JOHOR BAHRU: Charanita Gill truly believes in the saying, “It is in giving that we receive.” And all these while she believes in giving back to the communities and societies.

Charanita who is the general manager of ibis Styles Johor Iskandar Puteri says when you give you have to give wholeheartedly and with a smile on your check.

Over the years the hotel has been championing the poor and needy. For every festive occasion they would go the extra mile to assist and provide for the penurious.

“The time is now for us to give back to society and help the needy as much as we can,” she stressed.

She said it’s a great time to focus on doing good in the world. It’s also a great time to think more about how we do the most good, not just locally, but on a global scale.

She said it is not only on festivities that you think of the needy but all year round and not just shower them with cash but also give them the love and care.

“Extending a helping hand not only vanishes tears off their face, but also acts as a cure for oneself,” she explained.

She said the hotel always finds time for providing for the needy and poor.

Generosity, she said, is an easily doable exercise. We all must remember one thing that helping others is a blessing in disguise. Because when we help others to grow, we grow in the process too. It adds value and meaning to our lives.

Since its inception in 2021, ibis Styles Johor Iskandar Puteri has been embarking on its corporate social responsibility task with caring for the poor and underprivileged.

Recently, the hotel organized a blood donation drive in collaboration with Safwa Donations Drive.

With every drop counts, they managed to collect some 60 bags of blood.

“We had good response, the donors came and donated blood to save lives and many doctors demonstrated their caring spirit,” she said.
She said their aim was to increase supply at the national blood bank and avoid delay in surgeries due to supply shortage.

She stressed that blood transfusions were crucial in trauma cases as well as for cancer and other medical treatment.

“We are organising this for the first time and we are thankful for the support,” she said.

The organisers will continue their efforts to increase awareness of the importance of blood donation by organising more blood drive again in the future.

The collection of blood each year has saved many lives and provided better quality of life for patients; for instance, support for surgical procedures, emergency responses and platelet transfusion.

The hotel also conducted a campaign where staff members were encouraged to dip into their pockets to donate daily provisions to the Pusat Jagaan Impian Syimah Home Care Centre.

While there, hotel staff spent quality time accompanying the old folks over lunch time with a feast cooked by the hotel’s kitchen team and chefs.

The event held in conjunction with Solidarity Week, went beyond extending kindness to senior citizens as the CSR programme demonstrated the hotel’s deep appreciation for the community they serve daily.

Charanita said they could see the joy and delight on the faces of the inmates as the hotel officials arrived to hand over the foodstuff and essentials to them.

She said its sharing spirit resonates with the hotel’s ongoing commitment to ensuring that no one is left behind, during such challenging times.

“Whatever difficulties our underprivileged and underserved communities faced were only further amplified with the pandemic’s tragic effects, so help is needed now more than ever,” she said.

She also mentioned the need to promote harmony, goodwill, peace and unity by visiting the welfare home.

“The people we met and the stories we heard serve as a great reminder of the importance of bringing hope, compassion and merriment to the underprivileged, mentally and physically challenged,” she said.

For Christmas this year, the hotel initiated another CSR project – The Gift of Hope Christmas Tree Programme.

The hotel brought a sparkle the underprivileged children from Pertubuhan Kebajikan Cahaya Pelangi Johor Baru.

Children placed their wishes on card and hanged them on the Christmas tree located at the hotel lobby. Donors then picked up a wish card each, purchased the gift, attached the card to the gift and placed at the foot of the Christmas tree.

Each gift that was placed under the Christmas tree also contained a short message from the donor.

Charanita said the wish gift was to encourage the public to share their spirit of loving and giving.

“It is hoped that the children will benefit from the gifts and have a cheerful Christmas and New Year,” she said.

According to Charanita the public and hotel staff were very supportive, and many came forward to support this project.