Medical Transportation for Kaylie: Soaring Since Age 2 June 29, 2022 Four years ago, Kaylie was born with Type 1 Citrullinemia, a rare genetic malformation that causes ammonia and toxic substances to build up in her bloodstream. If left unchecked, Kaylie’s condition could leave her comatose and permanently brain damaged. Before her second birthday, Kaylie had already received a liver transplant — just one of numerous healthcare procedures needed to manage her condition and requ… Jessica Hayes Read More »
The Gift of Flight and Time June 16, 2022 A volunteer pilot since April 2020, Kosta Constantine has logged more than 27,000 flight hours in his trusty Beechcraft Baron. Lately, some of his most treasured time in the air has been spent with Nicole H. — including during her fourth birthday. At a time when other kids might solely be focused on games and toys, Nicole and her mom, Mirna, have had other important things on their wis… Jessica Hayes Read More »
A Mother’s Reflection: Angels in Hawaii February 17, 2022 January 28, 2021 was a day our family will never forget—our lives were forever transformed with our six-year-old son’s diagnosis of a brain cancer called Medulloblastoma. At the very start of this journey, we were transferred by air ambulance from our island, Maui, to Oahu, because our community did not have the resources needed to treat our son. We knew this would be a challenge we would have to face on our son’s road t… Kaitlyn McQuown Read More »
Angel Flight West Ascends Past 90,000 Missions November 18, 2021 In a quiet moment, pilot Jon Lange looks back from the cockpit of his Socata/TBM 700. Jon is one of 1,800 volunteer pilots who fly for Angel Flight West, and today he’s setting a milestone: this flight is the charitable aviation organization’s 90,000th mission. His passenger, Jenny, is gazing out the window at the clouds in wonder alongside her sister-in-law Alejandra. It’s Jenny’s first time i… Kaitlyn McQuown Read More »
From Cheri’s Desk: Kicking off Camp Season July 9, 2021 Camp season started this year with a bang as Champ Camp returned! And what a joyous event it was for campers, counselors, pilots, and the Mission Ops staff. While those watching from the outside may have thought the staff was buried in craziness and chaos (and they would have been right!), the truth is we were so energized to be back making sure that 35 campers and two counselors-in-training made it to Wonder Valley near… Cheri Cimmarrusti Read More »
Spotlight on an Angel July 9, 2021 Ramiro O. Passenger Ramiro with AFW Pilot Ajay Kishinchandani Sandra and Ramiro’s first flight anywhere was on a commercial airline to Florida for a vacation. Sandra has claustrophobia. Her only thought as they waited on the tarmac in a plane that was delayed for a reason she can’t remember was that she “was going to die.” She didn’t really ever want to fly again. Fast forward to her first flight with AFW to Seattle for… Wendy Weisenberg Read More »
Please meet Zoe March 12, 2020 We’d like you to meet Zoe. Zoe was born with just 10 percent of a normal small intestine, which means her body can’t get enough nutrients from solid food, and she has to be fed through a central line in her chest. She spent the first six months of her life at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital in Palo Alto where she nearly died. Now 13 months old, Zoe is back at home in Southern California with her parents and older sister. But… afw_web_admin Read More »
Wingspan August 29, 2019 by Ivan Martinez, Director of Outreach and Wing Operations Since the start of our “Ascent to 8,000” campaign, outreach has been an increasing focus necessary to fuel our journey and one we are very much still learning to navigate better. We continue our efforts exhibiting at conferences, reaching out to new requester and patient leads, and arranging in-service presentations–all in hopes that our name reaches the… Wendy Weisenberg Read More »
5th Annual Princess Ball to Benefit Angel Flight West January 5, 2015 By Josh Faith – Parent of AFW Passenger Inspiration for the Ball The first Princess Ball was held in March of 2009 as a homecoming celebration of life and the completion of treatment for four year-old Valicity Lee Faith. Valicity was diagnosed with Leukemia on January 14… Jill Dannis Read More »
#GivingTuesday Surprise December 3, 2014 AFW had a wonderful #GivingTuesday yesterday, December 2. For those that don’t know about #GivingTuesday it is global day dedicated to giving back. On Tuesday, December 2, 2014, charities, families, businesses, community centers, and students around the world came together for one common purpose: to celebrate generosity and to give. One part of AFWs #GivingTuesday was a great news segment on KGUN 9 Tuc… Jill Dannis Read More »
“Safe passage: Angel Flight connects rural patients with volunteer pilots” October 28, 2014 The Casper Star Tribune recently shared a great Angel Flight West story on 18-year-old Angel Flight West frequent flyer Arianne Robledo. Arianne and her mother flew to Denver Children’s hospital for treatment that was not available to her in her hometown of Lander, WY. Check out the story here! Jill Dannis Read More »
Mesothelioma Patient Traveling on Wings of an Angel October 20, 2014 Angel Flight West was recently able to assist passenger Mike Rogers of Alaska with travel for a potentially life-saving trip to Pacific Meso Center. Via our partnership with Alaska Airlines, AFW flew Mike to California for a consultation, where Mike found out about a surgery that may extend his life beyond the six-month prognosis he originally received in Anchorage. Check out the full story by author Tim Povtak fro… Jill Dannis Read More »
Camper Photo Gallery August 12, 2014 Check out photos from some of our recent camp missions! This summer, volunteer pilots have flown kids to and numerous nonprofit camps – often the highlight of the summer for these campers. AFW pilots rock! Jill Dannis Read More »
“Watsonville ‘Angel’ Pilots Kid to Camp” July 30, 2014 This past weekend pilots flew campers to Camp Pacifica, a camp for deaf and hard of hearing children and their siblings. 18 volunteer pilots flew kids from various airports across California to the Atwater Airport (MER) in Merced, CA to drop them off for camp. One of our AFW pilots, Rayvon Williams, took Donna Jones, Santa Cruz Sentinel staff writer, along as his mission assistant. Donna met Ravyon’s passeng… Jill Dannis Read More »
Spotlight on an Angel – Roberta V. July 9, 2014 In my long tenure at AFW, I often meet passengers who I look forward to seeing at the Santa Monica office while they wait for their flight. One of these passengers is Roberta V. of Oakland, CA. Roberta has been flying with us since 2006 and has flown 168 missions. During that time, she has flown with 72 pilots–37 of those with pilot Victor Ninov! Roberta has giant cell sarcoma, a non-malignant bone tumor. In her case, the tu… Cheri Cimmarrusti Read More »
