With the season for giving fast approaching, Oaks Hotels & Resorts, a division of Minor Hotel Group, has announced a new charity partnership in a bid to raise much needed funds for the Children’s Hospital Foundation and give comfort and hope to Queensland families with sick children this Christmas.

Eight of Oaks Hotels & Resorts’ Brisbane properties have installed glittering, two metre-tall wishing trees that carry handwritten wishes from Queensland’s most seriously ill children. The heartfelt wishes, gathered from a mother tree that has been installed at the Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital, has been inspiring children of all ages and walks of life to take some time out from a traumatic time to leave a wish on the magical tree.

Some are humourous, others heartbreaking, but all equally honest and profound, and it is Oaks Hotels & Resorts’ own wish for these tiny voices to be heard in the local community to rally support via donations for the Children’s Hospital Foundation through the Oaks Wishing Tree Project.

Chief Operations Officer of Oaks Hotels & Resorts, Mr Mike Anderson, commented, “While most of us are very fortunate to be preparing for our Christmas celebrations with family and loved ones, there are many families that will be spending Christmas in hospital with seriously ill children. It is our hope that the Oaks Wishing Tree Project will serve as a symbol of comfort and hope for these Queensland families, and the messages of support added to the branches remind them that they are not alone.”

To launch the initiative, Oaks Hotels & Resorts has presented an initial cheque for $25,000 to the Children’s Hospital Foundation and hope to raise another $25,000 or more through the generosity of guests, staff and the local Queensland community.

Cameron Prout, CEO of the Children’s Hospital Foundation, said, “Everything we do is made possible by the generosity of our partners and supporters like Oaks Hotels & Resorts. With help like this, we will continue to fund research to achieve faster diagnoses, better treatments and ultimately cures for some of the most devastating childhood illnesses and injuries.”

Wishing Trees can be found in the foyers of Oaks Hotels & Resorts’ Brisbane properties where guests, visitors and the local community are encouraged to visit, read the children’s wishes and leave a personal handwritten wish along with a gold coin donation to support sick kids and their families.

Additionally, Oaks Hotels & Resorts is reaching out to influential members of the Australian community, including sportsmen and women, celebrities, entertainers and media personalities, to contribute a celebrity wish, with each wish to be framed and presented to the Children’s Hospital Foundation to inspire courage and hope in little patients who may need to spend time in the Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital over Christmas and in the future.

For more information on how to make a donation and leave a wish please visit www.oakshotelsresorts.com.

ABOUT OAKS HOTELS & RESORTS
Oaks Hotels & Resorts is one of Australia’s largest self-contained, accommodation providers, currently incorporating a portfolio of 52 properties spanning Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South and Western Australia as well as New Zealand, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.

ABOUT MINOR HOTEL GROUP
Minor Hotel Group (MHG) is a hotel owner, operator and investor, currently with a portfolio of 134 hotels, resorts, camps and serviced suites in operation under the Anantara, AVANI, Per AQUUM, Oaks, Tivoli, Elewana, Marriott, Four Seasons, St. Regis and Minor International brands. Today MHG operates in 22 countries across Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Africa, the Indian Ocean, Europe and South America. For more information, please visit www.minorinternational.com.