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 News Release

Lansdowne Resort Gives Three Vacations

To Washington, DC/Loudoun Area Boys & Girls Club Members

Sponsored by Benchmark Hospitality International, Lansdowne Resort,

Boys & Girls Clubs of America 

Media Contact:

Denise Benoit

Director of Marketing

703 729-4129

703 919-1589 cell

dbenoit@benchmarkmanagement.com

Leesburg, VA and Washington, DC, December, 2009 ... Lansdowne Resort and the Washington, DC and Loudoun County Boys & Girls Club have announced the winners of the Family Road Trip vacation giveaway, a Benchmark Hospitality Hometown Hospitality™ initiative providing complimentary vacations to deserving families. Benchmark operates Lansdowne Resort in Leesburg, VA, which is participating in the family vacations program for the Washington, DC region.

Members of the local Boys & Girls Clubs were encouraged to write a letter stating why their family deserved an expense paid vacation for three days at Lansdowne Resort. The Resort received over 15 applications and the Executive Committee along with the Benchmark home office, paired the entries down to three winners.  The winners were awarded their certificate on December 7 during morning assembly at their schools. The winners are:

Ebony Action, a freshman at Annapolis High School

Jordon Weigand, a 7th grader at Sterling Middle School

Katherine Majewski, a 6th grader at Sterling Middle School 

The trip can be planned at any time and includes 3 days at the resort, deluxe accommodations, breakfast, lunch and dinner all three days for the entire family, a $50 gas card, use of all recreational amenities at the resort and access to local attractions.

 “Thank you to Lansdowne for making this opportunity available to our boys and girls. The children were very excited about the contest and the winners are delighted. This is much needed in these difficult times.” says Denise Andorfer, executive director of the Loudoun County Boys & Girls Club and Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington President & CEO, Pandit F. Wright agreed. 

Lansdowne’s director of human resources, Stacy Pedersen added, "Here at Lansdowne we feel the word 'hometown' evokes images of safe neighborhoods, close families and friends, and kids without a care playing outside. But this is not everyone's experience.” Ms. Pedersen continued with, “This is why our partnership with our local Boys & Girls Clubs is so important -- because they step up and provide a safe environment where kids can have fun, be themselves, engage in activities that channel youthful energy into challenging pursuits. We are honored to work with our local Clubs.”  

Since giving is as important as receiving, as part of the Family Road Trip Vacations Hometown Hospitality initiative, Benchmark Hospitality has requested each family participate in four hours of  service to their local community, side-by-side with the Benchmark Hospitality staff.

 # # #

For more than 100 years, Boys & Girls Clubs of America (www.bgca.org) has helped kids "Be Great," providing hope and opportunity for those who need it most. Today, more than 4,300 Clubs serve some 4.5 million young people through Club membership and community outreach. Known as The Positive Place for Kids, Boys & Girls Clubs can be found throughout the country and on U.S. military bases worldwide, providing young people 6-18 years old with guidance-oriented character development programs conducted by trained, professional staff. Clubs positively impact lives and help young people reach their full potential as productive, caring citizens. Key programs emphasize leadership development; education and career exploration; community service; technology training; financial literacy; health and life skills; the arts; sports, fitness and recreation; and family outreach. In a recent Harris Survey of Club alumni, 57 percent said the Club saved their lives.

 Lansdowne Resort, a AAA Four Diamond Award recipient, is the capital region’s premier, full-service resort. Managed by Benchmark Hospitality International, the resort is set on more than 500 acres of secluded countryside. Lansdowne Resort features 307 guest rooms and suites, a multi-pool aquatic complex, 45 holes of golf, a 45,000 sq.ft. conference center, golf clubhouse, six dining facilities and Spa Minérale, a full-service spa. Learn more at www.lansdowneresort.com.

