Featured Image – Still from ACS Recap Video
October is ‘Breast Cancer Awareness Month’ and each year at CommutAir, we do our part to help the cause by supporting our employees through their independent Breast Cancer charity, C5forPink – but this year we had the honor of being called upon by the American Cancer Society to do a little more.
Kristi Greco, the Northeast Senior Development Director from the ACS, mobilized her local chapter “Hudson Valley Making Strides” in New York state. Together, they reached out to CommutAir with the intent of putting together a ‘plane-pulling’ event to raise money for breast cancer awareness…and needed a plane to do it!
A side effect of the COVID pandemic has been that self-health care has fallen by the wayside over the past eighteen months. Folks have been too worried about the effects of the virus and its overarching impact to be focused on their individual care. Cancer screenings are down thirty percent across the board (which includes self-screening and mammograms) and equates to much bigger issues in the long run. “Early detection saves lives,” Kristi explained, and she was looking for a big way to raise awareness and make an impact in her local community this October.
We were honored to be able to play a critical role for such a positive cause – and made arrangements for Captain John Secord and First Officer Dondi Stroma to take one of our ERJ145 aircraft and fly into the New York Stewart International Airport the day of the event. The turnout was a great success – with over two-hundred and fifty participants organizing into teams and working together to raise over forty thousand dollars!
As a United Express partner, our organization works to embody the “core4” values that have been set by United Airlines of “Safe, Caring, Dependable, and Efficient” in all that we do. We’re grateful to have had the opportunity to show up for the American Cancer Society, and all the volunteers who came out to support the cause and express how much we Care! Be sure to check out the epic recap video of the event – Looking forward to next year!
Additional Links:
American Cancer Society – Website, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook
“Hudson Valley Making Strides” – LinkedIn, Facebook
Photography – Zaro Celebrations, Instagram, Facebook