http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article199966939.html
When Fontainebleau housekeeper Odelie Paret clocked out of her 14-room-a-day cleaning shift Feb. 6, her day took a turn for the extraordinary.
A mysterious woman who had called the previous day had arranged for her to have a massage at the Fontainebleau’s four-star spa, Lapis, and dinner at steakhouse StripSteak by Michael Mina.
Paret, who has worked at the Fontainebleau for more than two decades commuting for up to four hours a day by bus, was baffled by the offer but accepted. Who was the generous person arranging for her, a modest Haitian mother of five, to indulge at one of South Florida’s most luxurious resorts?
While she figured it out, she helped herself to lobster, got acquainted with the spa and even enjoyed the lobby at the hotel, an area some housekeepers say they never see.
After dinner, a car was waiting to take Paret and a friend to Brickell City Centre, where they waited until the shopping center closed.
It was there, standing before Saks Fifth Avenue, that a hand touched her shoulder.
It belonged to Drake.
The hip-hop star was inspired by a Miami Herald story detailing the plight of the Fontainebleau Miami Beach housekeeper, whose torturous daily commute is common for the many hospitality workers who struggle with Miami-Dade’s rising rents, subpar public transportation system and stagnant wages.
Paret said she was shocked to see him.
“I always just saw him on the TV. So I said, ‘Drake!’” Paret told the Herald Tuesday. “It made me happy. ... I thank him so much.”
Paret said Drake and Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, who grew up in Miami and attended Miami Norland High School, arranged for a shopping spree for her and two other local women.
When Fontainebleau housekeeper Odelie Paret clocked out of her 14-room-a-day cleaning shift Feb. 6, her day took a turn for the extraordinary.
A mysterious woman who had called the previous day had arranged for her to have a massage at the Fontainebleau’s four-star spa, Lapis, and dinner at steakhouse StripSteak by Michael Mina.
Paret, who has worked at the Fontainebleau for more than two decades commuting for up to four hours a day by bus, was baffled by the offer but accepted. Who was the generous person arranging for her, a modest Haitian mother of five, to indulge at one of South Florida’s most luxurious resorts?
While she figured it out, she helped herself to lobster, got acquainted with the spa and even enjoyed the lobby at the hotel, an area some housekeepers say they never see.
After dinner, a car was waiting to take Paret and a friend to Brickell City Centre, where they waited until the shopping center closed.
It was there, standing before Saks Fifth Avenue, that a hand touched her shoulder.
It belonged to Drake.
The hip-hop star was inspired by a Miami Herald story detailing the plight of the Fontainebleau Miami Beach housekeeper, whose torturous daily commute is common for the many hospitality workers who struggle with Miami-Dade’s rising rents, subpar public transportation system and stagnant wages.
Paret said she was shocked to see him.
“I always just saw him on the TV. So I said, ‘Drake!’” Paret told the Herald Tuesday. “It made me happy. ... I thank him so much.”
Paret said Drake and Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, who grew up in Miami and attended Miami Norland High School, arranged for a shopping spree for her and two other local women.
All he was saying is she has a long commute
