On Valentine's Day 2003, our 2-month old daughter's life changed forever. Jordan Marie went from being a healthy vibrant baby to a child on full life support within 24 hours. She was diagnosed with a rare respiratory genetic defect that is usually fatal. BUT...the Lord had other plans!! Jordan received a life-saving double lung transplant 3 months later...just one of only a handful of babies to survive such a complicated surgery at such a young age. With all of Jordan's specialized doctors 700 miles away in St. Louis, the innumerable doctor's visits and follow-up medical tests seemed impossible to get to...until Angel Flight Soars arrived on the scene!! God, once again, guided our little overwhelmed, exhausted, and stressed family into the hands of the most incredible group of "flying servants" we've ever met. Now, after nearly TEN YEARS, THOUSANDS of AIR MILES, and DOZENS of hospital trips, Angel Flight Soars is still by our side every step of the way. Angel Flight Soars will FOREVER be part of our family! What a blessing and a God-send they continue to be! We are DEEPLY grateful to Angel Flight Soars for their never-ending dedication, compassion, efficiency, and kindness...you've kept our family going through the "ups" and "downs". GOD BLESS YOU!
My Aunt has cancer and was really struggling trying to get from North Carolina to her treatments in Georgia. As time went on, it was harder and harder for her because of the chemo. Once angel flight started taking her to her treatments it's been so much better for her. I don't think she'd still he with us without angel flights help.
We needed to fly up north for my daughter’s surgery and Angel Flight Soars came through! The 2 pilots that volunteered were super nice and made us feel very welcome and safe. It was our daughter’s first time flying and she loved it! Angel Flight Soars is an amazing organization and we’re so grateful that we found them!
Angel flight soars is a wonderful organization that I believe is truly saving my life. Every week I have to go to Nashville TN for my clinical trial. This trial is the only hope that I have to live and spend time with 14 year old daughter and 3 year old son. I was diagnosed with Metastasized Breast cancer in June 2018 after being in remission for a year of triple negative breast cancer. This is better than being sick in the car for 9 hours. I appreciate it so much.
Angel Flights has helped us travel to many medical appointments and surgeries. I don’t know how we would do it without them!
Angel Flight Soars is a wonderful organization made up of some of the most caring and helpful people. I am so thankful that Angel Flight was able to arrange my trip from Mississippi to Pittsburgh to be evaluated as a potential kidney donor for Lilah Kate(who is also one of Angel Flight’s patients). The four volunteer pilots were all so kind and professional. I am so happy to report that I was a match. Lilah received a liver transplant on 7-31-18 from another living donor and then on 8-1-18 she received my kidney. Lilah Kate is recovering in the hospital at Pittsburgh and both of her new organs are functioning great!
The Angel Flight staff and one of my pilots have been so kind and caring to check in for updates during this process. Thank you all for the difference that you make daily in the lives of so many people!!! I will always remember your kindness.
Sincerely,
Melissa (Missy)
Angel Flight Soars flew my son and me out to Cincinnati Children's Eosinophilic Clinic last spring. He has a rare adult blood disorder involving his eosinophils. Since these white blood cells attack his body when they are high, he can't be exposed to all the germs on a regular flight. Also,he was the first child at UNC Children's to be diagnosed with this adult disorder, so we needed for him to be seen by doctors who have treated children with this; however, the medical debt we have accumulated these past four years were preventing the trip until we found Angel Flight Soars! What a blessing!!
I was told of Angel Flights Soar and was signed up within a week of receiving my 4am call on April 10th.David Hesse was our pilot that donated his time,experience,plane and fuel to fly from Nashville To Knoxville to pick us up and take us to Vanderbilt for a heart transplant we had a four hour limit to get there with an hour to spare.I think Angel Flights and my new friend David Hesse for there caring and kindness for patients like me taking a big stress off us during these times.
