Dream Program
Donated round-trip tickets are from Southwest Airlines and Alaska Airlines.
Donated airline miles are from United Airlines, Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines.
An average flight requires 44,795 miles per ticket.
While enlisted in the U.S. Army, Vietnam veteran Billy was an aircraft mechanic who worked primarily on the Bell UH-1 Iroquois aircraft, aka a “Huey” helicopter, used for medical evacuations, instrument trainer and as a general utility aircraft.
After the military, Billy raised his four children and became a member of the 282 Assault Helicopter Company Black Cats. He never missed a Black Cat Association Reunion in 40 years, until he became too unwell to attend.
Billy dreamed of riding a Huey one last time with his four children. With help from Marpat Aviation, Dream Foundation was able to send Billy and his family on a ride in a Huey.
Before lift-off, a special pinning ceremony was held for Billy, where he was honored with his 50th Anniversary Vietnam pin.
Flower Empower is a Santa Barbara-based, volunteer driven program. Since its inception in 1994, Flower Empower has served thousands of community members by providing more than 100,000 bouquets, fresh baked cookies, artisanal chocolates and cards, handmade by school children and other groups and individuals to people in hospices, cancer centers and private homes. Each week, 20 volunteers assemble 150 bouquets using donated flowers. In 2017, the Flower Empower program logged nearly 3,365 volunteer hours and arranged more than 8,300 bouquets. Flower delivery referrals come from cancer centers, nurses, doctors, hospices, elder support organizations and others.
“It’s always the unexpected pleasures of making someone’s day that makes this program so wonderful. Everyone always has a broader smile when they say goodbye than when they said hello!” ”
— SHERI, CURRENT FLOWER EMPOWER VOLUNTEER, PREVIOUSLY A RECIPIENT
Dream Foundation Dreams touch not only the lives of Dreamers, but also those of their families. Nearly 30 percent of Dreamers have young children living at home. Each year, Dream Foundation’s Dream Toy Program reaches hundreds of children who have a loved one with a life-limiting illness. With each gift, we provide an opportunity to create happy memories and smiles. In 2017, our dedicated volunteers donated more than 3,102 hours to fill boxes with nearly 4,000 hand-selected toys donated by Hasbro and Ty., Inc., and these were delivered to 1,353 children in nearly 500 families across the country.
“We get to laugh and have fun as a family! Thank you for all the ways you make this world a brighter one!” ”
— KARI