Save Lives Today! Give the Gift of Miles

If you would like to partner with US Airways and Mercy Medical Airlift (MMA) to provide patients in need with charitable flights to distant, specialized medical facilities, we welcome you to the world of doing good.

Here’s one patient who has benefited from the gift of miles.

Armondre, age 12, suffers from brittle bone disease, a rare and painful disorder. For two years, he traveled with his mother on a train from their home in North Carolina to Montreal, Canada, for treatment at the Shriners Children’s Hospital. The long, two-day trip was “scary” and painful for Armondre, said his mother, Crystal. But the treatment isn’t available in the United States, so the trip was necessary. Fortunately, Crystal found MMA on the Internet, and MMA has been arranging flights for several years using US Airways miles.

How it works

US Airways allows Dividend Miles members to donate miles to MMA in 1,000-mile increments. The company will match 1,000 miles, up to 25,000 miles, for every 5,000 miles donated to MMA.

To give to the Miles of Hope campaign, visit the US Airways website and designate y our donation to Mercy Medical Airlift. You’ll need to have your account number and password. Or, if you prefer, you can download this form, fill it out and mail it to MMA at 4620 Haygood Road, Suite 1, Virginia Beach, VA 23455.

The campaign ends on May 7, so please act now. And be sure to tell your friends and family.

Thank you for caring.

QUESTIONS? CALL MMA AT 757-318-9174.

A Red-Letter Day for Tennessee Couple

By Jenny Fields, MMA Volunteer Correspondent

In March of 2010 John D. of Dandridge, Tennessee, visited his primary physician with complaints of shortness of breath and fatigue. Following a wide range of tests, his doctor gave him the news that neither he nor his wife, Cindi, wanted to hear. John has acute myelocytic leukemia and is also suffering from hemochromatosis of the liver. He was referred to oncology and underwent chemotherapy for 13 months. In addition to therapy and medications, John has been given several blood transfusions.

In an effort to raise John’s blood count high enough to prepare him for a bone marrow transplant, John and Cindi spent two months at Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville. All efforts were unsuccessful, and they returned home. John’s physician then recommended a consultation with doctors at Dana Farber Hospital at Harvard University in Boston. Cindi spoke with their insurance company and was given a listing of nonprofit organizations that might be able to help them afford the trip.

January 20, 2012 was a red-letter day for the couple. Cindi spoke with Cathy Kelly at Mercy Medical Airlift, and the rest is history, very nice history. Cathy was able to arrange air transportation from Knoxville to Boston via Detroit on Delta Airlines. Naturally, John and Cindi were awestruck that this kind of generosity was possible and coming their way. Cathy arranged for an attendant with a wheelchair to meet them upon arrival in Detroit for the long walk to their next departure gate. Cindi expressed her gratitude for the kindness and the professional manner in which they were treated. She wants everyone to know how blessed she and John feel because of their association with Mercy Medical Airlift.

I would be remiss in my reporting if I failed to mention that Cindi is her husband’s caregiver, seeing to his nutrition and focusing her attention on his full recovery. She is one driven woman—and all this in light of the fact that she underwent major cardiac surgery in October 2011.

Update: John is currently enjoying a remission. He has worked for Bass Pro Shops for several years, and the company has been very good to him and supportive through his ordeal. The firm has allowed John to return to work four hours a week. Mercy Medical Airlift wishes this remarkable couple a bright and healthy future.

US Airways Miles of Hope Program

Help us help patients in need of distant transportation by donating to the US Airways Miles of Hope Program. Click on the US Airways link below and donate to Mercy Medical Airlift.