Navaeh with dolphin at SeaWorld.

Orlando remains a magical place – and not just for vacationing families looking to live it up in the area theme parks. Orlando is also a popular destination for families with children coping with life threatening health conditions.

One such family recently traveled to Florida with their beautiful young daughter, Nevaeh, who was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor last fall. While in Florida for medical treatments, they decided to make the short drive to Orlando for a visit to SeaWorld® Orlando. At SeaWorld, they enjoyed a private meet & greet with some dolphins. As an added bonus, the family also received an unexpected, complimentary stay at Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa.

Following is an exerpt from a message Nevaeh’s mother sent following their Orlando getaway:

“Thank you for thinking about her. She is a strong and confident girl and she will fight this battle. Nevaeh had a hard last 5 months and she did not have very many days she could enjoy, so to see her last Thursday loving every minute of her day and saying how happy she was, made Mike and I so happy. Thank you so much for all you did for our family that day. I wish you could have seen her face when we walked into our room that night, it was priceless. She thought it was her birthday…”

The family also posted a note on Nevaeh’s journal page at www.caringbridge.org that highlighted their stay at WestgateLakes.

The journal stated the resort “was nothing short of amazing! The room was like a fancy 3 bedroom apartment and the coolest thing was they had the whole place decorated in balloons and confetti, and princess crowns and jewelry, and they each got a present. If you could have seen the look on her face, PRICELESS!”

Navaeh enjoys SeaWorld with her family.

For more information or if you would like to donate toward Nevaeh’s health care costs, please register at www.caringbridge.org and follow her story at “NevaehBelker.”

That’s how long it has been since Westgate published its first issue of I Love Orlando magazine back in 1997. The popular magazine has been a premiere tool for Orlando visitors ever since.

In 1999, the magazine, filled withOrlando attraction information and discount coupons, was honored with a Craftsman’s Award for its Walt Disney World 2000 cover.

By 2001, I Love Orlando magazine continued it amazing growth by churning out its 5 millionth copy. The publication surpassed yet another milestone in 2005, passing the 10 million mark in copies circulated. That number jumped to 12.5 million in 2006 and 15.5 million in circulation by 2008.

In August 2007, Florida Magazine awarded I Love Orlando with a Silver Charlie Award in the category of “Best Visitor Publication.”  Today, the magazine continues to be widely available across the Orlando attractions scene, saving visitors hundreds of dollars a year on discount theme park, attraction and show tickets plus accommodations like Westgate Resorts.

Every owner had an opportunity to win by simply paying early. Those who paid by Oct. 4, 2011 received a 4% discount on their maintenance fee. Payments received by Nov. 1, 2011 received a 3% discount and payments received by Dec. 1, 2011 were discounted by 2%.

Owners who paid their entire assessment online by Jan. 2, 2012 were automatically entered into our special drawing.

2012 Maintenance and Tax/Use Fee Contest Winners

The following Westgate Owners have won 1 year of free maintenance and tax assessments. Winners were selected at random in a drawing of Owners who paid their entire Maintenance and Tax/Use Fee assessment by January 2 using our convenient online payment process at www.WestgateOwners.com.

One winner was selected from each of the following 25 Westgate Resorts properties:

Westgate Vacation Villas           Ronald B.                   Winchester, Ontario

Seasons Resort                                Paul B.                         Greene, ME

Club Orlando                                     StanleyP.                   Bogart, GA

WestgateLakes                                  Michael C.                 Mongaup Valley, NY

Westgate Towers                              Carlos Q.                    Kissimmee, FL

Westgate Daytona Beach               Antonio T.                Mascoutah, IL

Westgate Town Center                    Angelique M.           Berwyn, IL

Westgate Towers North                  Norman P.                 River Falls, WI

Westgate River Ranch                      Jennifer S.                 Pompano Beach, FL

Westgate Blue Tree Resort              Fred M.                      Waynesboro, VA

Westgate Palace                                    Jake N.                       Saint Louis, MO

Westgate South Beach                        Damani A.                 Ellenwood, GA

Westgate Smoky Mountain               Kenneth H                Smiths Grove, KY

Westgate Flamingo Bay                       John D.                      Cordova, TN

Westgate Historic Williamsburg       Delenia M                 Houston, TX

Westgate Park CityResort & Spa        Bryan L.                   Meridian, ID

RVS  at Orlando II, A Condo               Alexander C.          Feasterville-Trevose, PA

Westgate Myrtle Beach                          William B.                 Athens, WV

South Beach                                                 Stuart F.                    Ashland, OH

