SURPRISE, ARIZ.—What to do with used hotel linens and towels? Some are kept for cleaning. Some are recycled. Most are thrown in the trash. A new nonprofit organization is encouraging hoteliers to donate used linens and towels to local animal shelters. Scott Chapman, a 20-year hospitality veteran who got his start in housekeeping and moved up the corporate ladder to senior director of training, founded Hotel Industry Partnership for Pets (H.I.P. for Pets) to help “end the unnecessary euthanasia of adoptable pets.”
Chapman, now head of learning and development for PetSmart Inc., said donating used linens and towels can reduce hotel waste removal costs by 7 percent and provide a “big sustainability win” for individual hotel operators seeking to expand their green initiatives.
Towels typically wear out and are replaced quarterly to meet guest expectations and fulfill brand standards, he said. A 500-room hotel could discard up to 1,500 towels per quarter.
H.I.P. for Pets makes linen donation easy by matching hotels with the nearest one of 8,200 prescreened animal shelters through the organization’s online database at www.hipforpets.com. Hotel operators simply can go to that site and click “Donate Items.”
Other Supplies Solicited
The website also solicits donations of leftover cleaning supplies, hand soap, shampoo and conditioner and used wine corks, newspapers, blankets and even empty toilet paper rolls. Site visitors also are invited to donate money and volunteer in their local shelters.
“By donating used materials, hotels can provide what shelters cannot always afford: soft bedding and towels to dry animals after their baths,” Chapman said. “This can alleviate some of the stress that animals experience when confined to a shelter and make them more adoptable.”
Chapman said H.I.P. for Pets is guided by the philosophy that “all adoptable animals should be given a chance and a life filled with love and happiness.” The organization intends to apply cash donations to fund microchip identification tags, spay and neuter programs and service and therapy dog training.
H.I.P. also is working to research and define “pet friendly” hospitality policies and best practices. More information is available at www.hipforpets.com, at the organization’s Facebook site, H.I.P. for Pets, and through Twitter at “hipforpets.”
