The Avila Beach Hotel became a member of Pack for a Purpose in 2016. We came across this initiative via a respected US journalist who visited our resort for an article. His name is Ed Wetschler and he talked about Pack for a Purpose when we talked about the sustainability topic. We immediately got excited about this concept.
Do Good, Feel Good
As the oldest operating hotel on Curacao, we have been focusing on sustainability for decades. Sustainability is something we gladly see more and more often in the travel industry. Also, other hotels and travel agencies on Curacao are increasingly focusing on this important topic. The Avila Beach Hotel is just a link within these beautiful Pack for a Purpose projects, but it makes running a hotel so much more meaningful. It’s not without reason that we included in our hotel’s mission and vision, that we want to be an innovative leader in the Curaçao hotel industry and actively help our community. Although we do so many other activities and projects, Pack for a purpose is an important way to achieve that goal. We are pleased that we are inspiring other Curacao accommodations in joining that we are no longer the only property on Curacao with Pack for a Purpose projects.
The perfect match
Without the support and love of the local community, Avila would have been a different Avila. And we gladly repay the favor by taking part in initiatives like this. We also regularly received questions from travelers who wanted to do something special for the local community on Curacao. As Pack for a Purpose helps travelers make meaningful contributions to the destinations they visit, this program is the ideal answer and perfect match to this inquiry. Every hotel guest knows that we partake in this initiative as it is on our website, and we send out an e-mail with information about it prior to our guests’ trip. Curacao was one of the safest destinations to travel to during the pandemic. Even in that difficult period where extra help was needed, we continued to receive school supplies from travelers, and that felt really unique.
Social and Emotional Wellbeing of young children
The Avila Beach Hotel brings over the school supplies periodically and try to schedule visits right after school breaks. That way the schools can have a great start to a new period with all kinds of school supplies. The smiles of the kids, the thankfulness of the teachers and head of the schools are truly heartwarming. Some kids don’t have sturdy backpacks or “nice” pencil cases for example at the beginning of a new school year. It may seem like it’s “just” a backpack or “just” a pencil case but do know it’s far more than that. When those kids receive those items, it not only is a huge relief for them (and for their parents), but it also impacts their self-confidence. Positive social and emotional development is extremely important, especially for young children. Children with high levels of social and emotional wellbeing are more likely to successfully negotiate physical, intellectual, and social challenges during childhood and adolescence. Our beloved guests are responsible for that huge positive boost to young kids’ lives in Curacao!
The record in kilos per quarter of school supplies received by our hotel guests is a whopping 129 kilos (284 pounds). The generosity of our hotel guests truly makes us speechless. We could only wish that this project would become such a great success back in 2016 when we started.
Thank you, (future) travelers. Your support truly has a big impact on our Curacao community!