August 2020
MONTHLY NEWS & UPDATES
Dear C.A.R.E. Friends,

Thank you all for your support and positive feedback on the cancellation of our 2020 conference. To no surprise, it seems most of you shared our concerns and fully support the association’s tough decision. Like most in our industry, C.A.R.E. is in survival mode and things are quiet for association business. But…we are still here for you if you need us and we thank you in advance for your patience if it takes us a bit longer to respond than normal.

I recently had the opportunity and honor to share about C.A.R.E. on a recent Remote Roundtable session facilitated by Georgi Bohrod (GBG & Associates) and John Locher (Locher & Associates). I shared the stage, so to speak, with the President of (TBMA) the Timeshare Board Members Association,
Shep Altshuler. TBMA is a non-profit corporation formed in 2011 and is an industry leader in HOA Board Member and on-site Resort Management education and networking. Shep and I have started some dialogue and I’d like to see C.A.R.E. get more involved in TBMA. I’m interested to hear from existing members (or industry colleagues) with ideas on how we can do this in support of our industry.

We’re still looking for monthly contributors for our Coping with COVID-19 Crisis series, let us know if you have any insight you’d like to share with other C.A.R.E. members on your company’s success and/or struggle during these past several months. Remember, C.A.R.E. is a community of colleagues that support our member (friends) through good and bad times. 

Stay strong, safe and healthy…until next month…I remain #CARESTRONG

C.A.R.E. TO ELECT TWO VICE PRESIDENTS
C.A.R.E. Voting Parties Urged to
Submit Election Proxies
Authorized Member Representatives (Voting Parties) of C.A.R.E. General Members in good standing recently received, via e-mail, election instructions and a proxy for the election of two (2) Vice Presidents for three-year terms.
According to C.A.R.E.'s Bylaws (Article III, Section C) each Director shall be
the Authorized Member Representative of a voting membership and will have successfully completed Level 1 of the C.A.R.E. Accreditation Program (Article II,
Section A).
A big 'Thank You' goes out to those companies that have already completed and returned their proxies. C.A.R.E. as an organization has survived and thrived for 35 years as a result of the many men and women that have participated in C.A.R.E. elections, supported C.A.R.E. through their sponsorships and have volunteered their time and shared their talents to serve as board and committee members. It is imperative that each C.A.R.E. member company eligible to vote, completes and returns their proxy prior to the September 10, 2020 deadline.
Questions regarding the duties and expectations for Vice Presidents and Directors of C.A.R.E. should be directed to Linda Mayhugh. Questions as to the content or completion of proxies, should contact Debora Sansom, C.A.R.E. Secretary, at
713-378-6447 ext. 123.
C.A.R.E. MEMBERS RISE TO THE
COVID-19
CHALLENGE
On March 21, Hawaii's Governor, David Inge, announced that it was mandatory for all visitors to the islands quarantine for 14 days. According to Lauren Aratani in her article "Hawaii Avoided a Coronavirus Spike-But Its Tourist Economy is Shattered", "For Hawaii, being an isolated chain of islands in the middle of the Pacific has proved to be a blessing and a curse." Because Hawaii rolled out a policy that deliberately stopped tourism to ensure the health of its residents, the state's economy, which relies heavily on the tourist dollar, has been severely damaged. On March 1, nearly 29,000 tourists arrived but by March 31, the number of arrivals dropped to 301, a fall of 98.9%.


Aratani further noted that "Although jobs started coming back in late May and June, the effects on the leisure and hospitality industry will linger. Last year, 10.5 million visitors spent 17bn when traveling to the islands. The $7bn pumped back into Hawaii's economy by the federal government is not enough to make up for the huge shortfall.''

In the article, Carl Bonham, professor of economics of the University of Hawaii, stated "Much of the rest of the country will recover faster than Hawaii. Even once there is better treatment or better control of the virus, there will still be lingering effects on air travel."

According to Sonya Halladay, Operations Manager of Hawaii Time Share Exchange and long-time C.A.R.E. member, "We have been very fortunate to be able to still be working during this pandemic.  Our members are all timeshare owners that have to deposit or use their weeks so they don't lose them. Right now we have many members just waiting for the quarantine to be lifted to be able to enjoy Hawaii again. We obviously have seen a decrease of sales in our rentals. Many people do not want to commit for obvious reasons. We are trying to make up some of the revenue by renting to locals to come enjoy the resort at a discounted rate."
HOW HAS YOUR COMPANY HAS DEALT WITH THE
COVID-19 PANDEMIC?

SHARE YOUR STORY IN OCTOBER'S ISSUE OF QUICKCONNECTS.

CONTACT BONNIE KOSCO FOR MORE INFORMATION
THE WESTIN SARASOTA
SARASOTA, FLORIDA
MAY 1- MAY 4, 2021
REGISTRATION COMING JANUARY 2021
Global
Connections, Inc. Receives 2020 Tripadvisor Award

Beso Del Sol Resort Recognized as a Travelers’ Choice Winner
Overland Park, KS – August 6, 2020 –
Global Connections, Inc. is proud to announce that Beso Del Sol Resort, Dunedin, FL, has been recognized as a 2020 Travelers’ Choice award-winner for being among the top 10% of hotels in the entire world based on a full year of Tripadvisor reviews, prior to any changes caused by the pandemic. Award winners are known for consistently receiving great traveler feedback, placing them in the top 10% of hospitality businesses around the globe.

“To be recognized for this is a testament to our great staff and our amazing guests, who make it easy to be among the best in the world,” said Dave Dawson, Vice President Resort Acquisitions and Development. “It’s a group effort, and we’ll strive to continue to be recognized as the best of the best year in and year out.”
“Winners of the 2020 Travelers’ Choice Awards should be proud of this distinguished recognition,” said Kanika Soni, Chief Commercial Officer at Tripadvisor. “Although it’s been a challenging year for travel and hospitality, we want to celebrate our partners' achievements. Award winners are beloved for their exceptional service and quality. Not only are these winners well deserving, they are also a great source of inspiration for travelers as the world begins to venture out again.”

To see traveler reviews, popular features and amenities of Beso Del Sol Resort, visit our Tripadvisor page at bit.ly/besodelsol.

About Global Connections, Inc.
Global Connections, Inc., headquartered in Overland Park, KS is recognized as a leader in the travel club industry, offering the members of its Global Discovery Vacations club program a host of leisure benefits and vacationing options to hundreds of resorts in North America and around the world. Global Connections is the owner, developer and manager of resorts in California, Florida, Colorado and Tennessee as well as the owner and lessee of multiple resort condominium units throughout the United
States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. For more information, visit www.exploregci.com. 
CONTACT
BONNIE KOSCO to SUBMIT YOUR COMPANY'S PRESS RELEASES
FEBRUARY 23 - FEBRUARY 25, 2021
GNEX 2021
MIAMI, FLORIDA
APRIL 11-15, 2021
BELLAGIO HOTEL AND CASINO
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA
MAY 1- MAY 4, 2021
C.A.R.E.'S 68TH CONFERENCE
THE WESTIN SARASOTA
SARASOTA, FLORIDA
APRIL 9- APRIL 12, 2022
WYNDHAM PHILADELPHIA
HISTORIC DISTRICT
PHILADELPHIA, PA
PREFERRED MEDIA SPONSOR
MEDIA SPONSOR