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Give Back, Get Back: Good Citizenship from Ship to Shore
November 09, 2009
By Geraldine Gatehouse
We all know about incentive program cancellations over the past year, but I was curious to know why there wasn’t more news about what has been done to mitigate the unused hotel room blocks and empty ship cabins. By gifting them to nonprofit organizations, it is possible to derive great public relations for those corporate donors, and it is a good way to help educate the public about the costs and extent of losses involved when corporate travel programs are canceled.
Cruising & Caring
I was very interested, then, when I heard about a canceled cruise being donated to a nonprofit organization. It was a Caribbean charter cruise on Silversea’s Silver Cloud with an unexpected cancellation just three weeks before the March 19 departure. Rather than just lose the entire charter, valued at more than $1 million, the client contacted the cruise’s organizer, Worldwide Travel & Cruise Associates Inc., to see if Steve Bloss, director of sales, could help find a way for someone to benefit from using the ship.
He had an idea of benefitting a nonprofit but wasn’t sure to whom he could offer the cruise. With some speedy responses on the part of colleagues and associates at Pinnacle Events and Avon Puerto Rico, which supports fundraising for breast cancer research, the American Cancer Society was chosen as the beneficiary.
Suzuki del Caribe and Toyota de Puerto Rico, both of which had recently put incentive travel plans on hold, were contacted by Pinnacle Events and expressed interest in being involved in the cruise, seeing the unique opportunity to give back and help lives. After just one weekend, the plan was in place: The Silver Cloud’s empty cabins would be auctioned off to the two car companies and to attendees at an upcoming American Cancer Society gala, and all the proceeds would be donated to the nonprofit.
This sounds simple, but it took a lot of fast and collaborative networking to make it happen. There was also a lot of legal and contractual work done in the background, and some changes were made to the itinerary to accommodate airlift issues and to better fit the plans of the American Cancer Society group.
The positive outcome of what would have been an unused $1 million cruise was that the American Cancer Society was bestowed $150,000; 300 people, including donors, enjoyed a cruise; and the economies of Saint Barthelemy, Antigua, and Virgin Gorda gained business.
Said Bloss: “It’s amazing, in our industry, how people can make something happen. We all came together over one weekend and made something truly magical happen.”
It is heartening that when we think outside the normal parameters of how we conduct our business, the end-results benefit everyone. It takes time and effort to be creative but the rewards are immense, especially when the results would not have come unless action was taken. I believe that if we all did more of this, our world would change for the better much faster. Check out the CSR Byte below for another example of a company doing just that.
Back on Land, a Holiday Event with Heart
The holidays are not far away, and I am fortunate enough to again be the co-chair of the 11th Annual Site Southern California Holiday Event & Charity Auction. It will be held in December at the brand-new Terranea Resort in Palos Verdes, CA.
Each year since 2005, our event has netted over $100,000 for distribution to grassroots charities that serve children in need. This year we have three nonprofits that will be beneficiaries. As co-chairs, Darrell Benning of the San Diego Travel Group and I knew that we have to work harder and smarter this year to raise comparable funds. In addition to fundraising, we are also mindful that our event has a deserved reputation as one of Southern California’s premier networking events.
I thought it might be helpful to share some of our ideas with those who are organizing similar events in these challenging economic times.
My Stuff Bags, one of the returning charities for 2009, was the organization that was the focus last year of a very successful Lend A Hand local community event. This charity provides the materials to put together bags of goodies and essentials for children in foster care. We are doing a similar event this year; and to help raise funds we are offering Gold and Silver Host spots—these hosts receive recognition and a number of event tickets to give away to guests. The picture that stays in my mind from last year’s event was a group of participants from tourist boards, hotels, destination management companies, and clients all busy networking and making no-sew blankets. One of our participants from last year adapted this idea and created a similar event to provide supplies for another charity.
We have a new event this year, a 5K run/walk. Matt Kisser, director of planning for JNR Inc., is a running enthusiast and has organized runs before, so we were delighted to take up his offer to stage one as part of our 2009 program. A 5K run/walk is always popular, and ours is receiving enthusiastic support. Individuals and teams can win prizes for pledges, and we are using the FirstGiving online fundraising platform, at www.firstgiving.com. I mentioned this platform in my last column and am happy to have the opportunity to test-drive it. In addition to having the chance to participate in the run/walk, anyone can be invited to chip in online, as we have set up a category called Virtual Runners/Walkers. This greatly expands the network of people who are able to contribute, such as your overseas suppliers and far-flung family, colleagues, and friends—the possibilities are endless. If you are interested in taking a look, or even supporting our efforts, I invite you to visit the Site Southern California Holiday Event 5K Run/Walk.
CSR BYTE
I had a very interesting interview last week with the founder and president of Unbridled Solutions, a Denver-based company whose philosophy is one based on social business. Stanley Bullis believes that companies need to be intrinsically tied into their communities and be responsible to them in unique ways.
Unbridled Solutions’ services include group, corporate, and leisure travel and event management and logistics, and part of its profits supports UnbridledACTS, its nonprofit organization serving women in crisis. I will have more on this very special company in a future column.
Geraldine Gatehouse is an independent planner with a passionate belief in the value and potential global impact of CSR. She is based in southern California, pursuing studies in sustainability, and is a 2009 board member of Site Southern California. She can be reached at geraldine-g@cox.net, via her website, or on LinkedIn.
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