OUR 39TH WEEKLY UPDATE REGARDING THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC, WITH AN UPDATE ON THE VACCINES, A PROFILE OF ANOTHER ONE OF OUR WONDERFUL STAFF MEMBERS, A GREAT HOLIDAY BONUS TO EACH AND EVERYONE ONE OF YOU, AND SOME WONDERFUL HOLIDAY ENTERTAINMENT FOR YOU TO ENJOY
FRIDAY, December 11
FROM CHRIS KRARAS
CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD
“TO TRAVEL IS TO LIVE!”
Dear Friends:
As always, we hope that the past week has been kind to you and has found you and all your friends and family staying safe from the terrible upsurge of the Coronavirus. We continue to see the number of positive tests go up all around the country, but as we had mentioned in the last few messages to you, help is on the way! Yes, the various vaccines that have been approved or are in the process of being approved, are being disseminated already in the United Kingdom. They are about to start giving these vaccinations here in the United States probably next week. How exciting this is for all of us and, certainly, for what we hope will be the answer to the prayers that we have offered for so many months now. Every indication everywhere points to the fact that these vaccines are effective and basically the side effects appear to be nonexistent or extremely minimal. Being 73 years old, I am looking forward to getting in that line within the next few weeks and getting my vaccine. I will keep you posted as to how it goes, but I expect it to be a basic non-event. So, our hopeful message for this week is that the vaccine is produced in such large numbers and disseminated so quickly that almost all of us who are reading this email today can hope to have the fear of Covid-19 behind us by the end of the first couple months of 2021.
So, we are in the middle of our Holiday Season and we are delighted to report to you once again that so many of our Groups are out there exploring the spectacular holiday packages that we offer. In particular, the Groups have been enjoying Wheeling, WV and its Festival of Lights, the tremendous show at the Sight & Sound Theater in Lancaster, and the great venues in the Smoky Mountains and Nashville, TN. There are many others, but these locations are where most people are gravitating to this year. We recently had a Group from Upstate New York return home from a trip to the Amishlands of Pennsylvania, where they not only enjoyed a performance of “Queen Esther” at Sight & Sound, but also the wonderful holiday show at the famous Dutch Apple Dinner Theater. Below is a picture of them and you will notice that all of them are faithfully wearing their masks and staying safe.
This Week’s Staff Profile
Mike White
Speaking about our various trips, it is time to also profile our featured White Star Staff Member, which this week is Mike White. Mike White is another wonderful fellow worker who has been with us for well over thirty years and has become an incredible confidant to so many Group Leaders around the country. Mike handles many different trips for our Company, such as Myrtle Beach, SC, Branson, MO, the Ark Encounter in Cincinnati & Kentucky, and also New York City. But, what Mike is known for mostly is his incredible knowledge in setting up Cruises for so many Group Leaders and Groups throughout the United States. Mike is truly a Cruise Specialist who is able to get the very best prices for our Groups and deliver the very best packages and, for that, our Group Leaders are always so appreciative. I mentioned that Mike has been with us for many, many years. His mother, Carol White, who so many Group Leaders have met on trips to Myrtle Beach and other locations, was one of my very first employees back in 1972. We thank Mike for his many years of wonderful dedication and caring to all our Group Members and look forward to many more years of working with him.
And now, I would like to take this opportunity to present a very special HOLIDAY BONUS to you as Group Leaders! As you know, we have been in contact with you over the past month or two as you schedule many trips for 2021. We certainly realize that there are some concerned Group Members who are not sure yet if and when they can travel. But, we know that with the vaccines that are out there, we will all be on the road by the second quarter of 2021. That being said, we are certainly appreciative of all of you for the many different reservations that you have in place. But, today we have something extra to add if you decide you would like to add still another trip for 2021. For any new reservation that you place with us between now and the end of the Year 2020, we will be giving an additional $300.00 rebate to you as the Group Leader for all your efforts. That’s right, if you pick out a trip that you have not booked previously and you place a reservation with us between now and the end of the year, in addition to the $200.00 rebate we always offer, you will get a second rebate check made payable to you in the amount of $300.00 (this extra rebate is for any trip of 3 or more nights). You have no risk, because if the trip does not materialize, it did not cost you anything and you don’t even have to send us any deposits at this time – just make the reservation. So, we hope you will take advantage of this incredible offer. This is one of the first times we have ever done something like this at White Star. We are so appreciative of all our Group Leaders and their hard work and we know this has been a difficult year, so we decided to do something special for you.
Now it is time for some good old holiday entertainment. We have three great pieces of holiday music and entertainment to enjoy. The first one features what is labeled as ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL CHRISTMAS SONGS and you can enjoy that wonderful song by clicking here. The second piece of music is an incredible rendition of the beautiful holiday song known as the CHRISTMAS CANNON. This is sure to bring chills to your spine as you hear these beautiful voices sing a very moving song by clicking here. The third piece of entertainment comes from Radio City Music Hall which, as you know, is unfortunately closed this year because of the pandemic. But, one of the most famous parts of their Christmas Show every year is the world famous Rockettes performing the PARADE OF THE WOODEN SOLDIERS. Click here and enjoy this incredible video that will certainly bring back memories.
So, my friends, that is about it for this week. I hope you enjoy reading these Weekly Updates that I have been presenting to you for so many long weeks. As the Year 2021 comes into view in only a couple more weeks, we pray that we will be able to go back to just joyous celebrations of travel and life in general. Enjoy the new week in good health and happiness and stay safe. For those celebrating the Holiday, HAPPY HANUKKAH! God Bless You All!
“WORK, TRAVEL, SAVE, REPEAT!”