Community engagement event that is part of Marriott's global "spirit to serve" initiative

Kuwait - 25 February, 2011: Kuwait Marriott Hotels on Friday launched the Peace Flag Competition that aimed at celebrating Kuwait's 50th anniversary of independence, 20th anniversary of Liberation and 5th year since His Highness the Amir was sworn in. The Peace Flag Competition took place at the peace garden in front of the Prime Minister's palace.

The Peace Flag competition is part of Marriott's global "spirit to serve" initiative and was aimed at celebrating the country's national festivities with Marriott's associates and their family members. The event's attendees were involved in spray painting a 10 meter cloth of Kuwait's national flag, where four groups of 10 individuals were assembled, each representing one color of the flag. Each group was involved in spray painting one part of the flag, and ultimately, assembling the entire piece of artwork together. The flag, when completed, was raised using a large crane, and the national anthem was played in the background while 150 white pigeons were freed in the sky of Kuwait. The 40 associates received certificates as tokens of appreciation, and the winning team received a voucher to dine at one of the Marriot's renowned restaurants.

Mr. George Aoun, General Manager of JW Marriott and the Courtyard by Marriott Kuwait said:
"This year's national celebrations are special to the Kuwaiti community. Not only did we celebrate the national day of Kuwait, but we enjoyed the spirit of community engagement, one of Marriott's bedrock corporate social responsibility pillars. At Kuwait Marriott Hotels, we always use the 'think globally, act locally' approach across our community engagement activities to give our associates the opportunity to work together to serve the local community with their time and talents. "I would to thank Dr.Yacoub Al-Shatti - Director of Government Relations at the Courtyard by Marriott, for this initiative and innovative idea."

Believing that strong neighborhoods, towns, and cities are vital to the well-being of the society and economy, Marriott feels the special responsibility and role to play in helping communities thrive, aiming to make every Marriott community a better place to live and work.

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© Press Release 2011