CFOH Raises Funds for Charter Operators to Fly Kids in Need

For most of Lucas’s six short years, his airway has been 90%  closed. He has lived in and out of hospitals in the Phoenix area and spent most of his time isolated from friends, family and school to keep his immune system from making matters worse. In August of this year, Lucas’s mom received the call she had been waiting for from the Boston Children’s Esophageal and Airway Treatment Center. The medical team there was willing to perform the high-risk, eight-hour surgery needed to open Lucas’s trachea. That left the question of how to get to Boston. Commercial flights were not possible due to the risk of infection, and the family quickly ran out of options for a long-distance private flight. The hurdle of transportation seemed insurmountable until they were connected with the team at Children’s Flight of Hope.

CFOH is a nonprofit organization that provides air transportation solutions for children in need of specialized medical care. Founded by pilots in 1991, CFOH owned and operated a small aircraft flown by volunteers and provided support to children across the southeast for many years. Maintenance needs and rising fixed costs necessitated the plane be sold in 2014, and thus a new and unique humanitarian flight model was born. To conserve resources, CFOH began purchasing commercial flights for children medically stable enough to travel on major airlines. This allowed the organization to expand nationally and increase support significantly. For those children who are more medically vulnerable, and to honor the organization’s history, Children’s Flight of Hope turned to trusted charter operators, brokers and corporate flight departments to provide private flights for children when all other options have been exhausted.

Haley Transou Terry, CEO of Children’s Flight of Hope details the shift by saying, “When our model changed, it offered an opportunity to look at all aspects of air transportation, and it became clear that charter operators and brokers offer an underutilized resource for much needed private flight efforts.”  CFOH is a privately funded organization that is supported through corporate and individual donors who also value possibilities of charter travel. “We saw these contributions as a way to invest in the industry and build long-term partnerships with operators and brokers who want to support our mission but also need to cover costs and run their operations responsibly,” says Terry. “Donors understand and appreciate the high level of safety offered by Part-135 operators as well as the advantage of building mutually beneficial relationships to facilitate these life-saving flights.”

Since starting the Private Flight Program, CFOH and their charter partners have provided hundreds of flight hours to children across the United States. Children like Lucas who have no other travel options to access the care they desperately need. For this trip, Children’s Flight of Hope was the only flight organization with the strategy, partnerships and resources to make it happen. One call to a trusted operator and a quick transfer of donor advised funds is all it took to provide Lucas with a chance at a better life.  Days after his surgery, Lucas’s parents left a heartfelt message saying, “We made it to Boston and just want to thank you so much! Doug and Trevor were the kindest pilots, the flight was just extraordinary and, most importantly for Lucas, it was germ free! Lucas had a great and successful surgery. We were hoping for his trachea to be opened at least 50% and the surgeon confirmed that they actually achieved 100%! You can’t ask for anything better than that, it’s beyond our wildest dreams and hopes.”

Children’s Flight of Hope is seeking to expand this program to support as many children, like Lucas, as possible. For those that value the benefit of private aviation in their own lives and businesses will understand the life-changing potential this program offers to children and their families. “I have seen, first hand, how the safety and efficiency of private air charter can literally save lives. It’s a beautiful thing.” says Terry.  To learn more and get involved with the CFOH Private Flight Program, please visit www.cfoh.org/privateflights or call 919/466-8592.