Delta Honors Veterans with $350,000 Fisher House Gift and Airport
Celebration in D.C.
ATLANTA, Nov. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Delta Air Lines
(NYSE: DAL) today capped a three-day celebration of veterans with a
$350,000 gift to the Fisher House
Foundation at Reagan National Airport (DCA) in Washington, D.C. The airline kicked off its
military salute in Atlanta on
Friday, Nov. 9, with the dedication
of the "Spirit of Freedom," a Boeing 757 honoring men and women who
currently serve or have served in the U.S. Armed Forces, including
more than 10,000 Delta employees.
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Washington,
D.C.
Congressman John Kline, Minn., who serves on the House Armed
Services Committee and is chairman of the House Education and
Workforce Committee, joined Andrea
Newman, Delta's senior vice president – Government Affairs,
and Tad Hutcheson, Delta's vice
president – Community Affairs in presenting the gift to the Fisher
House today.
"Delta is a longstanding supporter of Fisher House, because we
strongly believe in their mission of providing, without charge, a
safe, comforting environment for families of service members during
their medical stay," said Newman. "On behalf of Delta's 80,000
employees, I want to personally thank Fisher House for the
tremendous work they do."
The gift will support veterans and families receiving treatment
at military medical centers. It comes in part from the Delta Sky
Club®, which donated 10 percent of proceeds from new memberships
purchased in July.
During today's gate celebration at DCA, Delta employees handed
out commemorative stickers to passengers in honor of Veterans Day.
Atlanta
On Friday, Nov. 9, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal, Delta CEO Richard Anderson, other military and elected
officials, and hundreds of employees gathered at Delta's Technical
Operations Center in Atlanta to
mark the christening of the "Spirit of Freedom," which now bears a
commemorative logo.
"At Delta, we have an obligation to support our employee
servicemen and servicewomen, our veterans and the millions of
others on active duty who fly with us each year," said Anderson.
"In honor of their brave acts of service, selflessness and
sacrifice, we are proud to dedicate this aircraft."
Delta's Veterans Employee Network collected letters and
coordinated care packages for service members stationed abroad
through a partnership with The Coca-Cola Company and the USO. Delta
flight attendants also collected more than 3,000 thank you letters
to send to those serving our country this Thanksgiving.
Delta and the U.S. Armed Forces
Delta's commitment to military service members extends
year-round across the travel experience and includes:
- Volunteer efforts at USO lounges across the U.S., including
contributing to the establishment of a permanent USO lounge in
Detroit Metropolitan Airport's McNamara Terminal;
- Operating more than 2,000 military charter flights in
2012;
- Donating millions of miles to military support organizations
like the Fisher House Foundation and USO;
- Recognizing military members in uniform by providing First
Class and BusinessElite® upgrades when seats are available, as well
as priority boarding and complimentary Delta Sky Club access
nationwide;
- The Delta Honor Guard, an employee-led group at more than a
dozen U.S. airports that administers flag ceremonies and uses
specially themed patriotic ground equipment to transport fallen
heroes returning home; and
- A pledge to hire more veterans by 2020 as part of its
participation in the 100,000 Jobs Mission.
In July, Delta accepted the Secretary of Defense Employer
Support Freedom Award for exceptional support of Guard and Reserve
employees. Delta is the first airline to receive the honor in a
decade.
About Fisher House Foundation
Fisher House Foundation is best known for the network of comfort
homes built on the grounds of major military and VA medical
centers. The Fisher Houses are 5,000 to 16,800 square-foot homes,
donated to the military and Department of Veterans Affairs, where
families can stay while a loved one is receiving treatment.
Additionally, the Foundation ensures that families of service men
and women wounded in Iraq or
Afghanistan are not burdened with
unnecessary expense during a time of crisis.
Located in close proximity to the medical center or hospital it
serves, each Fisher House consists of between 8 and 21 suites, with
private bedrooms and baths. Families share a common kitchen,
laundry facilities, spacious dining room and an inviting living
room with a library and toys for children. Fisher House Foundation
ensures that there is no fee to stay in a Fisher House. Since
inception, the program has saved military and veteran families an
estimated $192 million in out of
pocket costs for lodging and transportation.
Fisher House Foundation operates the Hero Miles Program, using
donated frequent flyer miles to bring family members to the bedside
of injured service members as well as the Hotels for Heroes program
using donated hotel points to allow family members to stay at
hotels near medical centers without charge. The Foundation
also manages a grant program that supports other military charities
and scholarship funds for military children, spouses and children
of fallen and disabled veterans.
About Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines serves more than 160 million customers each
year. During the past year, Delta was named domestic "Airline of
the Year" by the readers of Travel Weekly magazine, was
named the "Top Tech-Friendly U.S. Airline" by PCWorld magazine for
its innovation in technology, won the Business Travel News Annual
Airline Survey and was the recipient of 12 Executive Travel
Magazine Leading Edge Awards for U.S. airlines. With an
industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection
carriers offer service to nearly 313 destinations in 58 countries
on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs 80,000 employees
worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 700 aircraft.
A founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance, Delta
participates in the industry's leading trans-Atlantic joint venture
with Air France-KLM and Alitalia. Including its worldwide alliance
partners, Delta offers customers more than 13,000 daily flights,
with hubs in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Detroit, Memphis,
Minneapolis-St. Paul, New York-LaGuardia, New York-JFK,
Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City and Tokyo-Narita. The
airline's service includes the SkyMiles frequent flier program, a
world-class airline loyalty program; the award-winning
BusinessElite service; and more than 50 Delta Sky Clubs in airports
worldwide. Delta is investing more than $3
billion through 2013 in airport facilities and global
products, services and technology to enhance the customer
experience in the air and on the ground. Customers can check in for
flights, print boarding passes, check bags and review flight status
at delta.com.
SOURCE Delta Air Lines