Thomas O. Ryder, 63, retired as Chairman of the Board of The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. in January 2007, a position he had held since January 1, 2006. Mr. Ryder was Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer from April 1998 through December 31, 2005. Mr. Ryder was President, American Express Travel Related Services International, a division of American Express Company, which provides travel, financial and network services, from October 1995 to April 1998. In addition, he is a director of Amazon.com, Inc. Mr. Ryder has been a Director of the Company, and was a Trustee of the Trust since April 2001.