Jon Anderson
Angel Flight Soars is so AMAZING! I'm so very thankful for them providing this important service. I have been suffering with a CSF leak and a spinal injury and needed to be transported to Duke University Hospital for proper treatment. The pilots were very accommodating and very gracious and kind. Angelina is absolutely the BEST! It's very difficult when you are in such severe pain and everyone involved brought light to a very dark time. MANY THANKS
I have delt with chronic liver failure and pancreatitis for several years. At the urging of my family and physicians, I agreed to go to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida to see if they could heal me. I was looking at a daunting 7 hour+ drive. With my 24/7 pain and nausea, this drive was not an option that I was willing to try.
After speaking with my priest, he told me about 'Angel Flight Soars. I filled out the online questionnaire and in no time at all, I received a phone call from Angelina advising me of the acceptance of my mission. I have since flown with them 4 times, and God willing will continue to do so as the Mayo Clinic continues to work with me.
Angel Flight Soars, their office staff, organizers, ground crew, and pilots have all been a blessing. I would not have made it this far without each and every member of Angel Flight Soars.
Thank you.
Sincerely, Jennifer D.
When my mother received her cancer diagnosis I knew I wanted her to receive treatment near me in GA, but she lives in NC we didn’t know how we could afford her constant visits. Angel Flights has been an amazing service that makes things easier on her, me and our entire family. My children share in the excitement of seeing the planes come and go and make a hard situation a little easier and the pilots are the kindest, most sincere people I’ve ever met! To give of their time, effort and funds in this way is a blessing to us and to all I have the opportunity to share the experience with. The staff have also been so accommodating and helpful. Thank you for all you do!
I'm a Mississippi based volunteer pilot with Angel Flight Soars. Over the last few years as my work schedule allows, I've increased the number of missions I fly for them. I've had the pleasure of getting to know most of the staff and would be hard pressed to speak highly enough of them. Director of Missions Bernadette Darnell and her mission coordinators Angelina and Ciara routinely go over and above for patients to ensure that their medical transportation needs are fulfilled. Bernadette runs a tight ship and is a "make things happen" kind of person with extraordinary influence. Executive Director Jeanine Chambers and her staff work tirelessly to secure the donations that are their operational lifeblood and stretch every dollar as far as possible to ensure that they have the funds to continue their vital mission. Jeanine is an example of someone who is ideally suited for her role, her people skills are as highly refined as I've ever seen. This organization operates so efficiently that they make a very difficult job look easy. This is by far the best run non profit organization that I've ever worked with and I give them my highest recommendation and rating.
It took us seven years and an introduction to Angel Flight to get to this point of smiles. Seven years of anaphylaxis attacks without any doctors in the southeast being able to tell my daughter, Emily, why these episodes were occurring. Five years into these flares Emily was referred to a specialist in Minnesota. Being strapped with medical bills from numerous doctors, hospital and medical tests made the thought of traveling to Minnesota from South Carolina almost an impossibility; until we were introduced to Angel Flight.
Angel Flight allowed us to visit a world renown specialist, Dr. Afrin. It was during this appointment that Emily was diagnosed with Mast Cell Activation Disorder. While there is currently no known cure, this trip allowed Emily to gain a diagnosis and a treatment plan. This treatment plan has allowed her to return to college where she previously had to take a medical leave of absence. Without Angel Flight, Emily would not have been able to see Dr. Afrin and regain her sense of normalcy (as normal as one can get with an incurable disease).
As a mother, I am forever grateful to the Angel Flight organization. You took a tremendous amount of stress off my family by assisting us in our endeavors to see Dr. Afrin. Truly we would not have been able to undertake this referral without their assistance!
