Press Release

New Catering Sales Manager At JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa Puts Spotlight On Weddings

Ko Olina, Oahu, Hawaii – May 25, 2010 – The luxurious JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa at Ko Olina is renowned as an idyllic wedding venue offering a secluded oceanfront location with amazing sunset views on Oahu’s sunny Leeward Coast and providing first-class service. Now, the resort is strengthening its commitment to weddings with the addition of Raymond Donato as the new Catering Sales Manager.

“Raymond’s enthusiasm and knowledge of Hawaii events and weddings make him a natural to lead our wedding services,” said Dan Banchiu, general manager of JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa. “He is already making great connections with brides and grooms.”

Prior to joining JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa, Donato served as Food and Beverage Manager with Marriott’s Ko Olina Beach Club for nine years. With a total of 21 years of hospitality experience, he had previously worked at JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa from 1994-1998 as a banquet server. With his career beginning as a banquet server attending to wedding guests, his passion and commitment to serve the wedding industry has developed along with his career. In 2007, he was recognized as an honoree of the prestigious JW Award of Excellence from Marriott International.

Donato’s wedding experience goes beyond his work experience. He is proud to have served as the best man in 15 weddings!

A graduate of Waianae High School on Oahu, Donato attended Leeward Community College and Hawaii Pacific University where he received his degree in accounting. During his spare time, he volunteers with New Hope Leeward Church.

The JW MARRIOTT IHILANI RESORT & SPA AT KO OLINA offers 387 guest rooms and 36 suites and is the only Hawaii resort to offer allergy-friendly PURE rooms. The award winning resort fronts the first of four lagoons on Oahu’s sunny western shore. Part of the 640-acre Ko Olina Resort & Marina and offering the island's most complete resort experience, the hotel features luxuriously appointed rooms; relaxed Hawaiian elegance; gracious, warm personalized service; secluded beaches; offering a total of 77,694 square feet of outdoor and indoor meeting space, including the newly expanded 15,600-square-foot Hokulani Ballroom; professional tennis courts; 18 holes of challenging championship play at Ko Olina Golf Club; and a variety of restaurants showcasing unique and distinctive international cuisine. The world-class Ihilani Spa, voted one of the “Top Spas in the World” by readers of Conde Nast Traveler and Travel & Leisure magazines, is internationally renowned for its full complement of invigorating body treatments and massages, using products harvested from the honua (earth) and the moana (ocean) here in the islands. The resort recently ranked as one of the “Top 100 Golf Resorts” by Conde Nast Traveler and is heralded as the "Best of the Best Romantic Locale” in the islands by readers of The Honolulu Advertiser. The resort and its signature Azul restaurant have also been honored with AAA’s Four Diamond award.

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Editor’s Note: JPGs of Raymond Donato and JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa are available upon request.

For More Information, Contact:

Bernie Caalim or Noreen Kam
McNeil Wilson Communications
1003 Bishop Street, 9th Floor
Honolulu, HI 96813
Phone: (808) 531-0244
Fax: (808) 521-7163
Email: bernie.caalim@mwc-anthology.com or noreen.kam@mwc-anthology.com

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