 Benchmark Hospitality International is a leader in the management and marketing of resorts, conference centers, hotels, and Personal Luxury Hotels™. The privately held company, launched in 1980, is a founding member of the International Association of Conference Centers. Benchmark Hospitality is a worldwide organization operating properties in major metropolitan and resort destinations. Benchmark's international headquarters is located in The Woodlands, Texas, near Houston, with regional offices in New Jersey and Connecticut. International offices are located in Tokyo, Japan, and Santiago, Chile. For the location of Benchmark’s properties and additional information, visit www.benchmarkhospitality.com.  

The “Hometown Hospitality Caring for Our Communities” program of Benchmark Hospitality International advances the philanthropic endeavors of the leading hospitality management company through employee volunteer programs, in-kind donations and community outreach activities. Benchmark believes that responsible corporate citizenship recognizes the inalienable link between a healthy and vibrant community and the health and well being of a company and its employees. Hometown Hospitality Caring for Our Communities encourages and enables Benchmark employees globally to seek leading roles in the communities in which they live and work and the world community as well by supporting social, educational, and cultural programs, either through property-developed initiatives or through partnering with existing services. 

 

Historic Landmarks in New York City, Los Angeles - Will Light Up for Afterschool on October 22nd

Empire State Building, L.A. City Hall’s Lindbergh Beacon

To Be Lit for 10th Annual Lights On Afterschool

On October 22, the top of the Empire State Building will be bathed in yellow light as part of

Lights On Afterschool, the only national rally for afterschool programs. This is the third year

that the Empire State Building will be lit up for the event, which is organized by the Afterschool

Alliance. But this year, for the first time, city officials in Los Angeles will light the historic

Lindbergh Beacon atop City Hall that evening, so that national landmarks on both coasts will be

lit up in celebration of afterschool.

Each year, Lights On Afterschool brings together students, parents, educators, afterschool

program directors, and community and business leaders from across the country to show their

support for afterschool programs. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the rally, which will

include 7,500 events throughout the nation and at United States military bases around the world.

In all, a million people are expected to participate to urge leaders to support the afterschool

programs that keep children safe, inspire them to learn and help working families.

Rarely lit up for events, the Lindbergh Beacon will be turned on to commemorate Lights On

Afterschool thanks to the efforts of Los Angeles’ Woodcraft Rangers afterschool program and

City Councilwoman Jan Perry, who requested the lighting. The City of Los Angeles will issue a

resolution regarding the Beacon, saying in part:

Woodcraft Rangers, on behalf of the Afterschool Alliance’s 2009 Lights On Afterschool

celebration, has linked the lighting of Los Angeles City Hall’s historic Lindbergh Beacon

on October 22, 2009 with the lighting of New York City’s iconic Empire State Building to

help focus national attention on the afterschool programs from coast to coast that keep

our kids safe, inspire them to learn and help working families.

“The lighting of these well-known landmarks – one on each coast – is a wonderful way to

celebrate the 10th anniversary of Lights On Afterschool,” said Afterschool Alliance Executive

Director Jodi Grant. “We are deeply grateful to the Empire State Building for being the first

landmark to light up in recognition of this nationwide rally, and for inspiring the City of Los

Angeles to light the Lindbergh Beacon for afterschool this year. It is our hope that these efforts

will help to highlight the importance of keeping the lights on and the doors open for our children

each afternoon, so they will all have the opportunity to learn and grow in safe, supervised and

educational environments after the school day ends.”

At Lights On Afterschool rallies throughout the country on and around October 22nd, Americans

will urge leaders to increase support for the afterschool programs that children and families need.

The events give youth a chance to showcase the skills they learn and talents they develop at their

afterschool programs, and to send the message that millions more kids need quality afterschool

programs. Actress Rhea Perlman is a spokesperson for Lights On Afterschool and California

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is Founding Chair, a position he has held since 2001.

