Saint Lucia?s Barnard family has donated ?100,000 to support SunSwept Resorts? team members during the turmoil of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Having closed its BodyHoliday and Rendezvous resorts in late March, due to the pandemic, SunSwept Resorts launched a GoFundMe initiative to support staff. The fundraising campaign was inspired by the guests who had reached out to help the teams that have looked after them over the years.
The donation will be evenly distributed across all 575 team members of SunSwept Resorts? BodyHoliday and Rendezvous resorts who, due to the current pandemic, have been furloughed until the resorts reopen. Separate to other financial contributions being made, the ?100,000 contribution aims to support the team during this difficult time. The donation by the entire family, generations of which have lived in Saint Lucia for more than 200 years, accompanies the efforts already being undertaken by SunSwept Resorts to support its team members and the future of tourism on the island.
With the GoFundMe campaigns for BodyHoliday and Rendezvous staff totaling just more than ?100,000 at the time of the donation, this doubles the amount raised so far. The GoFundMe campaign is being kept active until the end of April to ensure the amount raised is as high as possible and team members are set to receive a significant boost to family incomes by the end of the GoFundMe campaign in mid May.
In addition to the contributions from the family and the public, SunSwept Resorts has committed to pay several million dollars since the closure to its employees in forward salaries and holiday accrual. The company will continue to provide full medical insurance for every team member.
Craig Barnard, managing director and founder of BodyHoliday and Rendezvous resorts, said: ?Our team members are part of our family and we want to do as much as we can to help support them through this time of uncertainty. We have been overwhelmed by the generosity from our past guests in our fundraiser and would like to express our heartfelt gratitude for this support.?
Barnard added: ?The fund will go a long way to helping the families in need during this crisis and we look forward to welcoming our team members back to BodyHoliday and Rendezvous.?
