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**Funds Available to Assist DEMA Member Exhibitors and Buyers of DEMA Show 2017 **

The Diving Equipment & Marketing Association (DEMA) Executive Committee of the Board of Directors has approved the expansion of the Disaster Assistance Program, previously aiding those impacted by Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, to include DEMA-Member Show Exhibitors and Buyers impacted by the recent California Wildfires.

DEMA’s Disaster Assistance Program was first created in 2004 and has been used when DEMA-Member companies are impacted by natural disasters which may interfere with their ability to promote their businesses, products, services and destinations. As funds are limited, DEMA has earmarked them specifically for DEMA-Member companies who plan to exhibit or buy at DEMA Show 2017 and have been negatively impacted by these large storms. Funds will be provided to Exhibitors in the affected areas based on their exhibit size and to Buyers in the impacted areas who attend DEMA Show and stay in a DEMA block hotel.

Exhibitors from the areas indicated below are eligible to apply for the funds to help them exhibit at this year’s Show. Registered DEMA Member “Buyers” who plan to attend DEMA Show can also apply for funds to assist in covering hotel costs while staying onsite at DEMA Show. 

"DEMA’s Disaster Assistance Program funds are available to Member manufacturers, destinations and other industry-related entities to aid them in getting to and exhibiting at DEMA Show 2017,” said Tom Ingram, President and CEO of DEMA.  “Registered Buyers from DEMA Member businesses who are staying in the DEMA hotel block are also eligible for funds to assist in attending DEMA Show so they can buy the products and services they need to keep their businesses in operation.”

Exhibitor Assistance Program: DEMA’s Disaster Assistance Program funds are available to DEMA-Member Exhibitors who are fully paid by the close of business on October 6, 2017, and physically located in the following areas:

Impacted by California Wildfires:

• Butte County (Fire name: LaPorte Fire, Cherokee Fire, Honey Fire)
• Calaveras County (Fire name: Point Fire)
• El Dorado County (Fire name: Ice Fire)
• Lake County (Fire name: Ridge Fire, Sulphur Fire)
• Mendocino County (Fire name: Redwood Valley Fire)
• Napa County (Fire name: Tubbs Fire, Partrick Fire, Atlas Fire)
• Nevada County (Fire name: Lobo Fire, McCourtney Fire)
• Solano County (Fire name: Atlas Fire)
• Sonoma County (Fire name: Pocket Fire, Tubbs Fire, Pressley Fire, Adobe Fire, Nuns Fire, Norrbom Fire, 37 Fire)
• Yuba County (Fire name: Cascade Fire)

Impacted by Hurricane Harvey:

Counties in Texas:

Aransas, Austin, Bee, Calhoun, Chambers, Colorado, Brazoria, DeWitt, Fayette, Fort Bend, Galveston, Goliad, Gonzales, Harris, Jackson, Jefferson, Jim Wells, Karnes, Kleberg, Lavaca, Liberty, Live Oak, Matagorda, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Victoria, Waller, Wharton, and Wilson.

Parishes in Louisiana:

Allen, Acadia, Beauregard, Calcasieu, Cameron, Iberia, Jefferson Davis, Natchitoches, Rapides, Sabine, Vermilion, and Vernon.

Impacted by Hurricane Irma & Hurricane Maria:

• Alabama
• Anguilla
• Antigua
• Bahamas
• Barbuda
• British Virgin Islands
• Cabo Engano
• Cuba
• Culebra
• Dominica
• Dominican Republic
• Florida
• Georgia
• Guadeloupe
• Haiti
• Isla Saona
• Mole
• Montserrat
• Nevis
• Puerto Plata
• Puerto Rico
• Saba
• Sint Maarten
• South Carolina
• St. Barthelemy
• St. Eustatius
• St. Kitts
• St. Martin
• St. Nicholas
• Turks and Caicos Islands
• US Virgin Islands
• Vieques

For affected Exhibitors, for each 100 net square feet of exhibit space purchased and paid for by October 6, 2017, DEMA will provide regular Exhibitors with $US 400.00 in assistance.  Funds will be awarded onsite at DEMA Show 2017 to the exhibiting companies who apply and fall within the guidelines deeming them eligible for assistance. Funds are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis up to the maximum available from the DEMA disaster assistance fund. All interested parties must apply for the assistance funds on site at DEMA Show in Orlando, FL prior to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 4, 2017. 

Attendee Assistance Program:  DEMA Member Buyers who are registered for the Show and staying in the official DEMA Show hotel block (The Rosen Centre, Hilton Orlando or the Days Inn on International Drive) are eligible for reimbursement as follows; One registered Buyer from an attending DEMA Member business physically located in the aforementioned-affected areas can receive reimbursement for a one-night hotel stay(single occupancy) in the DEMA hotel block prior to midnight eastern time, November 3, 2017.

Buyers applying for assistance must provide a copy of the receipt for the DEMA Block hotel stay to the DEMA Office prior to close of business on December 1, 2017.   Funds are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis up to the maximum of the DEMA disaster assistance fund.  Exhibitors are not eligible for hotel reimbursement assistance under this program, but can receive Exhibitor Assistance as described above.

For more complete details and disbursement information and to obtain an assistance request form, visit DEMA Central in Booth #1371 at DEMA Show 2017 in Orlando, FL.