Glen Cove Mansion and BenchMark Host Students

The Great Gatsby Comes Alive for Students of Washington Irving High

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. October 14, 2008

GLEN COVE, NY, November 22, 2006. Glen Cove Mansion Hotel, the landmark Georgian estate located on Long Island's historic Gold Coast and once the country residence of the renowned Pratt family (Standard Oil), recently welcomed thirty two 11th grade students from Washington Irving High School in Manhattan. Drawing on its legendary heritage, Glen Cove Mansion had introduced The Great Gatsby weekend package in August. The Long Island Gold Coast was the setting for the literary classic by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

The students' literature teacher, Christina Martini, learned of The Great Gatsby package and contacted Glen Cove Mansion, indicating the class was currently reading Fitzgerald's classic novel. To help the students develop a greater understanding of the setting and period for the novel, Ms. Martini inquired about a visit to Glen Cove Mansion by her students, which the property's general manager Sean McLaughlin warmly embraced.

"This was so exciting for all of us at Glen Cove Mansion," said Mr. McLaughlin. "We're passionate about education, reading and literacy and were thrilled to have the students visit the Mansion and the Gold Coast to develop a better understanding of this classic American novel."

Every year the management company of Glen Cove Mansion, Benchmark Hospitality International, supports a special "Hometown Hospitality Caring for Our Communities" initiative. Interestingly, for 2006 Benchmark's Founder & Chairman, Burt Caba~nas, selected literacy, encouraging the 30 + properties within the company's portfolio to champion programs promoting reading in their communities.

"When Ms. Martini contacted us," continued McLaughlin, "we were so pleased to welcome her students and help make the novel The Great Gatsby come alive for them. This is what reading can do ... stimulate further learning, curiosity and discovery."

The students from Washington Irving High arrived by rail to the historic Glen Cove Train Station -- the same one made famous by Audrey Hepburn in the classic motion picture Sabrina. (Glen Cove Mansion is located on Dosoris Lane, also made famous in Sabrina, so the students were able to experience this part of the Gold Coast history as well).

When at Glen Cove Mansion, the class was treated to an historical tour of the grand house and the acres of manicured lawns and gardens. Room after architecturally intact room helped transport the students back to the Gilded Age and the Roaring 20s - the historical setting for The Great Gatsby. Jay Gatsby himself could have roamed similar spaces and have ascended with elegance the Mansion's baronial double staircase once leading to the family's private suites and bedchambers. Through the French balcony doors of the Pratt suite, the group was able to steal a glance as Gatsby might have at the original family swimming pool with classic scalloped edges and surrounded by boxwoods. From the third floor, the students caught glimpses of Long Island Sound.

Following their immersion into the world of Jay Gatsby, Old Sport, Daisy and the historic Long Island Gold Coast, the students enjoyed luncheon together in the elegant Garden Room at the Mansion overlooking an English Garden, later returning to school in Manhattan.

The award-winning Glen Cove Mansion Hotel is situated on 55 secluded and landscaped acres on Long Island's historic Gold Coast, 30 minutes from New York City, JFK International and LaGuardia Airports. The spacious Georgian-style mansion features stunning vistas of Long Island Sound and was once part of a prestigious collection of gracious country estates, later becoming one of the nation's first dedicated conference center hotels. Today the elegant property features 196 richly appointed guestrooms, including four suites, the Garden Room Restaurant with magnificent views of the terraces, a large and comfortable pub, private dining rooms ideal for social and corporate occasions, as well as vast outdoor reception areas overlooking the mansion's Gilded Age gardens. The property offers 25,000 square feet of event and meeting space, with 27 dedicated conference rooms accommodating from 10 to 280 guests, advanced meeting technology, an executive business center and conference concierge services. Wireless Internet access is available throughout. Also provided are complete fitness and recreational facilities, including a sauna, steam and massage rooms, indoor swimming pool and whirlpool, garden swimming pool, racquetball courts, bowling alley, lighted tennis courts, jogging trail and a sports field. Golf is available nearby. Ideal for executive retreats, corporate meetings and social gathering, the Glen Cove Mansion is masterfully designed to integrate gracious accommodations, superb cuisine and attentive service with contemporary comforts and the latest technology. For more information on the Glen Cove Mansion Hotel, visit www.glencovemansion.com.

The "Hometown Hospitality - Caring For Our Communities" program of Benchmark Hospitality International advances the philanthropic endeavors of the leading hospitality management company through employee volunteer programs, in-kind donations and community outreach activities. Benchmark believes that responsible corporate citizenship recognizes the inalienable link between a healthy and vibrant community and the health and well being of a company and its employees. Hometown Hospitality - Caring for Our Communities encourages and enables Benchmark employees globally to seek leading roles in the communities in which they live and work and the world community as well by supporting social, educational, and cultural programs, either through property-developed initiatives or through partnering with existing services.