: www.unionbank.com.
About the Hispanic Education Endowment Fund
Founded in 1993, The Orange County Hispanic Education Endowment Fund (HEEF)’s mission is to provide academic scholarships to talented and deserving Hispanic students in Orange County to inspire, enhance, and improve access to higher education. HEEF is a collaborative of more than 30 funding partners that offer individual scholarship awards of $2,500– $5,000 across multiple areas of interest. Funds are dedicated to first-generation students who have demonstrated aptitude and resilience to succeed in college. Since its inception, the organization has awarded more than $3.8 million to over 2,600 students. For more information, visit www.heef.org.
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Beth Binger
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SOURCE The Orange County Hispanic Education Endowment Fund
