Showing our Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

TCQTeam in Pink

This year, many Noble team members joined forces with local community initiatives, in support of a cause that always has people seeing pink.  October is recognized as National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and pink has become the official color that signifies the importance of education and empowerment for the cause.

Reunion Resort – Orlando, Florida

The Reunion team celebrated by creating a Pink Ducky Memorial which enabled people to purchase a pink duck which was set afloat in the Grande Lobby Fountain during the month.  Each duck was a reminder of those lost, struggling or working to prevent the spread of breast cancer.  The team also collected spare change for the Pink Piggy Donation and ten team members participated in the Annual Race for the Cure 5K at the University of Central Florida.  All proceeds collected were donated to the local Susan G Komen Foundation.

Twin City Quarter – Winston Salem, North Carolina

The TCQ team celebrated Friday, October 29^th as Go Pink Day.  Team Members dressed in pink and purchased special Pink name tags to wear for the day.  Donations were used to celebrate their own team members who are survivors or are currently battling Breast Cancer.

W Atlanta Midtown and W Atlanta Buckhead

Pink Wollipops

 

 

The W Hotels of Atlanta and Noble Home Office Team, joined forces with the Young Survival Coalition in support of their efforts to increase membership, outreach and social marketing of Breast Cancer Awareness and Support.  The W Hotels lit up the skyline by changing the usually purple W sign to Pink for the month of October.  The pink W’s were the talk of the town and the themed events featured pink cosmos and pink wollipops for purchase.  Even the pup’s turned out for one of the events (Pups in Pink) sporting pink bandanas and ribbons.  Proceeds from the events benefited the Young Survivor Coalition.

Noble Ghosts and Goblins

A Noble Halloween

The Noble ghosts and goblins were dressed up in style as they celebrated Halloween.  The slide show highlights Noble Team Member’s little goblins, Noble Home Office team, as well as pictures from the Reunion Resort Halloween Party.

The Noble Home Office celebrated with our Annual Pumpkin Carving Contest. This year the skill and creativity amazed us all!  There was even a pumpkin dressed up as a turkey.

Halloween History

Halloween is on October 31st, the last day of the Celtic calendar. It was originally a pagan holiday, honoring the dead. Halloween was referred to as All Hallows Eve and dates back to over 2000 years ago.

All Hallows Eve is the evening before All Saints Day, which was created by Christians to convert pagans, and is celebrated on November 1st. The Catholic church honored saints on this designated day.

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But did you know…

• Jack o’ Lanterns originated in Ireland where people placed candles in hollowed-out turnips to keep away spirits and ghosts on the Samhain holiday.
• Tootsie Rolls were the first wrapped penny candy in America.

Twin City Quarter and Chris Paul Join Forces to Feed the Children

The Twin City Quarter

The team at the Twin City Quarter had an incredible time helping Chris Paul Feed the Children! With help from West Forsyth High School volunteers, they unloaded an entire tractor-trailer full of food boxes! The team along with the West Forsyth team were honored to work beside Chris Paul and load boxes into 400 vehicles! It was a great opportunity to give back to the Winston-Salem community! Thank you Chris for including us in your volunteer efforts!

About Chris Paul’s Initiative

Chris Paul is being honored following his annual weekend of fundraising and community building events to benefit charities throughout his hometown of Winston-Salem, N.C. The third annual Chris Paul Winston-Salem Weekend, hosted by Paul’s CP3 Foundation, took place over a four-day period in late September and featured eight community events, including a Day of Service and youth basketball clinic. The highlight of the Day of Service was the dedication of a newly refurbished Reading & Learning Center at a local Boys & Girls Club. The Center features brand new computers, educational software, school supplies and hundreds of new books. Later that day, Paul led a group of local athletes in a Special Olympics basketball clinic, focusing on basketball fundamentals, teamwork and sportsmanship. The day came to a close with several Meals-On-Wheels food deliveries and a Feed the Children food distribution event to assist 400 local families. The Chris Paul-Winston-Salem Weekend has become a highly anticipated, city-wide community service initiative celebrating family, faith and community.

Which Noble Property Has Mommy Bloggers Bragging?

