Valero Energy Corporation has a special passion for community giving which employees are proud to be associated with and see as central to Valero's culture. The word Valero comes from the Spanish word "valor," meaning "to be of worth" or "to be of value." Emphasizing Valero's commitment to community service, CEO Bill Greehey stated, "When Valero was formed in 1980, we made a commitment to help improve the quality of life in each of the communities in which we have operations, and we highlighted this commitment in our founding mission statement. We've undergone many changes since that time, but our commitment to community service remains unchanged, and is still a part of our mission statement." The mission statement reflects this core cultural value and directs the company to "[take] a leadership role in [its] communities by providing company support and encouraging employee involvement." This commitment is prominently displayed at all locations, in employee communications and distributed to new employees as a wallet card.

In each of Valero's locations is a Valero Volunteer Councils, a self-governing groups of employees who provide volunteers for worthwhile causes. In a single year, Valero Volunteers donated more than 140,000 hours of their time to worthwhile organizations by mentoring students, organizing fund-raisers, participating in community cleanup events, volunteering at youth centers and much more.

Each Valero refinery has its own multi-faceted Emergency Response Team capable of responding to a variety of emergencies and safety incidents. ERT members work in the community as volunteers for the local volunteer fire departments, schools, church groups, Boy Scouts and other organizations that need instruction in first-aid and CPR. These employees are considered "everyday heroes" performing brave and admirable acts to help those in need despite the dangers they may face. For example, in February 2003, three ERT members from the Krotz Springs Refinery safely rescued an injured railroad worker who had fallen 35 feet from a railroad bridge into a swampy area not accessible by vehicle.

Other examples include employees who work with a prison ministry, help tutor at-risk children, rebuild community members' homes damaged by flood waters, and go door-to-door delivering smoke detectors to families without one.

Valero has led the nation in per capita giving with San Antonio employees contributing more than $1,000 per person. In 2002, 100% of Valero's San Antonio employees and more than 90% of the overall workforce contributed to the United Way, resulting in a record-breaking employee gift of $4.5 million. When combined with the company match, Valero's gift to the United Way totaled $6.5 million. Valero's retail employees led a record-setting Muscular Dystrophy Association campaign, raising $1.3 million and also led a record Children's Miracle Network campaign that raised $700,000. These are just a few of the charitable organizations for which Valero employees and the corporation spend time to raise funds.

Sometimes community involvement takes a humorous turn: Valero was the proud sponsor of a cow in the San Antonio CowParade, a unique public art exhibition featuring 100 life-sized fiberglass bovines. Through sponsorships and then the auctioning of cows, the event raised funds for several charities including the American Cancer Society. Valero's very own design services specialist Bobbie Menzel-Butts and San Antonio artist Paige Holland helped create the "Cowner Store" dairy cow highlighting the cow-venience of Valero's Corner Stores and the pride employees take in their services. Sipping on a fountain drink, the cow was fully stocked with a variety of the stores' products, and also featured a gas nozzle and hose for a tail.

The spirit of community service is celebrated and rewarded in high profile ways at Valero. The Annual Volunteer of the Year Award provides employees with an opportunity to recognize a co-worker at each Valero site who has dedicated their time to helping others. A committee from each location reviews and selects a winner from their site. Each recipient is presented with a designer watch and plaque and is honored at a special luncheon with their senior leadership team. The recipients are also proudly featured on the company's Intranet and in a special edition of the Valero Lines company newsletter. Community service is honored at Valero, and the company makes sure this is reinforced and celebrated as a special part of their culture.