Mother’s Day celebrates mothers and motherhood, and their influence in families and society. Many of our Give A Mile blogs demonstrate the strength of maternal and family bonds.
Sometimes the flight of compassion recipient is someone longing to be with a mother who has critical illness or is in palliative care. And sometimes it’s a mother herself who is awarded a flight.
Ana wrote to Give A Mile with a plea to help her get from Hamilton, ON to Calgary, AB in April 2021. Her daughter Brooke had fallen 5 floors from a balcony, shattered many bones in her body and was in hospital in Calgary with no family nearby. Financial constraints had prevented mother and daughter from seeing each other in person for 5 years and Ana was desperate to get across Canada. This was not a typical Give A Mile flight request, a palliation story, so it went to the Flight Review Team and was approved.
Brooke couldn’t believe I was there!
I couldn’t believe I was there!
I cried, out of happiness of course.
-Ana (pictured with daughter Brooke, right)
As Brooke was being wheeled back from tests in a Calgary hospital, she heard her Mother call her name. Almost completely immobile, she lifted her head and a smile came across her face. Ana was able to be with her daughter to provide comfort, special snacks, and new memories.
The 2021 Mother’s/Father’s Day Campaign premier sponsor is Bond Brand Loyalty Group whose slogan solving complex customer challenges is a perfect fit for Ana and her daughter Brooke, and many of the flight of compassion recipients situations.
Gifts of unused loyalty points (Aeroplan, Starwood, Marriott and Amex Rewards, etc.), and monetary or volunteer-time offerings are easily done through the Give A Mile website DONATE NOW page. These will help us make our target to raise funds and points for 10 flights of compassion, 10 Flight Heroes, and 250,000 loyalty points donated during 2021 Mother’s Day Campaign. Fully 100% of funds and points are applied to flights of compassion and related taxes/fees for specific flight stories or in the general pool to be applied against any flight.
Support the Give A Mile 2021 Mother’s/Father’s Day Campaign. Through your generous giving, help more loved ones create lasting memories or share final farewells. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube to see events and flight of compassion celebrations. A 100% volunteer-driven organization, Give A Mile could not work without the help of others. We will award as many flights as possible this year given the COVID protocols and travel restrictions.