A Dream Realized for Traveling Mama Marilyn Thanks to Hyatt’s Big Welcome Back

by Guest Author

This guest post comes from Marilyn, one of the winners of Hyatt’s Big Welcome Back Giveaway that we hosted a while back. This is why we like to do trip giveaways. ~ CajunMama

Excerpt from Blog Post

Upon returning home I remembered my New Year’s day promise to myself and immediately started searching for information on Brad Paisley’s tour schedule and unfortunately for whatever reason he wasn’t coming to my state but luckily for me, he had three shows scheduled in Florida as long as I didn’t mind driving over 600 miles to see him. Being the hardcore fan I am, I strapped my toddler into his car seat and set off to West Palm Beach, Florida. I’m a city girl and I love staying right in the middle of the action so I checked into the Hyatt Place in Downtown West Palm Beach. The first thing that struck me was how cool the hotel lobby was – trust me, driving 600 miles in 95+ degree heat in a car without air conditioning will make you appreciate how cold the staff at the Hyatt Place keep the hotel lobby. I was also very impressed with just how squeaky clean the hotel was. Before my son and I could even say a word, we had about three very professional and extremely nice staff members welcome us with huge grins. I felt like royalty. We arrived two hours prior to the official check in time but the staff where nice enough to let us check in early. Checking in was swift and painless and in a few minutes we were in the elevator heading to our room. We found our room unlocked with a repair man fixing something in the bathroom and I have to say he was one of the nicest people ever. He apologized for the fact that he was still in the room when we got there and then immediately got down to my son’s eye level and started telling him which cartoon channels he’d enjoy on the TV. My hyper son with his twenty million questions was thrilled to have found a grown up cooler than his mom. I’ll forever be indebted to this repair man for keeping my son entertained while I recouped from my 12-hour drive.

MAKE ROOM ON THE TROPHY SHELF: ALOFT CHARLOTTE UPTOWN RECEIVES NATIONAL AND REGIONAL ACCLAIM

US Airways Magazine / 15 Top Cool Hotels for Doing Business

Honored as a “Cool Hotel for Business Travelers” and the “Best Hotel Bar”

The secrets out! The Aloft Charlotte Uptown is the place to stay when visiting Charlotte for business or for pleasure.  The buzz continues throughout the Charlotte area as the hotel was

recognized by Elevate Lifestyle Awards “The Best of the City 2010” and by Charlotte Magazine as being home to the “Best Hotel Bar”. The hotels national reputation is growing substantially as the Aloft Charlotte Uptown was recently named by US AIRWAYS Magazine as their one of their “Cool Hotels for Doing Business”.

The Aloft Charlotte Uptown at the EpiCentre is a fresh, fun, forward-thinking alternative to a one-size-fits-all travel routine.  Ranking an impressive second place of all hotels in the country   US Airways Magazine stated “the Aloft Charlotte Uptown has it all when it comes to a productive business environment by day and relaxation and socializing synergy by night.”

Guests enjoy a new twist on comfort as they read the paper, work on their laptops via hotel-wide wireless internet access, play a game of pool or grab a drink with friends at the re:mix communal lobby area and bar w xyz. The re:charge fitness center and splash, the indoor or outdoor pool, give travelers options to de-stress and re-energize; while re:fuel by aloft, a one-stop snack pantry, offers sweet, savory and healthy food grab & go options, 24-hours a day.

Created to offer an alternative to the traditional hotel, the Aloft brand delivers style at a steal, with urban-influenced, modern, open and vibrant design – and a social guest experience – all at an affordable price point.  In the same way that W Hotels broke through the clutter of conformity in the upscale hotel arena a decade ago, Aloft is shaking up the industry for the next generation of traveler.

The Aloft Charlotte is part of the EpiCentre which features premier shopping, entertainment and fine dining, the EpiCentre serves as a central link of Overstreet Mall and provides a pedestrian bridge connecting the headquarter buildings for Bank of America and Wachovia.

Congratulations to Jim Williams and his talent members at the Aloft Charlotte.

Dogs Have Their Day at the W Atlanta Midtown

Noble’s own W Atlanta Midtown appeared in the cover story, “Dogs have their day on the town” that appeared in the AJC last Friday. The feature highlighted events around town where people were encouraged to attend with their furry four-legged friends. The W Atlanta Midtown patio was in the spotlight with a large photo on the cover of the Go Guide-Living section. The W Atlanta Midtown hosts Muts and Martinis on Thursdays throughout the summer. The happy hour or “Yappy Hour” style event is hosted by Atlanta Pet Rescue and is a great opportunity to meet other pet owners, enjoy a cocktail on the patio and chat with the pet rescue about volunteer and adoption opportunities.

Partnering to End Chronic Homelessness in Our Atlanta Community

As part of Noble’s ongoing focus to positively impact our communities through meaningful team member initiatives, the Home Office Community Pillar Action Team has identified the Atlanta Gateway Center as an organization that is directly aligned with our core values.  The Noble Team recently met with Vince Young; the founding director of the Gateway Center in Atlanta, in an effort to le

Noble meets with Gateway Center representatives to discuss partnering options

arn more about the local organization.  The community Pillar Action Team is in the process of exploring ways for Noble to partner with this organization as part of our Atlanta community involvement platform.