In advance of Lights On Afterschool this year, the Afterschool Alliance will release the second

America After 3 PM: A Household Survey on Afterschool in America, the most in-depth study

ever to explore how America’s children spend their afternoons. Funded by the JCPenney

Afterschool Fund, a charitable organization committed to inspiring children to be smart, strong

and socially responsible, the original study was released in 2004. It found that 14.3 million

kindergarten through 12th graders took care of themselves after the school day ended. At the

time, just 6.5 million children were in afterschool programs – but the parents of another 15.3

million children said their children would participate if an afterschool program were available.

The 2009 study, designed to measure progress over the last five years, is also funded by the

JCPenney Afterschool Fund and includes updated information on afterschool participation

nationally and in all 50 states. The Afterschool Alliance and JCPenney Afterschool Fund will

release it on October 6 at an event at the U.S. Department of Education. State data will be

featured a few weeks later at Lights On Afterschool events around the country.

As part of this year’s Lights On Afterschool celebration, Bright House Networks will air a new

documentary on the benefits of afterschool, featuring the personal stories of youth and families

across the country.

# # # #

The Afterschool Alliance is a nonprofit public awareness and advocacy organization working to ensure

that all children and youth have access to quality afterschool programs. More information is available at

www.afterschoolalliance.org.
 

Andorfer Heads Boys & Girls Clubs of Loudoun

Loudoun Independent

Thursday, 21 May 2009
 

Denise Andorfer, an Indiana native and veteran Boys & Girls Clubs professional, has been hired to head up the Boys & Girls Club of Loudoun County.

Andorfer will spearhead the organization’s fundraising, as well as the operations for its three school-based sites in Loudoun County including Simpson, Stone Hill and Sterling Middle Schools.

The Boys & Girls Club of Loudoun County was founded in 2006, and provides after school and summer programs for youth. The organization is a chartered member of Boys & Girls Clubs of America, which hosts 4,300 Clubs nationwide.

Andorfer has managed organizations for both Boys & Girls Clubs of Ft. Wayne Indiana and Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Florida. She was named Indiana’s Director of the Year in 2007. Andorfer also served as vice president of Charitable and Endowment Services for National City Bank, and served as the Executive Director of the Allen County Anti-Drug Coalition in Fort Wayne Indiana.

http://www.loudouni.com/people/2009-05-21/andorfer-heads-boys-girls-clubs-loudoun

 

Dip in Donations Endangering Boys & Girls Club

By Erica Garman

Sunday, November 30, 2008; Page LZ03

Living in LoCo is Erica Garman's blog devoted to Loudoun County. You can find it at http://www.loudounextra.com. This column of highlights appears every Sunday.

The Boys & Girls Club of Loudoun County is in danger of closing if donations don't increase, board member Mark Madigan says.

"We are really at a crossroads," he wrote in a recent e-mail. "The economic times have hit us hard."

The club started in September 2007 at three Loudoun middle schools, thanks in part to funding from the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, a gang-prevention grant secured by Rep. Frank R. Wolf (R-Va.) with help from the Loudoun Youth Initiative, and donations from corporate and private donors.

The program provides a safe haven where students at Sterling, J. Lupton Simpson and Stone Hill middle schools can hang out, get homework help and play games after school until 8 weeknights. Organizers also run workshops on drug awareness, gang prevention and character building.

In an interview, Madigan said that the grant money has dried up and that corporate and private donations are down dramatically because of the economy. Barring improvement in its finances, the program might not make it to the end of the school year, he said.

Last year, the program charged $20 per student for the academic year at the participating schools. This year, because of the decline in donations, it is charging $25 a week per child, shutting out kids whose families can't afford the cost and who probably need the program the most.

The after-school program had about 50 kids a day at each of the three sites last year. This year, the number has shrunk to 20 to 30 kids per site, most likely due to the weekly fee, Madigan said.

A director at one of the sites has taken matters into her own hands. She is asking friends and businesses for donations to pay the fees for two children from a homeless single-parent family. There are no overhead costs with the Boys & Girls Club of Loudoun. Donations go directly to the program. The club also provides a place where kids can learn about one another's differences in a non-academic environment.

