SEPARATE and apart from the sun, sea and sand, there is another major factor that draws visitors to the Caribbean and that is our warm and beautiful people.
You can often hear guests recounting endearing experiences of team members who, because they heard of a guest who loves mangoes, for instance, would seek out the fruit and make sure they got to enjoy it. Or the team member who would leave a handwritten note on a pillow for the guest celebrating a special anniversary.
It is against that backdrop that one of the most important departments in the entire resort set-up is housekeeping. The team members who make up the housekeeping department of any hotel but, very importantly at Sandals, play a key role in ensuring that visitors to Saint Lucia have a memorable holiday experience. Michelle Francis is one such employee.
Members of the Sandals family who know her describe Michelle as a shy but focused employee. She has been a Night Room Attendant for a year and a half at Sandals Regency La Toc and just loves her rooms.
Michelle says, “I love doing turn-down service. At Sandals, I meet all kinds of people, all races. I look forward to interacting with my guests.”
This quiet, unassuming team member and mother of three who said she did not have self- confidence in the beginning, has made a complete turnaround and was one of the participants in the recently-held Miss Sandals Regency La Toc Pageant.
With the support of her supervisor-turned-chaperone, Urmenia David, her department head, Catherine Richard, and team member/Room Attendant, Cherry-Ann Prospere, Michelle brought the same passion she has for her job to the pageant and it paid off with her being crowned first runner-up.
She flashes her unforgettable smile and says, “I knew I could do it. Even though I had never done something like this before, I decided to give it a try. And I work hard for my daughters. I have to be an example to them. Care-giving is my life and I show that in the way I care for my guests by looking after their rooms. But I have big dreams…I hope I can stay here and prove myself for a while.”
So when next she meets the guests she cares so deeply about, Michelle will certainly have some stories of her own that she can share with them.