CRUISE PLANNERS DONATES $18,000 TO FISHER HOUSE FOUNDATION

Donation funds collected through t-shirt sales and silent auction during annual convention

MIAMI, FL – Cruise Planners/American Express, the nation’s largest home-based travel agent franchise network in the cruise industry, donated $18,000 to the Fisher House Foundation as part of its CP Cares initiative. The funds were collected at the company’s annual convention late last year through Cruise Planners t-shirt sales and a silent auction. 
“Cruise Planners has shown their commitment to improving the quality of life both locally and nationally by donating such an impressive gift,” said Mary Berrocal, director of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Miami VA Healthcare System, who accepted the donation on behalf of the Fisher House Foundation. “We are most grateful for Cruise Planners’ donation and their support for America’s military. The Miami VA Fisher House is in the final stages of construction and these dollars will not only trickle down locally, but assist the foundation as a whole.”     
CP Cares is an outreach program created by Cruise Planners to support charitable organizations throughout the U.S. and around the world. Cruise Planners is committed to raising and donating funds to various charities as well as providing hands-on service to the community. Through CP Cares, Cruise Planners has shown support to US troops and veterans and assisted entrepreneurial veterans with opportunities to be a franchise owner. 
Along with sending a New Year’s care package to a unit recently deployed to Afghanistan, Cruise Planners has donated more than $20,000 to the Fisher House Foundation and approximately $62,000 in incentives to help veterans transition into franchise ownership. In addition, Cruise Planners teamed up with Royal Caribbean International for the Voyages for Veterans program, where Royal Caribbean will donate $50 to the Fisher House Foundation for every cabin booked through a Cruise Planners agent on one of 12 select sailings throughout 2010. Cruise Planners 
Fisher House Foundation, founded in 1990, currently operates 43 purpose-built “comfort homes” providing free accommodations to the families of U.S. military service members and U.S. veterans who undergo treatment at a military or VA medical facility. Fisher House serves more than 12,000 families annually, and allows America’s military and veteran families to be together in a home-like atmosphere through extended recovery periods. 
About Cruise Planners/American Express
Cruise Planners, an American Express Travel Services Representative, is the largest home-based travel agent network in the cruise industry with more than 700 franchise owners across the country that independently book cruises and associated travel. Named No.1 Cruise Tour / Travel Agency by Entrepreneur magazine for the past seven years, Cruise Planners positions franchise owners for success by providing them with innovating marketing, booking and lead-generating tools as well as professional development and hands-on training with the industry’s top executives.  Headquartered in Coral Springs, Fla., Cruise Planners has achieved top producer status with every major cruise line.  Accolades include Royal Caribbean International Home-based Partner of the Year (2007 – 2009); Regent Seven Seas Top Producer (2009); and American Express Travel Representative Excellence Awards (2004 – 2009). For more general information, please visit www.cruiseplannersfranchise.com.