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Holland America Group mourns Mona Ehrenreich

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A celebration of life for Mona Ehrenreich is set for Jan. 5 in Los Angeles
General counsel Mona Ehrenreich, a longtime and highly respected senior executive with Princess Cruises/Holland America Group, died Saturday after a lengthy battle with cancer.

'Competent and fabulous' is how Holland America Group and Carnival UK CEO Stein Kruse described Ehrenreich, adding that she was well-known and highly respected within the company, in Carnival Corp. & plc and across the industry, and will be 'dearly missed.'

Ehrenreich's contributions to Princess and then Holland America Group over the last 25 years are 'immeasurable,' according to Jan Swartz, group president, Princess Cruises and Carnival Australia.

Ehrenreich provided counsel across the entire spectrum of the business, from newbuild orders to commercial terms and employee contracts, through to ship disposals. In addition to leading the legal and risk management team, she oversaw union negotiations and relationships, contributed to international legislative and governmental affairs and served as a director of the Princess Cruises Community Foundation.

In a memo to employees, Swartz and Kruse noted that while many major initiatives would not have been as successful without Ehrenreich's skill as an attorney, 'her good humor and leadership in alignment with our core values were the true mark of her success.' They added: 'Mona was a friend, mentor, confidant and counselor to many colleagues across the company, both ashore and at sea. She was often the first phone call for trusted advice for so many of us.'

Ehrenreich helped to start the in-house legal department at Princess when she joined the company in 1993. She was appointed VP legal affairs in 1996, and promoted to SVP and general counsel of Princess in 2000 and for all of Holland America Group in 2014.

Before joining Princess, Ehrenreich practiced law with the international firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, where she handled a large amount of Princess litigation. She also worked with art gallery and retailer Martin Lawrence Limited Editions.

She graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, where she studied political science and history, and the McGeorge School of Law, and was a member of the Attorney Settlement Panel for the Central District of California. Her charitable work included sitting on the board of US Vets and the Library Foundation of Los Angeles.

A few years ago Ehrenreich blogged for Princess.com about sailing to Scandinavia and Russia in an extended family group including her then-adolescent daughter and son, and detailed the marvels and drama of St. Petersburg's history.

'I have always loved to study history, so one of my travel goals is to share with my children places that have been important to the world’s social and political development—sometimes to their dismay,' she quipped. 'I’m convinced they’ll thank me someday.'

Ehrenreich is survived by her husband Bob, daughter Andie, son Matt and her mother.

A celebration of life is set for 7:30 p.m. Jan. 5 at the Skirball Center, 2701 N. Sepulveda Blvd. (just off I-405 in the Sepulveda Pass), Los Angeles. Parking is in the north lot.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Ehrenreich's memory to any breast cancer research organization including HeritX at www.heritx.org, co-founded by a close friend, Joi Morris, or to the Library Foundation of Los Angeles.