It is often in tragedy that the best of the human spirit arises. That was vividly displayed by Travelocity’s Partner Community when they received the call from their Travelocity Global Partner Services (GPS) account manager to help support a fundraising auction for the victims of the bombing at the finish line of the Boston Marathon.
Travelocity Senior Vice President Noreen Henry was on an educational sabbatical at Harvard Business School when the bombing occurred. It was, of course, a horrific experience for all involved and for the city of Boston. While her group was not at the marathon, their campus was in lock down as police searched for the suspect. Sadly, one of the Harvard workers that served Henry’s group on a daily basis lost her daughter in the bombing.
“Our hearts ached for the victims and our class of 175 senior executives from around the globe felt compelled to find a way to give back to the community that was hosting us and to help the victims of this tragedy,” Henry said.
So she came up with the idea for an auction, which was quickly put into action and held on the Harvard Business School campus for attendees of an education class.
“I was astounded by the incredible outpouring of donations we received from Travelocity/lastminute.com partners,” Henry said.
Over 80 amazing travel gifts were donated including: seven night cruises in the Caribbean and Mediterranean, first-class airline tickets; 5-star resort vacations in lovely destinations such as Riviera Maya, Caribbean, Vegas, and London, just to name a few.
Due in a large part to the kindness of Travelocity’s partners, over $164,000 was raised for One Fund Boston, which was the third largest donation to this worthwhile charity.
“I can’t tell you how moved I was, and how proud I am to be part of an industry where my partners have such big hearts,” Henry said.
The travel industry once again, demonstrates their socially responsible side as their generosity will undoubtedly have a positive impact on the victims of the tragic bombing in Boston.