March of 2015 took a turn of events that impacted our life when during a routine eye exam revealed that my 21 year old daughter Celeste was about to embark on an unwelcome journey. Her eye doctor noticed that both of her optic nerves were swollen. She would later learn after a few MRI scans and a biopsy, that she was now diagnosed with cancer. A stage III-IV aggressive brain tumor called an Anaplastic Astrocytoma Glioma. In January 2016, Celeste was able to have a successful craniotomy performed at Duke University. Her yearly follow-up appointment was in December 2016. Due to the nature of her diagnosis and the damage the tumor has done, this can make traveling for her a very taxing feat. We live in N.W. Georgia, which is a 10 plus hour drive one way to Duke in Durham, N.C. The idea of her traveling for that many hours created a lot of anxiety, and with her symptoms of what is considered an active brain injury, can cause her to have a lot of unwanted side effects when undue stress enters her daily routine. That is when I sought out Angel Flight Soars. I needed to find a much quicker and less stressful way to get her to this important follow-up appointment. After filling out the online form and got approved, I began corresponding with a mission operation assistant, Ciara Schaff. She was very pleasant and quick to respond to any questions or concerns I had. She also helped us unexpectedly by arranging an Earth Angel Ed Spencer to assist us once we landed. This helped lessen the burden tremendously for me trying to figure out how to get from point A to B in an unfamiliar area. Between her and others working together, Ciara was able to arrange Celeste’s travels to and from Dalton Municipal Airport to Raleigh-Durham Airport. The Pilots were amazing! It turned what would have been a 20 plus hour round trip drive, into a 6 hour round trip flight. That helped us physically, emotionally and financially. Both pilots, Doug Ellis and Paul Davis made us feel accepted, safe and comfortable. We could tell that safety was their priority, and they loved doing what they do. They welcomed us into their plane and by listening to their flight decisions over the headsets further displayed safety was of the utmost. Celeste and I, along with others can not thank Angel Flight Soars enough for the generous accommodations and compassion offered to those who are in need of assistance. Angel Flight Soars gave us peace and hope, during a time that would have otherwise been challenging and possibly detrimental to the progress of Celeste’s continued recovery. This is not only important to the patient involved, it is also important to those who love them. Thank YOU ALL at Angel Flight Soars and thank you to those who contribute towards making this all possible!! The benefits of having an organization such as Angel Flight Soars is an asset to our country and to those they love to serve. This was truly an answer to prayer. Once again, Thank you!
The best Medical Transportation in this country! From the top down they all treat you like family and are part of my immediate support system!! I have had several opportunities to fly with some of the most brilliant pilots from Brad with Civil Air Patrol to Doug who has more flexibility then most people half his age, like literally! In doing this i developed a passion for flying and thus far has 8 flight hours only 12 more to go, then instrumental certification and the 250hrs required to fly for this NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION! Just that simple from Jeannie, Bernadette, Angelina, Clair and Lindsey to Landmark Aviation and Epps Aviation my mind is intent on starting this assignment for humanity sake! People are out here in this country with severe health issues, life or death situations but because of Angel Flight Soars we are able to get to treatment almost immediately without cost to me or my family as well a others privately!!! Can't ask for better than that at all, America has always been great but supporting a GREAT NON-PROFIT, now that makes America Greater than great!!
Respectfully Submitted,
Helen E. Lindsey
Our son was burned severely in October of 2016 and has required 11 surgeries and a lengthy stay in the WellStar Cobb JMS Burn center in, GA. He was released 12/31 of 2016 and was being treated at the JMS outpatient facility in Valdosta, GA. On 2/15/17 we found out he had a bone infection that required immediate attention at the JMS Burn Center in Augusta, GA. JMS's Sherry Videtto contacted Angelina Chaudoin with the Angel Flight organization that coordinated a flight to Augusta on 2/19/17. Mr. David Martin picked us up at the scheduled time at the Northwest Florida International airport in his Cirrus SR22 aircraft. He is a very competent, proficient, and personable pilot that we were fortunate enough to have on the return flight from Augusta to Panama City Beach on 2/25/17 after Corey's surgery. I cannot say enough about how professional and caring everyone was based on the situation. We thank you Angelina, Sherry, and David from the bottom of our hearts. God Bless you all.