Westgate Branson Woods                     Charles H.                  Branson, MO

Branson Woods – Cedar Ridge            Ronald W.                 Grand Ledge, MI

Branson Woods – Loggers Point          Robert D.                   Waverly, NE

Roark at Emerald Pointe Condo           Donald C.                   Surprise, AZ

Grandvista Vacation Suites Tunica      Terry T.                     Collierville, TN

Painted Mountain Golf Villas Condo    Donald P.                  Kearney, NE

Timeshare and fractional industry professionals from around the world gathered for the Perspective Magazine Awards Gala at the Hacienda Tres Rios Resort in Riviera Maya, Mexico at the conclusion of GNEX 2012 – The Global Meeting Of Minds on Thursday, February 2, 2012.

The Perspective Magazine Awards program provides a global platform of recognition to industry professionals and companies from within the shared ownership industry and is the only awards program independently judged by both a panel of experts and industry peers. The awards recognize and celebrate the best products and services in vacation ownership worldwide.

In all, 42 winners were honored and presented with a beautiful crystal trophy during the gala. Winners were decided through a combination of online voting and a panel of four industry experts. Online voting took place during the month of January, with over 9,000 votes cast from industry professionals across the world. Approximately 150 nominees competed for the awards and the accompanying global recognition.

Westgate Park City Resort and Spa was honored as the Best Timeshare Unit – North America, one of five worldwide regions that also included Europe & Middle East, Asia Pacific, South Africa and Latin America.

The unique Westgate property was honored for its outstanding contributions to the sport of skeet shooting in the state ofFlorida.

With a new Trap machine and excellent facilities, Westgate’s Trap and Skeet shooting Range offers an exciting opportunity for guests to take aim on the range. Experienced shooters are welcome to bring their own rifle. Shooters must be at least 13 years of age and able to hold a gun without assistance.

The shooting range is just one of many great outdoor activities at the popular ranch. Other activities available to guests include a petting farm, horseback riding, a catch and release fishing pond, 9-hole golf course, dinner hayride and a full service marina providing pontoon rentals as well as exciting airboat and swamp buggy rides.

Every Saturday night, River Ranch features a sanctioned, championship rodeo in the resort’s 1,200 seat rodeo arena. Guests can experience the excitement of a real rodeo as cowboys show off their skills in trick riding, bull riding, calf roping, barrel racing. There are also plenty of rodeo clown antics and kids are invited into the rodeo arena at the end of the evening to participate in a “calf scramble.”

The flag, which has since become a symbol for POW/MIAs from all U.S. wars, is a powerful representation of the price America’s military heroes may pay for the good of our freedom. Congress also set aside the third Friday of September each year as National POW/MIA Recognition Day as a time to remember those missing soldiers who never came home.

Now the POW/MIA flag has been raised at Westgate Resorts as a sign of the company’s commitment to U.S. war veterans.

“As both a veteran and a proud American, I am honored to support the mission of Rolling Thunder, Inc.,” stated David Siegel, President and CEO of Westgate Resorts.

“We believe that it is our duty as a corporate citizen to support the veterans, POWs, MIAs and their families who have given so much for our country.”

On Jan. 14, 2012, Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa in Orlando hosted a POW-MIA Flag Raising Ceremony held by Rolling Thunder® Inc. Florida Chapters 1, 6 & 8.

The ceremony, which took place at the main entrance to Westgate Lakes, featured a color guard, singing of the National Anthem and several speakers including William (Bill) Arcuri, an ex-Viet Nam POW and Westgate Resorts Chief Operating Officer Mark Waltrip. The event culminated with the emotional raising of a POW-MIA flag.

The special event earned the heartfelt thanks of the Rolling Thunder and its Chapter 6 president, Kat Mc. “I want to thank each and every one of you for attending and making the Flag raising at Westgate Lakes Resort & Spa a success! With a special thank you to Mark Waltrip, Christopher Imperiale and all the Westgate employees for all their support. We recognize your commitment to our Veteran’s and look forward to working with you again,” stated Kat in a follow up thank you note.

Photos of the event can be found on the Rolling Thunder chapter’s Flickr page at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rolling_thunder_fl_6/

The flag raising ceremony marked the second major military event sponsored by Westgate Resorts over the last few months. The first, a Westgate Resort Military Appreciation Program, recognized the valiant U.S. military personnel involved in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and the War on Terror.

