World War Ii Destroyer Gets Ship-shape In Time For Veterans Day: A Landmark Salute To America's Service Men And Women

Hampton Save-A-Landmark® Program Puts All Hands on Deck to Help Preserve USS Laffey

CHARLESTON, S.C (Wednesday, November 08, 2006) - In the spirit of Veteran's Day, volunteers from the Hampton® brand's (www.hampton.com) Explore the Highway with Hampton Save-A-Landmark® program will pay tribute to all American service men and women on Wednesday, November 8, 2006 as they refurbish a piece of wartime history - the USS Laffey Destroyer, known as "the ship that wouldn't die." This prized World War II relic, the only surviving destroyer of its kind today and a National Historic Landmark, is retired at Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum in Charleston Harbor, S.C. Hampton's preservation efforts at this treasured American landmark will include extensive preparation work, careful paint application and polishing of World War II artillery in an estimated 75 hours of hard work by 25 volunteers from across South Carolina. The hotel chain will also donate $15,000 enabling Patriots Point to finish a new exhibit on the Laffey showcasing World War II era artifacts and helping to preserve its collection of historic articles.

"War-time landmarks such as the USS Laffey Destroyer are truly a piece of our nation's history," said Judy Christa-Cathey, vice-president of brand marketing for Hampton. "Through its preservation, we are working to ensure that future generations can learn from the legacies and sacrifices of all American service men and women."

After helping to bombard Utah Beach at Normandy in the D-Day landing on June 6, 1944, the Laffey was sent into the Pacific to fight in the battle of Iwo Jima - one of the most famous destroyer-kamikaze duels of World War II. The destroyer was hit several times, racked by explosions and fires, but the valiant efforts of the crew kept the ship afloat. As a result, Laffey earned five battle stars and a Presidential Unit Citation for its WWII service, and went on to receive two battle stars in the Korean War. The Laffey, the last Allen M. Sumner destroyer remaining today, now rests at Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum, one of the largest museums commemorating the War.

For those looking for other war-time landmarks in which to commemorate Veteran's Day, they can access Hampton's "Hidden Landmarks" database (www.hamptonlandmarks.com) of more than 1,000 other landmarks, such as:


Rosie the Riveter Memorial, Richmond, Calif.: This site makes the accomplishments and remembers the hardships of the women known as "Rosies," who worked in shipyards during WWII. More than 745 warships were produced at Shipyard No. 2. This is the first national memorial to honor and interpret American women's contributions to the WWII home front.
Iwo Jima Memorial, Newington, Conn.: More than 6,800 brave soldiers gave their lives at the historic battle of Iwo Jima. This statue honors all of them, especially the 100 soldiers from Connecticut.
Motts Military Museum, Columbus, Ohio: This museum preserves the memory of individuals who served in the United States Armed Forces. Each item displayed carries with it a personal story.
Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Shipyard, Concord, Calif.: Tragically, Port Chicago is best remembered as the site of a catastrophic explosion on July 17, 1944, that took the lives of 320 servicemen. Five thousand tons of munitions being loaded for transport to the Pacific detonated, launching a tower of fire and smoke two miles into the sky. Today, it is a National Memorial to honor the courage and commitment of service men and women and working civilians killed and injured in the largest homeland disaster during World War II.
Grissom Air Museum, Kokomo, Indiana: Covering aviation history from WWII through the Gulf War, visitors can learn about famous units like WWII's 305th Bomb Group.

From helping the 80-foot Blue Whale in Catoosa, Okla. to the historical National Monument to the Forefathers in Plymouth, Mass., the Hampton brand's Save-A-Landmark program has spent the past six years preserving historical, fun and cultural landmarks across the U.S. During this time, the program has helped research landmarks in need, promoted landmark sites and their importance, facilitated thousands of volunteer hours, donated hundreds of supplies and worked with matching grants - all at an investment of nearly $2 million. Banding its hotels together in communities across the U.S., Hampton employee-volunteers provide the labor while the Hampton corporate office provides the dollars to refurbish selected sites, sometimes up to five locations per year.

Hampton Hotels encourages submission of local treasures in need to its Save-A-Landmark program; nominations can be submitted online by clicking the Save-A-Landmark icon at www.hamptonlandmarks.com or by mailing recommendations c/o Save-A-Landmark to 8730 Sunset Blvd, Fifth Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

About Hampton Hotels
Hampton, which includes Hampton Inn and Hampton Inn & Suites hotels, is a mid-priced leader in the lodging segment. Hampton is part of Hilton Hotels Corporation, a leading global hospitality company with more than 2,800 hotels and 490,000 rooms in more than 80 countries, including 150,000 team members worldwide. The company owns, manages or franchises a hotel portfolio of some of the best known and most highly regarded hotel brands, including Hilton®, Conrad®, Coral by Hilton®, Doubletree®, Embassy Suites Hotels®, Hampton Inn®, Hampton Inn & Suites®, Hilton Garden Inn®, Hilton Grand Vacations™ , Homewood Suites by Hilton®, Scandic and The Waldorf=Astoria Collection™. The Hilton Family of Hotels adheres to founder Conrad Hilton's philosophy that, "It has been, and continues to be, our responsibility to fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality." The company put a name to its unique brand of service that has made it the best known and most highly regarded hotel company: be hospitable®. The philosophy is shared by all 10 brands in the Hilton Family of Hotels, and is the inspiration for its overarching message of kindness and generosity. Hilton Hotels Corporation's sponsorship of the U.S. Olympic Team will extend through the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing, China, and includes the 2008 U.S. Paralympic Team(s) and the 2007 U.S. Pan-Am Team. For more information about our company, please visit www.hiltonworldwide.com, and to learn more about our be hospitable philosophy, please visit www.behospitable.com.

CONTACT:
Monica Gaston/Tori Roberson
Hampton Brand Communications
(901) 374-5534

Dawn Verhulst/Kelly McAlearney
Cohn & Wolfe
(310) 967-2900

View all Hampton Inn/Hampton Inn & Suites Press Releases

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