Southwest Airlines Donates $300,000 In Travel To Help Make-A-Wish Foundation

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Southwest Airlines Donates $300,000 In Travel To Help Make-A-Wish Foundation By Daniel Baxter

		January 31, 2011 - Southwest Airlines has contributed $300,000 in travel to the Make-A-Wish Foundation thanks to Southwest customers who participated in a Facebook Places promotion. The donation will assist the Make-A-Wish Foundation in granting the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions ? nearly 70 percent of its wishes include travel to the children?s wish destination. ?Providing complimentary travel to the Make-A-Wish Foundation is a natural extension of our company?s commitment to families facing serious illness,? said Linda Rutherford, Southwest Airlines Vice President of Communication and Strategic Outreach. ?Often, these children are burdened with worry and circumstances that many of us will never experience in a lifetime, and we are proud to support the Foundation?s mission to grant the wishes of these brave kids.?

The donation was generated by an alliance between Facebook Places and Southwest Airlines. Through the alliance, Southwest Airlines offered the Make-A-Wish Foundation $1 in travel each time a customer used Facebook Places to check in at any of Southwest Airlines' 69 airports from Nov. 26-Jan. 8. ?This unique alliance was a great way to engage Southwest customers by providing them the opportunity to support children with life-threatening medical conditions who travel for their wishes,? said David Williams, Make-A-Wish Foundation of America president and chief executive officer. ?We thank Southwest Airlines and its customers in helping us provide a critical need for our wish-granting efforts and bringing much-needed joy to wish families.? The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a non-profit organization in the United States that grants wishes to children (2.5 years to 18 years old) who have life-threatening medical conditions. David A. Williams is the current president and CEO of the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He was appointed to this position in 2005. Williams graduated from the Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania with a BBA and later attended at the University of Houston (Bauer College of Business), where he earned an MBA. Williams grew up Pennsylvania and moved to Houston, Texas after graduating college to work for Shell Oil Company. In Houston, he earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Houston. He worked for Shell for two years before going into the non-profit sector.

		Williams began his work in the nonprofit sector by working on the board of the Houston Food Bank. He then worked for ten years at Habitat for Humanity International where he became the Chief Operating Officer. In July 2006 he was appointed to the Helping to Enhance the Livelihood of People (HELP) Around the Globe Commission by President George W. Bush Donating air miles is important because many wishes involve air travel. By donating your airline miles is also a great way to help grant wishes. By donating your airline miles you?re helping the Make-A-Wish Foundation grant travel wishes that require an estimated 2.5 billion airline miles yearly, for more information on donating your air miles. Other News Stories DOT Secretary Views On ?The Future of Aviation In America? Pilot Leaders From 7 US Airways Express Airlines Finalize Alliance Court Ruling Helps Preserve Access To Santa Monica Airport Lightspeed Aviation Provides $100,000 To Aviation Related Charities Hartsfield-Jackson Remains Busiest Airport In The World Aerobatic Single Place Folding Wing Aircraft Makes First Flight Boeing Receives $1.6B Contract For P-8A Poseidon Aircraft Proposed Change To Irish And UK Airspace Transition Altitude Jeppesen, India?s Jet Airways Sign 5 Year EFB Class 2 Contract EADS CEO Testifies Before SASC On The KC-X Competition Disclosure FAA Approves Croatia As Meeting International Aviation Standards Airbus A330 MRTT Performs ?Wet Contacts? With Two F-18 Fighters Canada?s DATS Receives AMO Certification On The SAAB 340 Aircraft The 5Th And Final Flight Test For The G650 Aircraft Took To The Skies Historic Aircraft Collection, Airport, And Endowment Donated To College Allegiant Air Flight Attendants Vote Yes Dispatchers No To Unionizing Horizon Air Retiring Its Public Brand, Adopting Alaska Airlines' Eskimo Cessna Hits Stride With Skycatcher Light Sport Aircraft Deliveries Eurofighter Typhoon Achieves 100,000 Flying Hours Dispute Could Cost Aer Lingus Airlines Over $500,000 A Day Boeing Begins Flight Testing UK Chinook MK4 Helicopter FAA Warns Pilots Of Part 23 Aircraft Stall Warning Indicators In Icing Conditions Improving Canada?s Air Transport Competitiveness MiG-29 Fighter Soars Over The Pacific Northwest LAN Airlines And TAM Airlines To Form Merger FAA Dedicates New Airport Traffic Control Tower For LaGuardia Airport NY Mexico Federal Police Receive Delivery On UH-60M Black Hawk Helicopters Rhode Island Man Pleads Guilty Lasering Flight On Approach To Green Airport