Heineken donates to
nature organisations
PHILIPSBURG--Heineken St. Maarten threw its support behind the preservation of the island’s nature recently when it made financial donations to the Nature Foundation of St. Maarten and St. Martin Réserve Naturelle.
Both organisations were delighted to receive the donation which will go towards their conservation programmes a press release from Heineken St. Maarten stated.
The funds were raised through the sale of white “serious clean fun” bracelets during the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta 2007. “During the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta we wanted to raise the exposure concerning the importance of keeping our island and its waters clean,” Heineken St. Maarten Managing Director John Leone said. “The green ‘Meet You There’ bracelets we donated last year were very well received, so we decided to repeat it again this year. This year we contributed white ‘Serious Clean Fun’ bracelets. We were very happy that we were able to generate over US $3,000 to share between the two foundations.”
Beverly Mae Nisbeth of the Nature Foundation said the Foundation was “extremely grateful” for the contribution. “The Foundation is funded purely through grants and fundraising efforts. A donation like this makes a significant difference to the work we do. The natural environment is one of St. Maarten’s most important resources – clean beaches, healthy seas and green hills are the reason why many of our visitors come here every year. It is everyone’s responsibility, from the individual to our Government and from small businesses to large international corporations, to protect our natural resources and conserve the beauty and biodiversity of our island for the benefit of current and future generations.”
Nisbeth said the funds would be used for operational expenses and upgrading its patrol boat.
The Foundations and Heineken St. Maarten would also like to especially thank the Shipwreck Shop for merchandising these items and individual volunteers for their efforts in selling these items during the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta.
The new bracelets for the 2008 St. Maarten Heineken Regatta will be on sale soon. The 2007 Bracelets are still available from the Nature Foundation offices and Heineken St. Maarten.
Earlier this year, in cooperation with the St. Maarten Pride Foundation, Heineken St. Maarten also instituted a new beach cleanup programme called bright beaches. This programme enables non-profit organisations, which are willing to eliminate trash from local beaches, access to funds that Heineken St. Maarten has allocated from the sales of Heineken products, particularly Amstel Bright beer.
Additional information on conservation projects on St. Maarten can be obtained from Nature Foundation at info@naturefoundationsxm.org - tel: 542-0267 or Réserve Naturelle at reservenaturelle@domaccess.com - tel: (0590) 29-09-72.
