Esther Koplowitz received the Gold Medal
of Merit in Work on 4 November at a cere-
mony held at the National Library presided
over by the Labour Minister, Fátima Báñez,
who was accompanied by the Vice-Presi-
dent of the Government, Soraya Sáenz de
Santamaría.
The award acknowledges merit for “exem-
plary conduct to the benefit of society in
the course of performing the tasks invol-
ved in any type of work, profession or ser-
vice”.
The Vice-Chairwoman of FCC and
Chairwoman of the Foundation that bears
her name accepted the award “on behalf
of the employees at FCC and the parents
of children with disabilities, because –she
said-- they are an example of unflagging
work well done, faith, selflessness and
love”.
After several years leading a group that
includes some of the most relevant com-
panies in Spain, Esther Koplowitz has
acknowledged the need to give back
to society part of what she had created.
She has done so in particular through the
Foundation that bears her name and their
work in building and fitting out residences
for the underprivileged or those at risk of
exclusion, such as the elderly, which are
subsequently donated to public adminis-
trations.
Fundación Esther Koplowitz has one resi-
dence, Nuestra Casa, in Collado Villalba
(Madrid); another, la Nostra Casa de Fort
Esther Koplowitz
Merit of Work Medal
The Labour Minister, Fátima Báñez, has granted the award to the company
and the Spanish philanthropist.
The Spanish
businesswoman and
philanthropist accepted
the award “on behalf of
the employees at FCC
and the parents of
children with disabilities,
because they are an
example of unflagging
work well done, faith,
selflessness and love”
Pienc, in the city of Barcelona and a third
residence in the city of Valencia, devoted
to persons with physical and mental disa-
bilities.
At present, Fundación Esther Koplowitz
has significant projects underway, such
as the residence and treatment centre for
children with cerebral palsy, which will be
donated to Fundación Nido upon comple-
tion.
These are just a few of the more than two
hundred activities performed by the Foun-
dation, an excellent example of which,
in the field of research, is the Esther Ko-
plowitz Biological Research Centre (Centro
de Investigaciones Biológicas Esther Ko-
plowitz, or CIBEK, in Spanish). In addition
to this centre, which diagnoses and treats
highly complex diseases at the Clinical
Hospital of Barcelona, other initiatives in-
clude the CEPRI (a centre specialised in
the treatment of autism) in Majadahonda,
the Da Vinci robot donated to the Clinical
Hospital of Madrid for High Precision Sur-
gery, or over 1,200 scholarships for living
expenses for university students lacking
resources.
All of these projects are exclusively funded
with contributions by Esther Koplowitz,
who, through her philanthropy and pa-
tronage, has given much more to society
than she has received.
Group
The
