BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – AS early as 8:00 this morning (May 11), workers of the St. Kitts Marriott Resort put their hands to the plough at the children’s park at the Newtown Sporting Complex and brought the eye-sore one step closer to the functional recreational site it once was.
Associates of the resort had been scattered around the Newtown recreational ground with machetes, hoes, rakes and forks as they attempted to bring the area back to life. From directors down to line staff members were dressed in white T-shirts bearing the motto of the community initiative: “Reaching out to our community”.
According to Public Relations Manager Lavern Stevens, the initiative was part of the resort’s Spirit to Serve community outreach programme and marked the launch of the Marriott Associate Appreciation Week. She informed that associates would be there for the entire day and would work on various shifts until the work task completed.
“The J.W. Marriott philosophy is based on treating the associates right. So, every Marriott hotel or resort around the world takes some time to say thanks to its associates. This year, we committed to a community-based project in one of the areas where a number of our associates live and so this is one of these areas,” Stevens told SKNVibes.
Stevens further stated that the company may consider renovating the entire child’s play area but noted that, for now, the aim is to clear the site to allow the children the opportunity to play in the area again.
Cynthia Bristol, the associate with the idea for the site, told this media house that associates had a choice to present an area in their communities that fell into disrepair and needed renovation, and, without hesitation, she recommended that the team should tackle the recreational site.
“We are hoping that after today we can have monthly maintenance of the site and we are partnering with the Newtown Football team to make it possible. The core value of our ‘Spirit to Serve’ is based on community service. We show appreciation to our associates as they in turn show their appreciation to the communities that we serve,” she said.
According to management, the resort hopes to undertake a number of similar activities to celebrate its staff and their communities during Associate Appreciation Week.
