(August 22, 2018-Beaches Turks and Caicos Providenciales, TCI)—As part of its commitment to environmental responsibility, Beaches Turks and Caicos Resorts (BTC) hosted a two day community clean-up in the Lower Bight in an effort to help beautify and preserve the residential community.
Nearly 80 hired summer interns and full-time employees volunteered for the clean-up, collecting 75 trash bags along Forbes Road to the Beaches Key West entrance.
The clean-up was coordinated by BTC’s Environmental Health Department in collaboration with the Human Resources Department to educate the interns about corporate responsibility, environmental awareness for hospitality workers and to help build well rounded employees.
“The aim of the cleanup was to instill in our interns a positive attitude towards community work and a clean environment. The community and its surrounding environment existed long before Beaches Turks and Caicos was in operation. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that we have a positive impact on our surroundings and maintain the natural beauty of this country,” said Stefon Tyndall, EHS Coordinator for the resort.
Tyndall added; “I would like to encourage the members of the community of the lower Bight to help us keep the Bight community clean. In order to keep our environment clean we need people to hold themselves accountable for keeping their surroundings clean.”
The Beaches Summer Internship Program has employed over 600 student interns since its inception eight years ago. The six week paid internship places high school and college students in the advanced summer program to help foster careers in hospitality.
Human Resources Manager, Monique Vaughn said; ‘Our Company’s credo speaks to involving our community, preserving our environment and making today better than it was yesterday. As mentors to the youth of the Turks and Caicos Islands enrolled in our summer programme, we hope they will model our behaviour. They will become good stewards of the earth they have inherited and understand just as our company (Beaches) and team members do, we must each play our role in preserving it”
Shequell Gardiner, an intern with the Public Relations Department said, “I think the community clean-up was a great idea as we were able to come together and help beautify where we work and live. I have interned here before so this is my fourth time taking part in the cleanup and every year, it gets even more rewarding.”
Senior EHS Coordinator, Shuntal Gibson said; “This was one of the best groups of interns thus far for the cleanup, they were passionate, and it was about working hard and making a difference. You could see the passion and how students were willing to do their part to preserve our community.”
The first intern cleanup was hosted in 2014; the initiative has led to over 700 bags of trash being collected over the years.
The students complete the internship program on Friday, August 24th where they will participate in a graduation ceremony. Students who excelled in the program will be chosen as Shining Stars which will give them preference for future internship opportunities.
SOURCES – SANDALS GROUP
