Prem Joseph, Director of Sales and Marketing, Hyderabad Marriott Hotel & Convention Centre & Courtyard by Marriott, Hyderabad, recently took it upon himself to travel on his Royal Enfield motorbike to all operating Marriott hotels in the country and collecting gift-able stay vouchers from the hotels.
He will be riding across Chandigarh, Delhi Jaipur, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Pune, Goa, Bangalore, Cochin, Chennai and finally Hyderabad through December. At the end of his 6000 km journey, 50 per cent of the vouchers will be auctioned at Rider Mania, a two-day event scheduled to take place on 17 and 18 January, 2014, the proceeds of which will go towards Rising Star Outreach, fondly known as Marriott Home, an initiative by Marriott Hotels to raise funds for children whose parents are affected by leprosy. The funds raised would be given to Marriott Home by a group of Royal Enfield riders joined by Ankush Sharma, General Manager, Courtyard by Marriott, on his Royal Enfield bike, riding to Marriott Home.
“This ride presented an ideal marriage of many objectives – My passion for riding, Marriott’s ethos of Spirit to Serve, and of course, the Rider Mania being organised by BOBMC (Brotherhood of Bulleters Motorcycling Consortium) in Chennai. Rather than just do another ride to an exotic location, this idea presented the ideal opportunity not only to ride my bike, but to do it for a cause, and also spread awareness of the Marriott Home,” Joseph told T3 during his stop over at his second destination, Courtyard by Marriott Gurgaon.
The 15 day ride is scheduled to end on 2 January 2014. Joseph further revealed that Associates at all the hotels are contributing funds for the Marriott Home. “Hotels have also been collecting funds from our guests by spreading the word of this ride. Courtyard by Marriott Gurgaon, for instance, contributed Rs 1.23 lakhs for this cause,” he said.
In the past, Joseph has also been involved in charity drives like Joy of Giving Week and the Independence Ride. Speaking about Marriott’s other initiatives, he added that the Marriott Hyderabad supports the welfare of the children of the Government Bowenpaly High School by providing daily mid day meals and also investing time with the children.