RCI Returns as Title Sponsor of the Christel House Open

PARSIPPANY, N.J., March 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- RCI, the worldwide leader in vacation exchange, celebrates its 11^th consecutive year as title sponsor of the annual RCI^® Christel House Open International Charity Golf Tournament. The tournament is held in several locations and aims to raise awareness and funds for Christel House International, a charity committed to bettering the lives of impoverished children around the world.

"Since the charity's inception, Christel House has improved the lives of thousands of disadvantaged children through care, education and character development," said Gordon Gurnik, president of RCI. "Over the past 11 years, I'm proud to announce we've helped Christel House raise $5.7 million in support of its mission to drive out poverty and better the lives of future generations."

The Christel House Open kicks off on Saturday, May 20, 2017, in Palm Beach, Florida, and continues across North America and Europe throughout the following months at these locations:

• Saturday, June 3 in Boonville, New York
• Monday, June 5 in Indianapolis, Indiana
• Thursday, June 8 in Branson, Missouri
• Sunday, June 11 in Daytona, Florida
• Monday, June 12 in Kissimmee, Florida; Myrtle Beach, SC; Vista, California; Williamsburg, Virginia; and the United Kingdom
• Friday, November 3 in Scottsdale, Arizona

Now celebrating its 15^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 disadvantaged children around the world.

Christel DeHaan, founder and CEO of Christel House International, established the charity in 1998 and 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 independent members of society. The charity 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.

"The RCI Christel House Open has become a tradition within the timeshare industry for the past 15 years," said Christel DeHaan, found and CEO of Christel House International. "It is a coming together of industry leaders and RCI, joining forces to help impoverished children break the cycle of poverty and become self-sufficient members of society. Christel House is transforming lives, and our friends in the industry are helping us to achieve this noble goal. I want to thank RCI and the timeshare industry for their contributions."

Christel House and the RCI Christel House Open are strongly supported by developers, resorts and vendors in the timeshare industry. In 2016, the event raised more than $810,000 to support Christel House initiatives, and the Christel House Open has totaled $8.7 million in net proceeds worldwide since the tournament's inception.

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

About RCI
RCI is the worldwide leader in vacation exchange with over 4,300 affiliated resorts in nearly 110 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 or rciaffiliates.com. RCI also can be found on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.

About Christel House International
The mission of Christel House is to transform the lives of impoverished children around the world—breaking the cycle of poverty and building self-sufficient, contributing members of society. A focus on academic excellence through a robust K–12 curriculum is combined with a strong character development program to give students the skills and competencies necessary to compete successfully in complex 21st Century society. Much more than a school, Christel House was established in 1998 by Founder and CEO Christel DeHaan, and currently serves over 4,600 impoverished students through seven learning centers—located in India, Mexico, South Africa and the U.S.A. Christel House students maintain a 99% graduation exam pass rate, and the majority of its graduates go on to pursue higher education. They become productive citizens, and many secure employment with top multinational corporations. Christel House graduates are confident, hardworking, responsible and ethical, with a passion for giving back to their communities and caring for their families. For more information, please visit christelhouse.org and follow us on social media at facebook.com/christelhouse and twitter.com/christelhouse

SOURCE RCI

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