When choosing a place to spend precious time with family and friends, many trip planners pay special attention to value.

Because we’re all on a budget, right?

We receive a lot of kudos each year for offering free soft drinks, free parking, and more.

Values, though, go much deeper than just the pocketbook.

About a dozen years ago, our owner and president, Will Koch, presented a list of Values to the staff. These were to be our touchstones, he told us – so that no matter what, we could stay true to ourselves.

When Will passed away unexpectedly five years ago, it was those Values I turned to when asked to help write his eulogy.

We revisited those Values over the winter months, adding a fifth. Introducing these Values to our new and returning seasonal employees is the topic of Matt’s first Holigram article this spring.

We’d like to share his Note from the President:

One thing I believe we all have in common here at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari is the amount of pride that we have in our Parks and in each other. That pride is driven by the Values that we have created and those Values in which we operate our business and live our daily lives.

Many years ago, we established these Values, and recently we revisited them to ensure we were truly living and acting accordingly. We are.

What are these Values? I would like to start off our 2015 Season by taking this opportunity to share with you, all of our Hosts and Hostesses, what they are and why they are so very important.

We Play by the Rules

Rules can be defined and interpreted in a lot of different ways. Rules not only include those operating rules that we have as employees to ensure that we are all doing our jobs, but it also includes regulations, ordinances, etc. At Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, we will always do what is right. Period.

We Respect the Individual

We welcome many Guests from all over the country – and throughout the world – to our Parks every year. Everyone is different, unique and special in their own way. We have, and we will always, respect every single Guest who chooses to spend their day with us, regardless of age, gender, race, sexual orientation, or religious beliefs. Our Guests are giving us something very precious – their time. For that, we owe them our gratitude and fantastic service. We also must respect one another. Everyone has a right to their ideas and opinions and we must always be open to share those with one another.

We Encourage Work/Life Balance

We work hard – and we need to play hard, too. We recognize how precious time with our family and friends is in our lives. We are all about families, including our own. It is very important that we take time for ourselves to ensure that we are mentally present at all times. When you are here at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, your full attention should be given to our Guests, ensuring that Safety, Service, Friendliness and Cleanliness are your top priorities.

We are a Team

We must always put the growth and success of Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari ahead of any one individual. We must work together, as a Team, to ensure we are delivering the best possible experience to our Guests that we can.

We Have Fun!

We are a Theme Park! If we cannot have fun doing what we do, then we have picked the wrong industry! If we have fun, our Guests will have fun. Proven fact. Enjoy your job, enjoy our Guests and enjoy each other.

This may seem like a lot to take in and remember (don’t worry – we will have our Values posted throughout the Park). These Values are what we should live and breathe; in time (if they have not already) our Values will become your standard operating procedure. It is my hope that they will stay with you not only during your time with us at Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari, but forever.

Keep Smiling!

Matt