In announcing its nominations for the prestigious TrendSetters Award, industry magazine TravelAge West has nominated PRIDE Travel's S. Nathan DePetris in the category of Travel Agent SuperStar. The nomination marks the second category out of four that PRIDE Travel is being honored for at this year's gala ceremony; Marc R. Kassouf was previously named as a nominee in the Best Community Service Effort category.

DePetris is one of only two finalists being nominated and is already assured to win either the top TrendSetter SuperStar award, or the runner up award. Upon hearing of his nomination for the award, Mr. DePetris was "truly excited to learn that I'm being recognized for all my hard work…" He is delighted to be considered for such an honorable award, pointing out that "…I already feel like a winner!" The TrendSetter awards are slated to be conferred at the black tie annual TravelAge West WAVE awards ceremony being held mid-June at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills. The travel industry's top executives and experts will be in attendance recognizing the best of the best in the travel sector.

Mr. DePetris and PRIDE travel were nominated for their overall efforts as an agency and agent providing superlative service, forward-thinking innovation, and consistently hard work under unusual circumstances. One of the highlighted accomplishments that contributed to the nomination was Mr. DePetris' unfailing excellence in service and willingness to take on a challenging, late-booking group that was in tatters. By applying his skills and experience, DePetris re-energized the participants, streamlined the logistics, and provided memorable vacation experiences for the group. Further adding to the complexity was that the group involved musical celebrities, their friends, family and fans. Mr. DePetris took this all in stride, working with each of the participant's needs and striving provide the best service and a great vacation. Additional recognition and consideration for the nomination came from PRIDE Travel's and DePetris' innovative approach to how an agency should run. In addition to technological innovations, PRIDE Travel also aims to provide its clients a consultative approach to their travel planning before, during and after the trip. Whereas other agencies may focus solely on the 'before' portion and operate more as order takers, PRIDE Travel strives to deliver the expertise of its executives and staff throughout the process, thereby adding value from beginning to end.



TravelAge West is the leading trade magazine for travel agents and the travel industry in the 14

western states. Serving its 26,000 readers for 40 years, the biweekly magazine is a main source of news and product information for the region's agents and travel executives. TravelAge West is a part of Northstar Travel Media LLC, a worldwide provider of information, news and data for the travel and hospitality industry. In addition to TravelAge West and Family Getaways, Northstar's portfolio of directories, periodicals and destination information services includes Travel Weekly, Hotel and Travel Index Worldwide, BTP24, Official Meeting Facilities Guide, Intelliguide Corporate, STAR Service Online, Weissmann Reports, Meetings and Conventions, T&E and Travel Professional.



Pride Travel of Long Beach, California is a full service agency specializing in cruise, tour package, villa, and condo rentals. We also offer our community the full breadth of travel products and expertise. While we cater to the needs of Gays and Lesbians in the LGBTQ community, we are hetero friendly® and frequently book individuals, couples, and families with children on trips and vacations worldwide. Pride Travel is an award-winning agency that has been recognized for our active participation and contributions to our local and LGBTQ communities. We also hold numerous travel industry certifications and accreditations, as well as official certification by destination and country visitors' bureaus; we are active members and certified by the Travel Institute, the Cruise Line Industry Association, and the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association. Original travel articles and content is contributed regularly and distributed at our blog, http://blog.pride.travel.

PRIDE Travel's media page can be located at http://www.expertclick.com/19-3675. For more details about our credentials, please visit our website at www.pride.travel and click on About Us or contact Mr. Marc R. Kassouf, Owner & CEO, at 562.432.3888 or via email at media2@pride.travel. Pride Travel, Mr. Kassouf and Mr. S. Nathan DePetris, Owner & COO, welcome your inquiries regarding interviews, speaking engagements, and other media collaboration