Initially considered at the ARDA conference last year, the Travel Club Task Force (TCTF) was formed at the C.A.R.E. 40th semi-annual conference in Daytona Beach, FL and has recently announced its strategic plan for adopting a code of standards and ethics.

Melanie Gring, Immediate Past President of C.A.R.E., is Chair of the Task Force. Members of the task force include representatives from C.A.R.E. member companies and its Board of Directors, led by Bonnie Kosco, Board President.

Explains Gring, �C.A.R.E. member companies and their representatives adhere to a stringent Code of Ethics. To protect the vacation experience for owners and the entire vacation industry, the C.A.R.E. Board of Directors agreed that it was important to establish a code of ethics for the travel club industry. We recognize that by �self-regulating� this important segment of our industry, we will have a more vocal voice with ARDA as well as state regulators. We also recognize that this segment of our industry may be regulated in the near future and we want to play a role in this process.�

Gring adds that establishing a code of ethics for the vacation travel club industry will go a long way in promoting ethical sales and business practices. �We believe this will ultimately result in generating industry, consumer and legislative goodwill.�

C.A.R.E. (Cooperative Association of Resort Exchangers) was originally formed by representatives from timeshare resorts who found that by exchanging vacation inventory among themselves, they were better able to satisfy their owners with increased vacation opportunities. Today, the C.A.R.E. member base of approximately 175 companies is comprised of resort developers, management firms, exchange organizations, travel clubs and resort service providers.

As the vacation industry evolved, C.A.R.E. (www.care-online.org) developed programs to assist diverse entities to increase revenue, fully utilize inventory and enhance owner/member vacation experiences. C.A.R.E. is an international organization with members in the US, Canada, Mexico, Europe and Australia offering over 2,500 vacation properties and service to over a million vacation owners and members.
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Contact:
Melanie Gring
817-847-8865