SPOKANE, Wash., May 22, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RLHC (Red Lion Hotels Corporation) (NYSE:RLH) today announced the company has joined forces with Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) in Baltimore to launch an innovative social responsibility project dedicated to raising awareness for homelessness in urban cities. Project Wake Up Call: Baltimore Uncovered is a fundraising campaign which uses raw, thought-provoking photographic artwork online to expose the hardships associated with living on the streets.
“Homelessness is an issue that affects every city in the country,” said RLHC President & CEO Greg Mount, who visualized the idea. “As we launch our new brand, we want to introduce ourselves as a concerned and engaged partner willing to leverage its resources for the good of the community. We're in the shelter business, so working to combat homelessness is as an organic extension of who we are as a company and as caring, hospitable individuals."
Project Wake Up Call, www.projectwakeupcall.com, is a fundraising website conceived by Mount, who was looking for an opportunity to make a positive impact on Baltimore with the opening of the company’s first ever Hotel RL location. The project is sponsored by Hotel RL, a new upscale brand unveiled in October 2014. Currently in the final stages of construction in the historic Keyser building, Hotel RL Baltimore Inner Harbor, 207 E. Redwood St., will open Aug. 1, 2015.
Baltimore is the first of many Project Wake Up Call initiatives planned. For the Baltimore launch, Hotel RL teamed up with photographer Ian Tong and Health Care for the Homeless, a local nonprofit health clinic devoted to ending homelessness by promoting affordable housing and providing quality health care for vulnerable individuals. Tong traversed Baltimore striking up conversations with individuals experiencing homelessness and documenting their living situation with his camera. The result is a series of photographs that presents a look at the most visible signs of homelessness in Baltimore.
Health Care for the Homeless (HCH) works to prevent and end homelessness for vulnerable individuals and families by providing quality, integrated health care and promoting access to affordable housing and sustainable incomes through direct service, advocacy and community engagement. In 2014, HCH served approximately 8,600 Baltimoreans during nearly 80,000 patient visits. For more information, visit their website at www.hchmd.org.
About RLHC:
Red Lion Hotels Corporation is a hospitality company primarily engaged in the franchising, management and ownership of upscale, midscale and economy hotels under the Hotel RL, Red Lion Hotel, Red Lion Inn & Suites, GuestHouse International and Settle Inn brands. Established in 1959, the company has 130 hotels system wide and also owns and operates an entertainment and event ticket distribution business. For more information, please visit the company's website at www.redlion.com.
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