Hotel group Marriott International, in collaboration with the Sheets for Shirts project run by Restore SA, kicked off the year with a substantial donation made to Bonnievale Primary School.
In all, 1 200 learners received school shirts made from sheets donated by participating Marriott International hotels across South Africa.
Martinette Fortuin, Marriott International’s Transformation Manager says: “It’s great to have a sustainable solution for our hotels’ bed sheets, which also enables these children to feel self-confident in their school community. We are grateful for the continued support from our hotel properties across South Africa.”
The Sheets for Shirts project, run by Restore SA in collaboration with Royal Kids, is a non-profit organisation which was founded by Danolene Johanessen, CEO of Restore SA, in 2013. It seeks to support and uplift children from impoverished communities by providing school uniforms and school shoes.
“For the past nine years it’s been the mission of Royal Kids to provide for the South African children who don’t have the means to purchase school-related items, and with the Marriott International Partnership Restore SA was established in 2019 to support this mission to provide school uniforms to disadvantaged scholars,” Johanessen said. “We’ve identified Bonnievale Primary School for receiving a substantial donation of school uniforms and shoes, with the help of our partners at Marriott International and the Motorcycle Association, which have donated 200 pairs of school shoes.”
Marriott International offers support to Restore SA as a CSI project by donating bed linen to be repurposed to make school shirts. To date, the combined efforts has resulted in a total investment of over R1,4 million, 11 Marriott International properties have made a contribution to the project to assist over 4 200 learners across South Africa.
The Sheets for Shirts collaboration falls under Marriott International’s Sustainability and Social Impact Platform, Serve 360: Doing Good in Every Direction, which guides how the company makes a positive and sustainable impact wherever it does business.
From empowerment opportunities to sustainable operations the platform is designed to foster business growth while balancing the needs of associates, customers, owners, the environment and communities.
