Colette Latour wasn’t about to let a blackout keep her from being a shining example of customer service in the city’s tourism industry.
The Sheraton Ottawa Hotel employee was among those honoured by Ottawa Tourism Wednesday night for going the extra mile to serve visitors to the nation’s capital in 2018.
Latour, who went above and beyond to ensure a guest’s safety, was named the ultimate Star of the City during a ceremony at Algonquin College. After the guest’s Dublin-Toronto flight was unexpectedly diverted to Ottawa, his wife called the Sheraton to let staff know he had mid-stage dementia and was without a bank card or credit card.
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She says Latour arranged for her husband’s food, discreetly made sure his bus driver was aware of the situation and even followed up to make sure he had arrived at his final destination safely – all while dealing with a power outage at her own home as well as helping other guests who had been stranded from the same flight.
Among the other winners Wednesday night were Christopher Ward of the Lord Elgin Hotel and Heather Mackay of Holiday Inn Ottawa East, who both took extra time to help their guests explore the city. Mackay took her guests on a tour of the ByWard Market, while Ward made a list of must-see points of interest for a client driving from Ottawa to Toronto.
Brittany Kendell of the Metcalfe Hotel was honoured for returning a lost teddy bear to his owners in France – but not before making sure he had a good time in Ottawa.
Frederique Ducharme of the Westin Ottawa and Paul Albert of the Sheraton Ottawa Hotel were recognized for going above and beyond to make guests feel at home. The team at Les Suites Hotel was awarded for helping their clients make the most of their stay in the nation’s capital.
The 23rd annual Stars of the City award recipients were chosen from among 19 finalists out of 1,150 nominations from 55 Ottawa businesses.