RCI Celebrates 10th Year as Title Sponsor of the Christel House Open

PARSIPPANY, N.J., April 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- RCI, the worldwide leader in vacation exchange, celebrates its 10^th consecutive year as title sponsor of the annual RCI^® Christel House Open International Charity Golf Tournament. The tournament, held in over a dozen locations around the world, aims to raise awareness and funds for Christel House International, a charity committed to improving the lives of impoverished children around the world.

"By providing care, education and character development, Christel House has bettered the lives of thousands of disadvantaged children," said Gordon Gurnik, president of RCI. "I'm grateful to those who have lent a hand over the years to help make the event a success and extremely proud that over the past 10 years, we've helped Christel House raise $5.5 million in support of its mission to drive out poverty and improve the lives of future generations."

The Open kicks off on Friday, April 8, 2016, in Scottsdale, Arizona, and continues in additional sites across North America and Europe through the spring. Now in its 14^th year, the tournament is attended by thousands of golfers, sponsors and volunteers from around the world who come together to raise awareness and funds for Christel House International. The nonprofit donates one hundred percent of the proceeds from the event directly to benefit those that need it.

Christel DeHaan, founder and CEO of Christel House International, established the charity in 1998. The organization aims to help its more than 4,000 children around the world break the cycle of poverty to realize their hopes and dreams and become self-sufficient, contributing members of society. It operates learning centers in the U.S., India, Mexico and South Africa, and funds an outreach program in Venezuela. DeHaan also co-founded RCI in 1974.

"RCI's culture of giving back is something I much admire, and it is touching the lives of thousands of Christel House children, helping them cross the threshold of poverty to a new path of self-sufficiency and human dignity," said DeHaan. "RCI has supported the Christel House Open since its inception in 2003 and this year marks their 10^th year as the event's title sponsor. I am enormously grateful for the generosity, commitment and loyalty of this wonderful company.  There is only one RCI, and I still so love it."

Christel House and the RCI Christel House Open are strongly supported by developers, resorts and vendors in the timeshare industry. Last year's event raised more than $670,000 to support Christel House initiatives, and the Christel House Open has totaled $7.9 million in net proceeds worldwide since the tournament's inception. Christel House is one of the three signature charities of Wishes by Wyndham, Wyndham Worldwide's philanthropic program.

For more information, please visit christelhouse.org/events.

About RCI
RCI is the worldwide leader in vacation exchange with approximately 4,300 affiliated resorts in more than 100 countries. RCI pioneered the concept of vacation exchange in 1974, offering members increased flexibility and versatility with their vacation ownership experience. Today, through the RCI Weeks^® program, the week-for-week exchange system, and the RCI Points^® program, the industry's first global points-based exchange system, RCI provides flexible vacation options to its 3.8 million RCI subscribing members each year. RCI's luxury exchange program, The Registry Collection^® program, is the world's largest program of its kind with approximately 200 affiliated properties either accessible for exchange or under development on six continents. RCI is part of Wyndham Destination Network and the Wyndham Worldwide family of brands (NYSE: WYN). For additional information, visit our media center. RCI can also be found on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

About Christel House International
Established as a public charter school in 2002, Christel House Academy (CHA) today operates four schools in Indianapolis—CHA South, serving 641 at-risk students in grades K-12; CHA West currently serving 198 students from K-3, and two adult high schools, Christel House DORS South with 268 students and Christel House DORS West with an enrollment of 151 students. CHA provides a holistic human development approach that focuses on building strong character to complement each child's rigorous academic foundation.  Through its College & Careers program, CHA continues to support its graduates through post-secondary education and job placement so they become self-sufficient, contributing members of society. Christel House Academy South was Indiana's first charter school to receive the National Forum to Accelerate Middle-Grades Reform's "School to Watch" designation. Additional awards include the Indiana Achievement and Breakthrough Schools Awards. For more information, please visit http://www.chacademy.org.

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