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TravelAge west magazine, the leading trade magazine for travel agents and the travel industry in the 14 western states, announced the 2010 Trendsetter awards as the feature article on the cover of the June 21, 2010 Issue. Among those honored, Marc R Kassouf and PRIDE Travel were awarded Best Community Service –runner up– for the second year in a row for their exemplary and continued contributions to the Center of Long Beach. The Center, which provides extensive community and health programs to the local and Gay and Lesbian community, has been the beneficiary of Marc's and PRIDE Travel's contributions individually and as a company for almost a decade. Contributions have helped the non-profit charitable organization raise in excess of $100,000 to supplement its budget enabling programs such as youth suicide prevention, health awareness and disease prevention, counseling and mentorship, elder-care, and numerous other local programs benefitting the community. When he received the nomination, Kassouf said "To even be nominated for this amazing award is an honor in itself", pointing out that "Winning would be a nice 'bonus'."

The trendsetter award for best community involvement was conferred at the black tie annual TravelAge West WAVE awards ceremony held June 10th at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills. The travel industry's top executives and experts were in attendance recognizing the best of the best in the industry. Accepting the award for PRIDE Travel was Marc Kassouf, its co-owner and CEO. Mr. Kassouf was quick to note that "although the award is awarded to one agent, the effort and contributions of PRIDE Travel's community service program is a partnership: most of the credit truly belongs to my co-owner, and manager Nathan DePetris, without whom none of this would have been possible." As a token of recognition, the award's sponsor GOGO Worldwide Vacations bestowed a five night stay for two at the Fairmont Mayakoba resort in Mexico's Yucatan peninsula. Samuel Nathan DePetris, COO of PRIDE Travel and long-time volunteer at the Center added "We are gratified that our efforts towards such a worthwhile program and organization are being considered for the award; we are once again deeply honored." Most recently, PRIDE Travel's continued support contributed to the success of the 'Mentoring Youth Through Empowerment' youth program which targets at-risk and suicidal gay children. Kassouf and PRIDE Travel's efforts directly supported the program which saved the lives of an estimated eight children this past year.

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