Press Release: Ramada Franchise Systems, Inc.
September 25, 2000
PARSIPPANY, NJ -- Ramada hotel franchisees are participating in a nationwide effort this month to raise $100,000
to benefit Childreach, the lodging brand's official charity.
Ramada hotels will raise money by holding yard sales, car washes, bake sales and donating a portion of their room
revenue. Their contributions will be used to rebuild a school in Dominican Republic destroyed by Hurricane Georges
in 1998.
Steven J. Belmonte, CHA, Ramada president and chief executive officer, visited the school in San Juan this summer
to observe the groundbreaking.
This is the second annual fund-raising campaign hosted by Ramada. Last year, the chain collected more than $70,000
to build a health clinic for Childreach in rural Zambia, one of the poorest countries in the world.
In further support of the organization, Belmonte appears in national Childreach commercials filmed in the Dominican
Republic to increase awareness of children's needs in Third World countries.
Ramada became the Founding Corporate Sponsor for Childreach in 1994. Since then, 1,000 children have been sponsored
by owners, employees, and guests of the chain.
Childreach is the US member of PLAN International, one of the oldest and largest child sponsorship organizations
in the world. Founded in 1937 as Foster Parents Plan, the worldwide organization is helping over one million children
in 42 developing countries of Africa, Asia, and Latin America to have a real chance at a better life. For more
information about Childreach, call 1-800-556-7918 or log onto http://www.childreach.org.
Ramada Franchise Systems, Inc., a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE: CD), is a mid- to upper-mid-market chain
of over 1,000 Ramada Limited, Inn and Plaza Hotel properties throughout the United States. Reservations can be
made at any Ramada property via 1-800-2-RAMADA or ramada.com.
SOURCE: Ramada Franchise Systems, Inc.