Pan Pacific Hotel Seattle shines with outstanding CSR Activities

Since opening seven years ago, the Pan Pacific Hotel Seattle has increasingly integrated sustainable practices into its front and back of house operations, and into the community. This upscale property is mindful of its ecological footprint, and in 2012, it was the first hotel in the U.S. to receive Green Globe certification.

Pan Pacific Hotel Seattle’s award-winning PanEarth® sustainability program was created in January 2011 and the resulting benefits have been immense. While setting benchmarks for environmental efforts, the PanEarth® program works closely with both local and internationally focused charitable organizations, contributing to social causes such as hunger relief, community wellness and economic security. The culture created at the Pan Pacific Seattle is one of supporting the local community through fundraising and staff-wide volunteer activities.

"The entire team at the Pan Pacific Seattle is fully committed to the guiding principles of our acclaimed PanEarth® program, serving our community and planet," said Pan Pacific General Manager Sam Johnson. "All of us at the hotel feel it’s extremely important that we take care of the environment and give back to our community."

As part of its social responsibility program, the hotel works closely with a number of community partners, such as YouthCare, an organization that reaches out to victims of domestic abuse and neglect, failed by foster care and other overworked support systems. YouthCare provides homeless teens with a stable place to live, meals, and training for a career path.

For the second year in a row, Pan Pacific Hotel Seattle partnered with the local glass blowing retailer, glassybaby, to promote awareness of pediatric cancer and raise money to expedite the search for a cure.  Three unique pop-up shops were held in the hotel’s Lobby Bar to sell votives and drinking vessels hand blown by the company’s artisans in their local studio.  Pan Pacific and glassybaby each donated 10% from every sale for a total of 20% donation to the Ben Towne Foundation, a Seattle based non-profit, focused on pediatric cancer research. In addition, a Toast to Ben Towne cocktail promotion was offered throughout the month of December.  Guests could purchase a keepsake glassybaby drinker filled with a cocktail of their choice with a 20% donation match to the Ben Towne Foundation.  

The events were a huge success for the hotel and its partners with members of the South Lake Union community as well as the organization’s founders, Carin and Jeff Towne, in attendance.  Overall sales topped $6,000 with a total donation of $725 made by Pan Pacific to advance this important cause.  

To kick-off associate engagement activities in 2014, Pan Pacific Hotel Seattle formed a team to climb the Rainier Tower in the American Lung Association’s annual Fight for Air Climb on January 25^th.  The team of five, each committed to raising a minimum of $100 to help the American Lung Association fight lung disease and support clean, healthy air to ensure that we can all breathe easier.  

Climbers were able to choose the option of climbing the 40 story tower one, two, three or even four times to demonstrate their commitment to the cause. The team trained for the task by completing daily stair climbs and increasing their endurance over time as the date of the event approached.  Reaching out to friends, family and colleagues, Team Pan Pacific easily met the goal to raise $500 and finished with a grand total of $1,225 raised for this important cause.