USVIHTA Seeking Student Placement for Summer Employment Program
The USVI Hotel & Tourism Association’s Education & Training Committee is in its nineteenth year of the Summer Employment Program in collaboration with the USVI Department of Labor and participating senators of the 34th Legislature of the Virgin Islands. The objective of the six-week program is to provide a meaningful learning experience for Virgin Islands high school and college students while stimulating interest in careers in the hospitality and tourism industry. We are seeking your assistance in providing placement for students participating in this year’s program. Please indicate on the attached form your commitment to accepting students and in which department. A program timeline is also attached for your review. Please complete this form in its entirety and return to lisa@usvihta.com by June 3. Read more.
On May 18, FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell briefed the President and our federal partners on how FEMA is ready and prepared for hurricane season.
"I can confidently say the FEMA workforce is intimately familiar with the demands of hurricane season and stands ready to meet the challenge," said Administrator Criswell.
The administrator outlined some of the ways that our agency has been preparing for hurricane season. These efforts include:
Changes to the Individual assistance program that helped over 95,000 people receive over $350 million.
Personnel at the ready, including 28 Urban Search and Rescue Teams.
Supplies that include over 26 million liters of water and 23 million meals.
Administrator Criswell also spoke about the importance of working together with our federal partners.
"As climate change continues to breed stronger, longer and more frequent storms, we simply cannot rise to this challenge alone,” she said. “We need the full force of the federal family to be successful in our efforts."More from this week's FEMA Bulletin.
Two New Marriott Hotels to Open in St Thomas This Fall
The long awaited transformation of the Marriott Frenchman’s Reef property in St Thomas is slated to debut this fall. Aimbridge Hospitality has announced that it will be opening two new hotels in St Thomas: the Westin Beach Resort and Spa at Frenchman’s Reef and The Seaborn at Frenchman’s Reef, Autograph Collection. Aimbridge will manage both properties under the leadership of managing director Kurt Wiksten. The Westin Beach Resort and Spa will offer 392 rooms, including 28 suites, most of which will offer ocean views, along with six restaurants and lounges, three ocean-view pools; a Heavenly Spa by Westin with 13 treatment rooms and 72,000 square feet of meeting and event space. The hotel will also have a private dock with access to nearby islands and what Aimbridge calls a “private adventure beach.” It will be the second Westin-branded resort in the US Virgin Islands, joining the existing Westin St John Resort Villas on neighboring St John. Read more.
*Article and photo published in the Caribbean Journal. USVIHTA does not claim ownership over the content.
You're Invited to Hunt for Sea Walls!
Tropical Treasure Hunt and Leatherback Brewery are organizing an amazing fundraiser treasure hunt competition coming up on June 4 from 9 .m. - 2 p.m. that starts at Brewer's Bay (and an after party at Leatherback Brewery at 6 p.m.). We would love to have you and members of your teams (family and friends can participate as well, ages 15+). Please see attached flyer for all details. All the profits go towards supporting the Sea Walls art project that will be in St. Thomas in November where they will have elite artists around the world come to St. Thomas to create ocean themed murals on walls. These murals have proven to raise awareness of ocean conservation efforts. You can learn more about their cause https://seawalls.org/. The murals from the Sea Walls program directly align with Gov. Bryan's focus to continue to "beautify" the island. The grand prize for the hunt is a sunset cruise on Heavenly Days with the artists in November. This prize valued at $3,000 was generously donated by our fellow association member Bolongo Bay Resort. Read more about the hunt, click on the flyer to the right to expand or book online now.
Bryan Williams' Video Tip: The Today Affirmation
Association Health Plans Available Now through Elan
The Hotel & Tourism Association continues to work to identify great opportunities for our members. We've recently signed an agreement with Elan Insurance Group to offer Association Health Plans. Click the photo to view the PDF version in your browser. The PDF lets members know about:
