Aloft Asheville Downtown, owned and managed by Tampa, Fla.-based McKibbon Hospitality, received Marriott International’s Alice S. Marriott “Spirit to Serve” Award at the annual Marriott Awards of Excellence ceremony held Tuesday, May 14.
The event took place near Marriott’s corporate headquarters in Bethesda, Maryland, at Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center.
Aloft Asheville Downtown general manager David McCartney and assistant general manager Dexter Hazel, were on hand to accept the stunning silver plaque.
Named for the late Marriott co-founder Alice S. Marriott, the award represents one of the highest honors bestowed by the well-respected and world’s largest hotel chain. Among thousands of entries, Aloft Asheville Downtown was selected as the recipient of this prestigious award. Three other hotels in Dubai, India and Germany received honorable mentions. Aloft Asheville Downtown is the first hotel from the Aloft brand to be honored with this award.
“Every single associate in some way shape, form or manner has been a part of many of our [community service] projects, if not all of them,” said David McCartney.
Dick Marriott, the company’s executive chairman/chairman of the board who presented the honor, remarked that the Aloft Asheville Downtown was “doing a fabulous job in every direction, from helping to end homelessness in their city to hosting internships for the local technical college. Their incredible efforts have earned them a reputation in Asheville as a hotel that is passionate about improving their community.”
Upon accepting the award, McCartney said that his team of 55, “had reached a magical level, which happens only in rare instances. It’s truly amazing to me that simply doing community service created this wonderful opportunity to be recognized.”
Aloft Asheville Downtown’s team engages in a wide array of public service projects with local Asheville non-profit organizations. They include providing shelter to the homeless through Homeward Bound; an internship program with students at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College; working to end hunger with MANNA FoodBank; teaching students career and life skills through Eliada Homes; providing care and love to special needs and disadvantaged children at the Irene Wortham Learning Center; raising awareness for breast cancer; improving the arts and education in the Asheville community; and rehoming hundreds of rescue dogs through their successful foster dog program with rescue organization Charlie’s Angels Animal Rescue.
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