As a way of saying thank you for their dedication and service to our country, Westgate Resorts provided 1,000 free 3-day/2-night vacation packages to military personnel. The vacation giveaway was valid for stays at Westgate’s Orlando area resorts including Westgate Vacation Villas, Westgate Lakes, Westgate Town Center and Westgate Towers.

The popular free vacations were quickly snapped up during the first day of the promotion. Westgate Resorts continues to share its pride in the U.S. military by providing government and military employees a 10% discount off the best available rate.

It’s better to give than to receive.

So when the Wayne State University baseball team had an opportunity to give a little back, everyone came out a winner.

Wayne State is a public research university located in Detroit’s cultural center historic district. Founded in 1868, the university’s 13 schools and colleges offer more than 400 major subject areas to more than 32,000 undergrad and graduate students. Despite its size and prestige, Wayne State’s athletic program remains small due to limited funds and limited facilities.

David Hughes is an Area Manager with Westgate Resorts in Branson, MO and his son Logan is an assistant baseball coach at Wayne State. So when the Warriors were looking for assistance to send the WSU baseball team to central Florida last March to compete, the Westgate Resorts Foundation stepped in to help.

Westgate Resorts provided Wayne State’s baseball squad with accommodations in Orlando, allowing the Warriors an opportunity to compete in a spring tournament in central Florida. But after wrapping up its games, the team stayed on for a couple extra days to give back to the central Florida community.

Wayne State partnered with the Westgate Resorts Foundation to organize and provide free baseball camps for underprivileged and challenged young athletes in the Orlando area.

The team held camps for Special Olympics – Florida, the Weeks II Success Foundation (an Orlando-based group promoting academics and baseball to inner city youth), the South Orlando YMCA and the Pine Castle Little League over a two-day period. Wayne State players and coaches led clinics for the eager youngsters, focusing not just on baseball fundamentals, but teaching teamwork and academics, as well. The result was plenty of tips, smiles and laughs for all who participated.

The Warriors are set to return to central Florida again in March 2012. And once again, the Wayne State players and coaches will be ready to give back with more fun-filled skills camps for Orlando’s youth. Thanks to the Westgate Resorts Foundation, this program continues to provide a winning formula for all.

According to the organization, Pathways to Home, more than 1,700 Seminole County Public School students were homeless at the end of the 2010-11 school year.

When a congressional subcommittee meets in the Washington D.C. on Dec 15, they will hear from several homeless children from Central Florida including a brother and sister featured in the “60 Minutes” episode and two sisters from Seminole County.

Those sisters, Destiny Raynor, 15, and Kimberly Staton, 12, had been living in a cramped Budget Inn motel with their brother and parents for nearly two months after their parents closed two small businesses and lost their home to foreclosure. But that all recently changed, thanks to some assistance from Westgate Resorts.

Destiny and Kimberly’s parents were both offered jobs at Westgate Resorts in Orlando and the family was provided with an apartment at one of the Westgate properties.

The assistance from Westgate granted the sisters their one and only Christmas wish…a chance to be in a real house and to decorate their own Christmas tree.

The children appearing in Washington D.C. will be speaking before the Housing and Community Opportunity Subcommittee as it addresses H.R. 32, the Homeless Children and Youth Act of 2011.

Westgate employees remain the heart and soul behind the Westgate Foundation, helping with a wide range of charitable causes. That caring attitude was evident throughout October as we celebrated Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Employees from throughout the company organized events and participated in a number of fundraisers aimed to raise awareness in the fight against breast cancer.

Creative events occurred in corporate offices and throughout our resorts. These events ranged from dressing in pink in honor of breast cancer survivors toraffles andbake sales to participating in the “Making Strides Against Breast Cancer” walk-a-thon in downtown Orlando on Oct. 29.

The all around efforts resulted in the Westgate Resorts Foundation raising a total of $10,302.47 in donations toward the ongoing fight against breast cancer.

The mission of the Foundation is to actively support charitable activities in areas where Westgate employees live and work with an emphasis on employees, children, women, families, seniors and local programs that improve the quality of life.

At Westgate, we’re proud to serve our Owners and always eager to lend a helping hand for others.

That was the case recently when torrential rains caused flooding in many areas of the nation, including central Florida. In fact, the flooding made it impossible to reach Westgate’s River Ranch Resort by car.

On Wednesday, Oct. 12, the road to River Ranch was impassable and the resort grounds were swamped. But with a wedding and a family reunion scheduled at the Resort that weekend, Westgate employees jumped into action.

Working round the clock, the Westgate team overcame the flooding, got the Resort back into shape and ensured that both big events were successful and that everyone’s vacation dreams were realized.