San Antonio's Legacy of Giving: Latest Guest, Kym Rapier

San Antonio boasts a beautiful community of empathetic, willing, and able givers. Not just through some of our more notable philanthropists, but through the generosity rooted in the common city culture as well. In the late 19th century, the iconic Brackenridge Park was founded on donated land. The Torch of Friendship is a gift from the Asociación de Empresarios Mexicanos. Every year, The Big Give SA is held, where anyone across the city can donate for 24hrs to nonprofits. Even our Food Bank is one of the largest in the country, powered by the volunteer work of ordinary San Antonians.

Of course, we do also have notable philanthropists and more targeted foundations that retain this spirit through the work they do. Kym Rapier is one of these generous people and her foundation, the Kym Rapier Foundation, while rooted in San Antonio, is impactful around the globe. Their mission statement, which "is to uplift the lives of the world's most vulnerable through compassion, connection, commitment, and sustained community support," represents the soul of both the organization and Kym Rapier herself (Kym Rapier Foundation).

Retrieved from Kym Rapier | Facebook

When Kym was twelve years old, she knew that giving back would be her life's work. Since then, through her foundation, she has given over $100 million to charitable causes across sixteen countries. Although her reach of generosity has been global, the foundation's conception began here in San Antonio, and so did Kym's inspiration to giving. Starting out by raising money for a family friend in her childhood neighborhood, she soon moved on to providing access to fitness for communities on the Southside of San Antonio. San Antonio has undoubtedly shaped and influenced the work that is done by the Kym Rapier Foundation, and there are initiatives that are San Antonio-focused which they are currently working with.

Retrieved from Kym Rapier | Facebook

Among these San Antonio initiatives are organizations like the ThriveWell Cancer Foundation, which helps pay for cancer treatments, helps gives patients access to care, and also provides them with community. Another is the THRU Project which aids San Antonio youth who age out of foster care. Access to healthcare, education, and animal welfare are among some of the most notable causes the Kym Rapier Foundation works toward in our city.

One of the points Kym made in our interview with her was that giving is not always about money. Through small acts of compassion---maybe a smile at a stranger, or a brief compliment on someone's outfit---we can instill our community with the same core values that the Kym Rapier Foundation is built upon. By amplifying local causes, donating where we can, and volunteering towards the causes we believe in, we create the kind of world people like Kym believe in little by little. One "where people lead with love." (Kym Rapier Foundation)

Watch our latest episode with Kym to hear her story, her mission, and about her next adventures in giving and generosity.

Works Cited

Kym Rapier Foundation. Home – Kym Rapier Foundation, 2025, https://kymrapierfoundation.org/. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.