Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain, the country’s premier luxury resort, was recognized by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) with a 2013 “Stars of the Industry” award during its Summer Summit in Denver, Colo. Sanctuary’s 2012 “Escape for GOOD” fundraiser, which raised $10 million benefiting Athletes for Hope and UGIVE, two nonprofits dedicated to inspiring and enabling voluntary service nationwide, was honored in the “Special Events, One-Time Only, Small-Property” category.
The invitation-only weekend event at Sanctuary, limited to 75 couples at a minimum donation of $50,000 each, offered once-in-a-lifetime experiences with sports industry celebrities such as Andre Agassi, Muhammad Ali, Cris Collinsworth, Mia Hamm, Tony Hawk, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Alonzo Mourning, Anthony Muñoz, Paul O’Neill and Annika Sorenstam. Activities included tennis with Andre Agassi on Sanctuary’s championship tennis courts, a morning run through Paradise Valley with track and field star Jackie Joyner-Kersee, and a cook-off with culinary masters Todd English, Sanctuary’s own Executive Chef Beau MacMillan, and Phoenix’s Mark Tarbell. The weekend concluded with an extravagant private dinner for Muhammad Ali’s 70th birthday.
Sanctuary’s scenic and tranquil atmosphere provided a perfect backdrop for discussions on social issues and education for America’s youth. The weekend sparked conversations that forged new partnerships between Google and the Gates Foundation, Andre Agassi and Unicef, as well as a new Sports for Development program in South Africa and Ethiopia.
