SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA—April 22, 2013 - Martin Resorts, a San Luis Obispo County-based collection of boutique hotels has a green way of thinking about used guest room soap and shampoo. Such bath amenities are recycled rather than tossed out after one use.  Partnering with Orlando-based social enterprise Clean the World (www.cleantheworld.org), the hotel employees collect and recycle soap, shampoos, conditioners, lotions and gels to help fight the global spread of preventable diseases.

The soaps collected by Avila Lighthouse Suites, Pismo Lighthouse Suites, Shelter Cove Lodge, Shore Cliff Lodge and Paso Robles Inn are shipped to Clean the World for recycling and distribution to communities and countries in greatest need through the efforts of Clean the World Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization.  Pismo Lighthouse Suites was the first hotel in San Luis Obispo County to begin the practice.

To date, Martin Resorts has collected 5,682 pounds of materials, which produced 22,614 new bars of soap to be distributed to children and families in need all over the world, while diverting 5,138 pounds of waste from local landfills.

Clean the World is the largest global recycler of hotel amenities. In just three years of operation the charitable and philanthropic Clean the World Foundation has distributed more than 11 million bars of soap to children and families in the United States, Haiti and more than 55 countries worldwide.  Each day 9,000 children around the world die from diseases such as acute respiratory illness and diarrheal diseases that can be prevented by washing with bar soap. Clean the World has a mission to put soap in the hands of people who need it most to improve hygiene and sanitation conditions.

"Knowing we should find a way to recycle our used soap products is a common discussion in the hotel industry.  But having a partner to work with to convert our goods to soap and deliver them worldwide gives us the missing piece," said Margaret Johnson, COO of Martin Resorts.

The Clean The World partnership fits with the company's green initiatives and sustainability practices, Johnson said.  Martin Resorts is also involved with EcoSlo, a local non-profit company which organizes an annual Coastal Cleanup, (this year scheduled for September 21) and uses social media to inform incoming guests who may want to participate.  The Paso Robles Inn has given up some of its manicured garden setting for a sizable organic garden, with the goal of serving house-grown items daily at the hotel's main dining room, and allowing guests to pick ripe fruit and vegetables for themselves.

Ms. Johnson hopes that Earth Day can be a motivator for hotels to get involved with Clean the World.  Clean the World has partnered with over 1,500 hotel properties in North America to provide soaps and bottled amenities to people in need. While doing so, the organization has also fulfilled a valuable environmental mission by diverting an estimated 2.2 million lbs. (1,125 tons) of hotel waste from polluting landfills in the United States and Canada.

"Our hotel partners are the driving forces behind our global hygiene revolution," says Shawn Seipler, CEO at Clean the World. "By making a commitment to sustainable, socially responsible programs in the hospitality industry, partners such as Martin Resorts on California's Central Coast are using the leftover resources of soaps and bottled amenities to help save lives."

Clean the World Foundation has a mission to provide soap where needed to help improve hygiene and sanitation conditions, to lessen the impact of disease, and to promote better hygiene and living conditions worldwide.

About Martin Resorts, Inc.

From oceanfront hotels in the popular beach towns of Pismo Beach and Avila Beach to an historic garden inn located in the heart of Paso Robles wine country, each Martin Resorts hotel is a unique experience for California weekend getaways, family vacations, and business meetings, when companies want to meet halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. California's best beaches, breathtaking ocean views and stunning sunsets, exceptional golf, an abundant wine country and farm-to-fork dining experiences, and historic Hearst Castle are within easy reach.  For more information and hotel reservations, visit www.MartinResorts.com.

About Clean the World Foundation, Inc.
Clean the World Foundation Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) charitable organization. The Foundation executes its mission of saving millions of lives around the globe by leading a global hygiene revolution to distribute recycled soap and hygiene products to children and families suffering from high death rates due to the top two killers of children worldwide - acute respiratory infection (pneumonia) and diarrheal diseases (cholera). For more information visit: www.cleantheworld.org.  Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for more updates on how you can help save lives with soap.

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Press Contacts:  Susan Wilson, Publicist, 602-996-4242, susanwilson129@gmail.com

Chantal Lavoux-Guy, Director of Sales and Marketing, 805-547-2711, chantalL@martinresorts.com

Shawn Seiper, Clean the World, 1+407-574-8353 ext. 111, sseipler@cleantheworld.org