APRIL 21, 2016 (LAS VEGAS, Nev.) – For Diamond Resort International®, socially responsible outreach has long been a key component of its corporate mission. In 2016 these efforts will be in effect both locally in Nevada and in its resort communities around the world.
The year began with the Diamond Resorts Invitational benefiting Florida Hospital for Children. The event’s silent and live auction raised $503,000 in net proceeds, with the help of more than 70 sports and entertainment celebrities in attendance. Specifically, the money will benefit the hospital’s Walt Disney Pavilion — a 155 specialty-bed, full-service facility served by the largest panel of pediatric specialists in Orlando, along with a highly trained pediatric team that includes nurses and child life specialists.
“As a global hospitality company, it’s important for Diamond Resorts to show our appreciation and support for our communities across the globe by donating our time and resources to organizations that are making a difference,” said David Palmer, Diamond Resorts International President and CEO. “Giving back is an essential part of our company culture. Because of this, our team members are encouraged to volunteer their time however they can, giving them an opportunity to help improve the communities in which they work and live.”
Initiatives planned for 2016 include involvement with Give Us Time, Whistler Blackcomb Foundation, Virginia Gentleman Foundation, and United Way of Southern Nevada Women’s Leadership Council, and as well as with local food banks and non-profit community organizations across the U.S.
In effort to assist Give Us Time, an organization in Bulgaria that helps military families spend precious time together through donated vacations, Diamond Resorts team members from the United Kingdom volunteer to go to Bulgaria to help assist the soldiers to and from their activities and spend time on the ski slopes teaching them to ski.
Diamond Resorts also partners with the Whistler Blackcomb Foundation. The foundation is dedicated to providing financial support to non-profit organizations whose activities benefit residents of the Sea to Sky Corridor, with an emphasis on children, youth and family programs.
In October, Diamond Resorts team members in the Virginia Beach area will participate in the Virginia Gentleman Foundation’s 7th annual JT Walk to help raise funds for the National ALS Society. To date, Diamond Resorts has donated $500,000 to the cause.
And for the fourth consecutive year, in partnership with the United Way of Southern Nevada’s Women’s Leadership Council, Diamond Resorts will host their annual Women’s Fall Suit Drive to help women in Las Vegas shelters prepare for career opportunities. In 2015, the drive collected 12,300 items of new and gently-used professional attire for distribution. As the administrator of the Diamond Resorts Crisis Fund, the United Way of Southern Nevada also helps identify volunteer opportunities and provide programs such as Vita (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance), which is a program that provides free tax assistance for eligible people in our communities including Diamond Resorts team members. If qualified, this program can offer FREE tax preparation by IRS-certified volunteers at Vita sites. In addition, individuals may be eligible to receive credits such as the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and other tax credits that they might not otherwise have been aware of.
The company also provides relief efforts when natural disasters strike in resort communities. When Hurricane Odile hit Mexico in 2014, the Diamond Resorts International Foundation (DRIF) was there, providing over $100,000 in disaster relief to Diamond Resorts Cabo Azul Resort team members as well as others in the San José del Cabo community.
About Diamond Resorts International®
Diamond Resorts International (NYSE: DRII), with its network of more than 370 vacation destinations located in 35 countries throughout the continental United States, Hawaii, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, South America, Central America, Europe, Asia, Australasia and Africa, provides guests with choice and flexibility to let them create their dream vacation, whether they are traveling an hour away or around the world. Our relaxing vacations have the power to give guests an increased sense of happiness and satisfaction in their lives, while feeling healthier and more fulfilled in their relationships, by enjoying memorable and meaningful experiences that let them Stay Vacationed.™
Diamond Resorts International manages vacation ownership resorts and sells vacation ownership points that provide members and owners with Vacations for Life® at over 370 managed and affiliated properties and cruise itineraries.