Kigali Marriott Hotel in conjunction with SOS Children’s village Rwanda, are organizing a Charity walk dubbed “Road to awareness” that is aimed to support the education needs and health insurance for vulnerable children. According to Nicole Ingabire Munyangabe, the Director of Human Resources at Kigali Marriott Hotel, the walk will be around Kigali and it is scheduled to take place on December 7, from 3 pm where the meeting point will be the Hotel. Munyangabe shared that similar events usually happen annually in all Marriott Hotels since 2008. Although in Rwanda, it started last year and it turned out successful. “We call upon everyone who wants to be part of this campaign to support in any way possible, it can be in form of funds, assistance or any in-kind donations. We have T-shirts that are on sale at the hotel for only Rwf 5,000. You can support by buying a T-shirt for yourself, friends or your family members. We even do deliveries of these T-shirts in Kigali,” she says. When we asked Ms. Munyangabe why they chose education and health for SOS children, she further explained; offering an education to children is the greatest wealth one could ever give them, as the knowledge acquired will help them fulfill their dreams of becoming doctors, politicians, pilots, and much more in the future. Munyangabe also stressed that education is a seed that every child deserves since it grows and helps to transform a whole community. She also explains that a happy child is one who is healthy or can access health facilities that is why the needy children require support with health insurance. Kigali Marriott’s Director of Human Resources heartens everyone to be part of the children’s wellbeing and spending this Christmas with them as it not only creates joy physically and mentally but also makes them feel loved. Giving back is a Marriott culture with a global initiative known as SERVE 360 “Doing good in every direction”. As part of Serve 360, the hotel organizes different activities monthly all over the country giving back to those less fortunate or simply taking part in a community event, last year Kigali Marriott Hotel reached out to 30 children with disabilities and their parents where they shared Christmas with them, at Heroes Day Care Centre in Gikondo. The Hotel staff supplied items such as foodstuff, diapers, and mats, among others. This act was believed to be a way of ensuring that children with disabilities feel important in the society they live in but not stigmatized or their families. And before every end of year hotels organize an annual event “Road to Awareness” where the hotels invite guests and partners to take part, and for 2018 and 2019 Kigali Marriott has organized the walk in partnership with SOS Children’s village Rwanda. The Hotel appreciates all its partners in this noble cause, for instance, Royal FM, Rotary and Rotaract club of KIE, The New Times, IGIHE, Legacy Clinic and others. Munyangabe also pointed out that with more partners and word of mouth for this great cause, this year’s event will most definitely be more successful that last year and welcomes everyone who would like to take part to reach out to them. The more the merrier. This year’s #Walk4ChildrenKigali is set to take place on 7th December 2019, from 3pm at the hotel, after the walk guests are invited to enjoy an evening with friends and family for the special Christmas lighting, free entrance with fun festivities perfect for both kids and adults.