A parent, Claire Crook, said the program has provided inclusion and camaraderie for her eighth-grader, Sophia, who is developmentally disabled.

"It would be really tough on my family if we didn't have this program," Crook said. "Kim Augustine, the director at Simpson, really gets the kids and what they're thinking. Because of the Boys & Girls Club, my daughter feels like she's really a part of the school and the group."

To donate to the Boys & Girls Club of Loudoun and help keep this program running, go to http://www.bgcloudoun.org.

Boys & Girls Club of Loudoun County News

LOUDOUN COUNTY BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS HONORED
Mark Madigan awarded "Beverly Burton New Board Member of the Year" by Boys & Girls Clubs of America
 

STERLING, VA, MAY 21, 2008 - Mr. Mark Madigan, Chief Volunteer Officer of the Boys and Girls Club of Loudoun County, has been awarded the "Beverly Burton New Board Member of the Year" by Boys & Girls Clubs of America. The club, which serves Sterling Middle School (in the Sterling Park area), Stone Hill Middle School (Ashburn), and Simpson Middle School (Leesburg), has a charter to serve Loudoun County youth including those most at risk. The after school program for middle school children costs parents only $20 per child per year while the donors and volunteers for Boys and Girls Club of Loudoun County save local taxpayers thousands of dollars.
 

The Loudoun County organization was chartered last spring with two units and serving 200 youth. This full range of programs for middle school children costs only $20 a year per child. The cost of this service is about $2000 per child per year and the organization actively seeks volunteers and donors to help them continue to provide these valuable services in the local area.
 

With the organization still not a year old and under Mark's leadership, last September they opened a third site and now serve more than 350 members.
 

In 2007 he personally spearheaded community partnerships that netted over $100,000 for the Clubs. "Mark has worked tirelessly to make this organization a success. A modest man and West Point graduate, he exemplifies in his leadership the integrity and dedication of his background", says Henry Saxon, Regional Service Director, Boys and Girls Clubs of America. "He has recruited and maintained a Board of Directors that shares his passion and strong belief that the Boys & Girls Clubs of Loudoun County is a valued community asset. The 2008 Beverly Burton New Board Member of the Year award is well deserved."
 

The New Board Member of the Year award has been a long standing award for the Boys & Girls Club of America Area Council program. The naming of this award in honor of Beverly Burton has been a recent decision to honor Mrs. Beverly Burton who served as a long time local board member in Mobile, Alabama. Beverly served on the National Area Council Advisory Committee for over 10 years but was tragically killed in plane crash returning from the Mississippi Area Council meeting she was attending in support of the Area Council Movement.
 

The charter of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Loudoun County is to provide support for middle school and high school youth. Area children face seemingly endless challenges: everyday gang violence, teen parenthood, school drop-out rates which are too high, temptation of drugs and alcohol, etc. By establishing a safe haven after school that teaches leadership and social responsibility, area youth will have a stronger foundation and additional adult support to avoid these pitfalls.
 

Boys and Girls Club of Loudoun County currently serves children Monday through Friday from 3:30p-7:30p, with programming in five core areas-Education Development; Character and Leadership Development; Health and Life Skills; the Arts; and Sports, Fitness and Recreation. To honor those who have helped them the Boys and Girls Club of Loudoun County will be hosting a breakfast in June 2008, for their donors and friends of the organization.
 

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About Boys & Girls Clubs of Loudoun County (BGCLC)
 

The Boys & Girls Clubs of Loudoun County Virginia is a charter member of Boy and Girls Clubs of America. BGCLC creates a positive environment where children are encouraged to develop their ambitions and turn them into reality. BGCLC helps boys and girls of all backgrounds build confidence, develop character, and acquire skills that prepare them for school and for life as productive, civic-minded, and responsible adults. To help sustain and further their programs they seek sponsorships and donors from local area residents. You can donate online and read more about the organization at http://bgcloudoun.org/.
 

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