Defender Employees Affected by Irma

At Defender Resorts we have many employees who live in the coastal areas where our resorts are located. In the midst of Hurricane Irma's destruction many of our resorts were destroyed and our employees were the brave, hardworkers who remained at the properties. These individuals stayed for evacuations and many of them stayed on property during the hurricane to be there for the guests who could not escape. These fantastic people secured and protected their resort and guests before securing their own homes and personal belongings.

Many of these employees have lost a lot. Their homes are damaged and their lives turned upside down. Yet, they have continued to show up and help guests and the resorts. These have been trying times for them and in an effort to help them we've started this campaign to help these valued individuals in their time of need.

In the Defender Resorts family we are all at risk of it being our property that is the center of a natural disaster. Please consider helping out our most beloved and valued assest, our employees.

Any funds raised will be distributed to those employees of Defender Resorts who have lost anything in the wake of Hurricane Irma to help them cover the costs of loss and displacement.

Some of the most devasting losses occured at Sea Palace Resort in Sint Martin and The Reef at Marathon and Topsider Resort, both in the Florida Keys.  The eye of Hurricane Irma passed directly over these resorts and completely devasted the entire islands, shattering everything in her path with 100+ mph winds. These people are out more than many people can ever comprehend.

Many employees of properties throughout Florida also suffered a variety of losses from the heavy winds, flooding and more. 

Thank you so much for your consideration of contributing. Our employees mean the world to us. Anything we can do or raise to help them is the least we can do to thank them for all they do and go through.

Details on how this fund has been set up and how Defender will handle the auditing and distribution of the funds are as follows:

Smith Shanafelt CPAs will serve as the administrator of the GoFundMe account. This is a Myrtle Beach CPA firm that Defender has used for many years and it is the same firm that handles the accounts payables function for your resort and provides your Board of Directors with a monthly financial statement.

The funds will be deposited into a 501C3 account at Bible Fellowship Baptist Church that will allow each donor to receive a tax deduction for their contributions.  Each Owner will receive a letter from Defender after the funds have been collected and distributed, asking for their relevant information, relative to using the contribution as a tax deduction.

The church will then send the donors a letter stating the amount of their contribution, stating no goods or services were received by the donor, and that the church is a 501 C3 organization, thus making the donation tax deductible which can, in turn, be used when they prepare their 2017 tax returns.

Defender will provide the church Deacon Committee with the names of the employees who work for Defender or the resort of the 3 significantly impacted resorts, namely one resort in Sint Maarten and two resorts in the Florida Keys. The Deacon Committee will instruct the Church Secretary to disburse the funds equally to all staff at the significantly impacted resorts.