The Gateway Center works to end homelessness, particularly chronic homelessness, by providing the support and framework people need to achieve self-sufficiency. Through therapeutic programs and services, the Gateway Center helps homeless individuals in metro Atlanta move into transitional and permanent housing.

The core mission of the Gateway Center is to provide a supportive and compassionate setting where individuals can receive the tools, programs, and services they need to end their homelessness. From its founding in 2005 to June 2009, the Gateway Center has:

• Placed over 5,800 individuals in housing
• Reunified more than 8,300 individuals with families and support systems, and
• Assisted more than 4,800 individuals with employment, job-readiness, and job training

The Community Pillar Action Team will provide additional information regarding our partnership with the Gateway Center in upcoming posts.  In the interim, if you would like to inquire about this organization, please speak to any member on the Community Pillar Action Team.

To learn more about the Gateway Center, visit their website at: http://www.gatewayctr.org/

Noble Acquires the Holiday Inn Charleston Historic District

Noble Investment Group Acquires the Holiday Inn Charleston Historic District and Plans to Convert Asset to a Courtyard by Marriott

Also acquires adjacent land and secures entitlements for expansion of guest rooms and meeting space

ATLANTA, Ga.-July 13, 2010- Privately held Noble Investment Group (“Noble”), today announced the acquisition of the award winning, 126-room Holiday Inn Charleston Historic District prominently located at the intersection of Calhoun and Meeting streets.  Noble concurrently acquired an adjacent land parcel and has obtained entitlements to add 50 hotel guest rooms and 2,500 square feet of meeting space to the existing asset.  Noble will complete the guest rooms and meeting space expansion in tandem with a comprehensive renovation of the current hotel. In 2011, the hotel will be re-branded as the Courtyard by Marriott Charleston Historic District with 176 guest rooms and 5,000 square feet of meeting space.

The Charleston peninsula combines three centuries of development density, limited land area, the oversight of America’s oldest historic preservation society, and a regulatory environment that does not encourage additional hotel development.

“Our team sourced and will execute an investment that combines the integral value-add components of a consistently strong demand market with inordinately high barriers to entry, topmost location within a market, and our ability to significantly enhance performance through physical repositioning and re-branding,” said Rodney Williams, Noble’s chief investment officer and a managing principal.

Welcome to the Noble Family!

The award winning hotel was named “Best Hidden Gem” by Trip Advisor and embodies the local southern traditions featuring wooden rocking chairs on the porch, landscaped courtyard and water fountain, year-round outdoor heated pool, fitness center and the Battery Grill restaurant.

“Our multi-pronged investment strategy that includes an expanded and renovated hotel, will allow our operations team to drive substantial upside in market share, revenues and profitability,” said Bob Morse, Noble’s chief operating officer and a managing principal.

Bill Moeckel of Moeckel & Company advised the Seller on the transaction.

Noble Family Picnic

It was warm to say the least this past Saturday but that didn’t deter the crowd of Noble team members and their families from enjoying a fun-filled day at Zoo Atlanta.  The water games were a huge hit with the kids and everyone really enjoyed the animal encounters.  Click on the picture below to watch the video from the event.  Be sure to visit our Facebook page for additional photos. 

CONTEST: Guess how many people attended the picnic, the person who guesses closest to the correct number of actual attendees will win.  Email your answer to Valerie Payne, the contest will end at noon on Tuesday and the winner will be announced.  Good luck, you could be taking home a Simon gift card.    

COMMENTS: Please take a moment to leave a comment below and let the Engagement Committee know just how much you enjoyed the day and appreciate the time and effort that went into making this a successful Noble event.

Kansas City Marriott Country Club Plaza Celebrates an Outstanding Team Member

Doris Carter (Kansas City Marriott Country Club Plaza) has been named the 2009 Outstanding Employee of the Year by the Hotel and Lodging Association of Greater Kansas City.        

Doris Carter and Joy Scholz

 

Doris began her hotel career working at the Cody Hotel in Leavenworth and later the NCO Club at Ft. Leavenworth in 1957. She moved to the Westin in 1980, then on to open the Vista Hotel in 1984. She stayed at that hotel (now the Marriott Downtown) until 2004 when she joined the banquet team at the Marriott Country Club Plaza Hotel, where she is still employed.       

Having just celebrated her 79^th birthday, she is truly an inspiration as well as an important member of the team of hospitality professionals at the Kansas City Marriott Country Club Plaza.  With a career that spans 55 years, Doris embodies the spirit of hospitality in all of her endeavors.   

The Kansas City Marriott has a long standing history of exceptional team members who have also been celebrated by H&LA.   

Eileen Danner        2006 Outstanding Employee of the Year
Bridgette Ross       2007 Outstanding Employee of the Year
Izabella Toma        2008 Mid-Level Manager of the Year
Doris Carter           2009 Outstanding Employee of the Year