BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - THE Salvation Army received a hefty donation this morning (Feb. 13) from the largest hotel in St. Kitts, the St. Kitts Marriott Resort.
Near 500 items valuing US$5 000 were handed over in a brief ceremony at the Salvation Army Headquarters Compound on Cayon Street, Basseterre in the presence of pre-schoolers and their teachers.
Director of Human Resources at the St. Kitts Marriott Resort, Shani Juman-Yassin explained the reason for the hotel's generous contribution to the charity organisation.
She stated that the hotel has a charity group dubbed "Spirit to Serve our Community", which contributes to many community developments and charitable organisations on an annual basis.
Officially handing the items over to the Officer-in-Charge of the Salvation Army Church, Major Roxroy Campbell, Juman-Yassin said that her group was pleased to make the donation and would continue to do so once items become available.
"On behalf of the St. Kitts Marriott Resort and all of our associates, we are pleased to give this very generous donation to the Salvation Army. You are one of our preferred partners on the island and we hope to continue this partnership," she said.
While thanking Juman-Yassin for the much needed contribution, Major Campbell lobbied for continued partnership between the group and the organisation.
He also ensured that the items would not be wasted as they would be handed over to those in dire need.
Speaking exclusively with SKNVibes, Juman-Yassin described some of the donated items.
"Almost 500 items are being donated solely to the Salvation Army, many of which are brand new. The items include ladies shoes, handbags, beach bags, blouses, pants, shirts, and clothing and pillows for children."
Juman-Yassin further explained that the items were given to the Spirit to Serve our Community by the hotel's clients, all of whom were happy to donate towards the cause.
"They come from our associates. Our associates have gone into their homes and pulled things that they are not using. We have some expatriates who work at the resorts and they have new items which they don't intend to use or didn't use. Even our retail store had items that we do not sell anymore, so they have given them to donate."
The Human Resource Director further explained that it was the second donation for the year; the first being the contribution of 120 white sheets to the JNF General Hospital just three weeks ago.
The contribution to JNF also included books and toys for the Paediatric Ward.
"We realise in our resort, many of our own associates are going to the hospital regularly and so are their parents and siblings. We want to make sure that we as one of the larger employers on the island have done our best or have at least made a contribution to the hospital where our associates may very well show up from time to time," she explained.
The St. Kitts Marriott Resort's Spirit to Serve our Community is a group comprising persons of the Human Resources and Public Relations Departments with a core value of giving back to the community.