A check-up visit to my doctor in mid October changed my life in a huge way! Hi, my name is Maurice and on that day I was completely surprised to learn that I had Stomach Cancer. I knew that I had not been feeling as usual but had no idea of the challenge I was about to face. Deciding on a treatment Facility was my first challenge and after long consideration and a visit I choose The Cancer Treatment Center in Atlanta. This brought on another challenge in that I live in South Carolina about 400 miles from the treatment facility. This is about a 7hr drive and left me completely exhausted after treatment and the ride. I had to find another way given the long trip and the financial hardship of the trips. I searched the web for travel support and luckily I found Angel Flights and read about their support for people like me. From day one they have been a blessing in my life and have agreed to help me with my travels to and from Atlanta. Little did I know that there was such great people standing by too help me and others who needed their assistance. I will never forget their willingness to help me and look forward to thanking each and everyone of their staff for a Job well done! Thanks you all for helping me to save my life!
During the spring of 2015, our 16 year old, very healthy, son began coughing uncontrollably much of his days. The cough turned into uncontrollable asthma that had us us back and forth between the PCP and the E.R. all spring and summer. We were referred to UNC Children's Hospitals where extensive bloodwork revealed alarmingly high counts for his white blood, in particular, his Eosinophils were at the dangerous level of 3500 (normal range is below 100.) All white blood cells are designed to fight off "intruders" in the body except these guys were attacking his major organs: his heart, lungs, GI tract, and sinuses. Our son was failing fast. A bone marrow biopsy revealed a rare adult blood disorder called Hyper Eosinophilic Syndrome that 10 in one million adults have. There is no cure. Since his diagnosis, we have practically lived at UNC; he has a specialist for every organ that has been infiltrated, 8 to be exact! Unfortunately however, his body has rejected the customary treatments which brought us to the Cincinnati Clinic for Eosinophilic Disorders. They are very anxious to help us with our son's care. However, Medicaid will not pay for this treatment since it is out of state. We started a Gofundme account one month ago and watched God provide all $20,000 needed for the treatment at this clinic. We also needed to fly there since our son is too weak to endure a ten hour car ride. The medical debt we have accrued over the past couple of years prevented us from being able to afford two plane tickets AND his weakened immune system prevents us from being in crowded places like a commercial airline. I can't thank Angel Wings enough for helping us with providing the care our son desperately needs!! As his mom, I have had to fight doctors, pharmacists, Medicaid, and Disability for a 2 years now. THIS was effortless!!! I filled out the paperwork. You called me 2 days later and 2 days after that, we were approved!! Do you know what that meant to me?!! I am a weary mom and I feel like you have lifted me up on His wings. God has not only cared for every minute detail for my son through you guys, but He has also cared for his exhausted mom through the amazing Angel Wings staff!! Thank you hardly seems enough.
As a Dialysis patient who continually faces challenges associated with FSGS kidney disease there is nothing more important than meeting medical appointments. However this in itself presents various complications such as time-restraints, medical needs for travel and others that must be considered especially on long travel requirements. That’s when the great service of Angel Flight has come in to play accommodating these necessities with qualified pilots and staff personnel to ensure I made my appointment. Specifically Angel Flight it provided an invaluable service to accommodate every necessity in traveling to and from designated long-distant appointment. More impressive was the congeniality of my pilot and the staff members who set-up the arrangements. In considering the many challenges of battling this disease there is no doubt that the service of Angel Flight is key and offers a very accommodating service.
Sincerely,
Rodney Williams
Our daughter sustained a brachial plexus injury at birth. After months of therapy, surgery was inevitable. In a last ditch effort, we were able to make an appointment with a specialist in Philadelphia. Our physical therapist suggested we contact Angel Flight Soars, as a means of transportation. From our initial conversation, Ciara, our mission assistant, was extremely compassionate and helpful. She gathered all necessary information and had our flight secured by the end of the day. We are beyond thankful for Angel Flight Soars. They have truly been a blessing to our family during this journey. Our hearts are filled with gratefulness and hope; because of Angel Flight Soars, we now have an opportunity to find the answers we seek.
August 17, I got my call for my transplant. Angel flight intercepted me and flew me straight to D.C.. great timing. Great people. Great pilots. My surgery went well. Am from Augusta Georgia, and staying in dc until released by surgeons. Hopefully will be a few more weeks. Thanks to angel flights kindness and generosity.
