Choice Hotels and Steve Harvey Team Up Again to Change Young Lives

Choice Hotels increases its corporate match program to benefit the Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation

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Nov 23, 2015, 09:20 ET

Steve Harvey and Choice Hotels CEO Steve Joyce partner to support youth

ROCKVILLE, Md., Nov. 23, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH), one of the world's leading hotel companies and parent company of eleven hotel brands including Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Cambria hotels & suites, Sleep Inn and the Ascend Hotel Collection, is, once again, elevating its support of charitable works by celebrity entertainer and philanthropist Steve Harvey by raising funds to support youth initiatives run by The Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation. In the second year of its fundraising program, Choice Hotels has increased its annual corporate matching commitment from $50,000 to $75,000.

This increase is based on the immediate success of the donation program in its inaugural year in 2014 when Choice Hotels launched fundraising efforts through its loyalty rewards program, Choice Privileges. Members were given the opportunity to donate points to be redeemed for cash to benefit The Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation which Choice Hotels would match up to $50,000 annually. Within the first six weeks, Choice Privileges' generous members reached the $50,000 benchmark and Choice Hotels presented a check to Steve Harvey for $100,000. This year, the company has increased the ante by raising the annual match to $75,000 with hopes of contributing a total annual donation amount of at least $150,000.

"Choice Hotels has proudly supported the Steve Harvey Mentoring Program for Young Men since its beginnings in 2009 by donating hotel rooms and breakfasts for volunteers and the mothers of attendees. We wanted to deepen our commitment, but had no idea what was in store," said Steve Joyce, president and CEO of Choice Hotels International. "The company developed a fundraising program through which our Choice Privileges loyalty members could donate points which we redeemed for cash and then matched up to $50,000 a year. Within six weeks our generous members maxed out our corporate match and Choice was cutting a check to The Steve and Marjorie Harvey Foundation for $100,000! The selflessness of our members moved me and I knew we had to do more this year. So we kicked it up a notch."

The funds raised during the campaign will be dedicated to helping young men and women, who largely hail from inner-cities and single parent families, through programs such as the Steve Harvey Mentoring Camp for Young Men – an annual camp which provides educational and mentoring opportunities to young men from fatherless homes. Choice Hotels President and CEO Steve Joyce shared the company's renewed commitment and $75,000 annual corporate match with Steve Harvey on Friday, November 20 on the multi-Emmy Award winning Steve Harvey Show and on the top-rated nationally syndicated radio program The Steve Harvey Morning Show. Watch the television announcement by clicking here. Listen to the radio segment here.

"Steve Joyce and Choice Hotels are helping to change the course of so many young lives. We have moms here doing the best that they can on their own and boys who could otherwise end up on the streets, or worse," said Steve Harvey. "Every year Steve Joyce takes the time to come to camp to personally sit down, fish with and mentor these young men. More companies and corporate leadership should follow Steve and Choice's lead. They're not just providing food and shelter or funding plane tickets. They're giving these boys a fighting chance to do something extraordinary with their lives."

The more than 24 million members of Choice Hotels' Choice Privileges loyalty program can donate their points to be redeemed for dollars that will go to The Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation. For every point contributed, Choice Hotels will match with a monetary gift, up to $75,000 annually, for a total donation of $150,000.

Those who are not yet Choice Privileges members can also give through a special program that runs until March 31, 2016. Upon joining, new members will automatically receive 500 bonus points and Choice Hotels will make a 500 point donation to The Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation for every new member who enrolls by March 31, 2016. Contributions can be made and more information can be found at www.choicehotels.com/steveharvey.

Since the Mentoring Program's inaugural year in 2009, Choice Hotels has been The Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation's largest in-kind sponsor, donating hundreds of room nights to help provide the hard-working single mothers of camp attendees, mentors and camp volunteers comfortable accommodations, free hot breakfast and Wi-Fi in nearby hotels while the young male mentees experienced nature by bunking with U.S. Army mentors in more rustic accommodations.

Held at the Harvey family ranch outside of Dallas since its inception in 2009, the Steve Harvey Mentoring Program for Young Men will move to Camp Grace in 2016, a beautiful retreat facility roughly 90 minutes outside of Atlanta, GA.

Choice Privileges has more than 24 million loyalty members worldwide. In addition to The Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation, Choice Privileges members have a generous record of giving to various charitable causes, including the American Red Cross, Rebuilding Together, Polaris and veterans groups.

About The Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation
The mission of The Steve & Marjorie Harvey Foundation is to provide outreach to fatherless children and young adults by promoting educational enrichment, one-on-one mentoring and global service initiatives that will cultivate the next generation of responsible leaders. Two cornerstone programs include The Steve Harvey Mentoring program for Young Men, which mentors young men who are without fathers, and The Girls Who Rule The World Mentoring Weekend. For more information about The Steve Harvey Mentoring Program for Young Men, The Girls Who Rule The World Mentoring Weekend or to make a donation, please visit www.smharveyfoundation.org.

About Choice Hotels
Choice Hotels International, Inc.^® (NYSE: CHH) is one of the world's largest lodging companies. With more than 6,300 hotels franchised in more than 35 countries and territories, we represent more than 500,000 rooms around the globe. As of September 30, 2015, 638 hotels were in our development pipeline. Our company's Ascend Hotel Collection^®, Cambria® hotels & suites, Comfort Inn^®, Comfort Suites^®, Sleep Inn^®, Quality^®, Clarion^®, MainStay Suites^®, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel^®, Econo Lodge^® and Rodeway Inn^® brands provide a spectrum of lodging choices to meet guests' needs. With more than 24 million members and counting, check out our Choice Privileges® rewards program to see how you can reap the benefits of being a member of the Choice Hotels^® family. Visit us at www.choicehotels.com for more information. All hotels are individually owned and operated.