HOUSTON, Nov. 16, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 2,000 BBVA Compass volunteers fanned out across the bank's Sunbelt footprint during the second annual BBVA Compass Week of Service initiative, offering their financial expertise and elbow grease in an effort to build brighter futures for those most in need.

The BBVA Compass Week of Service is part of the bank's mission to give back to its communities. Bank employees in 24 markets gave more than 9,000 hours of their time to activities centered around five community development themes: affordable housing, small business assistance, financial education, pro bono services and community revitalization.

"Giving back is one of the most rewarding things we can do as a company, especially when it involves empowering people to take control of their financial lives," said BBVA Compass Chairman and CEO Manolo Sanchez, who taught financial education to students at Houston's KIPP Connect charter school during Week of Service. "I'm proud of all of our employees who got out there determined to make a difference in their communities."

BBVA Compass gives employees 16 hours of paid time off each year to use toward volunteer service. All volunteer chapters organized events for the week and highlighted their work on social media using the #ShineBright hashtag.

The BBVA Compass Week of Service ran from Oct. 26-31. Markets where employees volunteered included:

Albuquerque, N.M.
Austin, Texas
Beaumont, Texas
Birmingham, Ala.
Brownsville, Texas
Dallas
Decatur, Ala.
Denver
El Paso, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas
Houston
Huntsville, Ala.
Jacksonville, Fla.
Laredo, Texas
Los Angeles/Orange County
McAllen, Texas
Mobile, Ala.
Montgomery, Ala.
Phoenix
Riverside, Calif.
San Antonio
San Francisco
Stockton, Calif.
Tucson, Ariz.

About BBVA Group

BBVA Compass is a subsidiary of BBVA Compass Bancshares Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of BBVA (NYSE: BBVA) (MAD: BBVA). BBVA is a customer-centric global financial services group founded in 1857. The Group has a solid position in Spain, is the largest financial institution in Mexico and has leading franchises in South America and the Sunbelt region of the United States. Its diversified business is geared toward high-growth markets and relies on technology as a key sustainable competitive advantage. Corporate responsibility is at the core of its business model. BBVA fosters financial education and inclusion, and supports scientific research and culture. It operates with the highest integrity, a long-term vision and applies the best practices. The Group is present in the main sustainability indexes. More information about the BBVA Group can be found at bbva.com.

About BBVA Compass

BBVA Compass is a Sunbelt-based financial institution that operates 672 branches, including 341 in Texas, 89 in Alabama, 77 in Arizona, 62 in California, 45 in Florida, 38 in Colorado and 20 in New Mexico, and commercial and private client offices throughout the U.S. BBVA Compass ranks among the top 25 largest U.S. commercial banks based on deposit market share and ranks among the largest banks in Alabama (2nd), Texas (4th) and Arizona (4th). BBVA Compass has been recognized as one of the leading small business lenders by the Small Business Administration, and its mobile app recently earned the Mobile Banking Leader in Functionality Award for the second consecutive year from Javelin Strategy & Research. Additional information about BBVA Compass can be found at bbvacompass.com, by following @BBVACompassNews on Twitter or visiting newsroom.bbvacompass.com. 

Editor's Note:
BBVA Compass is a trade name of Compass Bank.

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140825/139263

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bbva-compass-employees-give-more-than-9000-hours-of-their-time-during-annual-week-of-service-300179423.html

SOURCE BBVA Compass