By Suzanne Rhodes

We’re pleased to report that the volunteer Pilots of the Year have been chosen for 2011 and wish each one our hearty congratulations. Of course, all our pilots are remarkable volunteers and all of them heroes. Each year our flight operations staff selects pilots who represent the highest levels of service in their states. Here are the honorees:

Cleve Benedict, of historic Lewisburg, West Virginia, is the Angel Flight Mid-Atlantic Pilot of the Year. He flew an extraordinary number of missions in 2011 in his Cessna 206. He has been flying for 60 years and says the opportunity to fly with Angel Flight is “a blessing on both sides, for patient and pilot.”

Cleve, who has been West Virginia’s Pilot of the Year for 10 consecutive years, gave up being a dairy farmer so he could devote more time to flying. He and his wife Ann are very active in community affairs.

Read an uplifting story about the Angel Flight of Maryland Pilot of the Year, Peter Winik that appeared in the Washington Post.

• Delaware—Dusty Carnahan
• Pennsylvania—Dan DeDona
• Tennessee*—Peter Serodino
• Virginia—John Billings
• West Virginia—Cleve Benedict
• Kentucky—Tony Schmidt
• Maryland—Peter Winik
• Michigan—Dick Lawrence
• *North Carolina—Kenny Hardin
• Ohio—Charlie Poll

(*In TN and NC, the volunteer pilot program is called Airlift Hope.)

[Photo depicts Angel Flight pilot Charlie Poll and his little buddy, Josh]

Joshua, 10, is an active and happy fifth-grader who does well in school and loves playing golf. In his short life Joshua and his family have faced a great many challenges and have been regular users of Angel Flight services.

As a result of rare congenital medical conditions known as Autosomal Recessive Polycystic Kidney Disease and Congenital Hepatic Fibrosis, Josh’s kidneys and liver have never worked properly.  He has cysts on his kidneys which result in impaired kidney function and hypertension controlled by medication. Josh’s liver is affected by fiber-like connective tissue which also causes bleeding in his esophagus. At some point, he will be a candidate for a transplant.

With all this going on, Josh must be seen frequently for specialized medical care in cities far from his Evansville, Indiana home. Approximately every four months he and his mom, Kim, make the trip to see liver and transplant specialists at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh. They are usually there for several days of tests and procedures. In addition to these trips, Joshua and his mother make quarterly trips to Birmingham, Alabama to see kidney specialists.

Kim learned about Angel Flight while sitting at a local softball game about two years ago. Since then Angel Flight has been helping Josh and Kim make their flights to Pittsburgh. Calling it a “true blessing,” Kim credits this assistance with cutting down substantially on their travel time and on the wear and tear on their family. The pilots– Charlie, Tony, David and Vince— have been wonderful. “They are fabulous, and I love all of them,” Kim enthused in a phone interview.

Kim reported is a full-time mom who substitute teaches when her son’s medical appointment schedule allows. Her husband, Tom, works in the golfing business in Santa Claus, Indiana – yes, there really is such a town! Joshua’s sister Victoria is 11 and also a golfer. Kim reports that managing Joshua’s medical issues is especially hard on Victoria. Earlier this year the whole family got to go on a golf vacation to Pebble Beach, California through Make a Wish Foundation. A dream fulfilled for a family of avid golfers!

Angel Flight stands ready to assist Josh and his family with future flights when needed, providing “the shortest distance between home and hope.”

GiveBackAmerica.com is an online shopping mall created to raise money for local and national charities. The concept is simple, every time you shop online from one of the participating retailers on GiveBackAmerica.com (ex. Target, Amazon, Walmart, Home Depot, Expedia, Staples); a percentage of each purchase goes to Angel Flight Mid-Atlantic. To begin raising money click here.

• Dave and John’s Remembrance Golf Tournament. This year’s golf charity to benefit Angel Flight, held at Newport News (Virginia) Golf Club at Deer Run on October 22, exceeded last year’s record donation of $8,500. The hard-working committee, spearheaded by Joel Carrillo, raised $11,985. After the tournament, participants gathered at RJ’s Sports Pub and Restaurant where they were treated to a buffet luncheon followed by award presentations and a live auction. You’ve earned your halos, and we are so very grateful for this gift.
• Exxon Mobil Corporation. ExxonMobil Employees’ Favorite Charities Campaign and Exxon Mobil Corporation work together each year to support local health and human services organizations and have again funded Angel Flight with a grant of $1,741 that represents donations from employees that are matched by the corporation. We appreciate the benevolence of a big business with big-hearted employees!

Steve raised over $2,200 by attracting sponsors in his run for Angel Flight. Thanks, Steve, for running the race for the patients who rely on Angel Flight for travel to distant, specialized medical care.

Hambrecht is a member of a committee that has been working hard for the past several months planning the Third Annual Dave and John’s Remembrance Golf Tournament. This will be on October 1 at Deer Run Golf Course in Newport News. It’s not too late to sign up! Go to Event web site.  As in prior years, the event benefits Angel Flight with last year’s contest netting over $8,000. “My personal goal is to do it again next year and exceed this year’s contributions,” Steve said.

I want to take this opportunity to express to your organization our family’s gratitude for the service you provide to children like our son, Junjun.

Junjun was adopted by us in 2008, from China. He had been in a house fire there, and has resulting burns over 70 percent of his body. Since arriving home, he has been undergoing treatment at Shriner’s Burns Hospital in Boston. Until we found out about Angel Flight, we were driving to Boston for treatment and medical check-ups—over 1,000 miles each round trip. The cost and loss of work time was beginning to take its toll.

We now are able to continue Junjun’s treatment with a substantially reduced cost, thanks to the Angel Flight organization, and the devoted pilots who selflessly give of their time to make these flights possible. It is not possible to put into words how our family appreciates what you are doing for our son.

My son and I took our first flight on May 12, 2010, to Boston. The coordination of the flights could not have been more pleasant. MaryJane Sablan (director of flight coordination) continuously kept us updated, and the pilots were simply professional and caring.

I have told many people about Angel Flight…We will continue to express to people our feelings of gratitude. Please accept our heartfelt appreciation for everything.

Sincerely,

Jack M.

View the full version of the documentary here

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Questions? Call Suzanne Rhodes at 757-271-2299