Previous Page

Nonprofit Partners with Rotary Club to Develop Pilot Safe Haven Program for Young Travelers

June 2005 – The Alyson Ilene Kaplan Foundation (AIKF) is proud to announce a strategic partnership with the Greater Crofton Rotary Club in Maryland, District 7620. Rotary is a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world. Together, AIKF and Greater Crofton Rotary Club will work to develop emergency assistance networks for young travelers in the United States and abroad.

An important project of AIKF is the establishment of Global Safe Haven Network (GSHN), which will consist of easily identifiable safe havens – such as hotel, fast-food, restaurant, and rental car chains – where young travelers can go if they find themselves in distress. At these safe havens, travelers will have access to GSHN’s emergency hotline, which will provide them with immediate and comprehensive information related to their crisis, ranging from medical issues, transportation failure, separation from travel groups or partners, to the need for emergency funds. “In essence, GSHN gives travelers a chance to make an informed choice,” explained Founder Donald Kaplan, “and provides a secure environment in which to do so.”

The Greater Crofton Rotary Club will support the mission of GSHN by advancing the pilot program for safe haven locations. Beginning in Maryland (District 7620), Rotary will establish safe havens in member businesses, and, from there, expand the number of locations and services offered to compliment GSHN’s growth. Greater Crofton Club members are positioning GSHN as its service program priority and are actively campaigning locally, regionally, and nationally to have GSHN adopted as a service program for Rotary International. “Rotary’s global reach and commitment to community and international service needs fit perfectly with the goals of the GSHN,” says distinguished member and Rotary Club President Tom Locke, “we are excited to be support this timely and important cause for young people.”

###

About Alyson Ilene Kaplan Foundation
Global Safe Haven Network, a project of the Alyson Ilene Kaplan Foundation was established in loving memory of Alyson Kaplan, a twenty-year-old college student, who became stranded in England when a winter storm interrupted her travel itinerary. Lost in an area outside of London wholly unfamiliar to her, Alyson sought aid from someone she met at a train station, and thought she could trust, who later murdered her. Her parents, Donald and Ilene Kaplan, have created the Alyson Ilene Kaplan Foundation (AIKF) and dedicated it to reducing the risks associated with travel through extensive education and protective resources for young travelers.

About Rotary International
Rotary is a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations, and helps build goodwill and peace in the world. Approximately 1.2 million Rotarians belong to more than 31,000 Rotary clubs located in 166 countries. The mission of Rotary International is to support its member clubs in fulfilling the object of Rotary by: fostering unity among member clubs; strengthening and expanding Rotary around the world; communicating worldwide the work of Rotary; and providing a system of international administration.