Sixteen Year Old Returns Home For Christmas

The Corporate Angel Network (CAN), the national non-profit organization that provides free air transportation to treatment for cancer patients using empty seats on corporate and fractional aircraft, announced that today (December 22, 2006) marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of it’s first flight.

On December 22, 1981, Leonard Greene, co-founder of CAN and founder of Safe Flight Instrument Corporation, personally flew the first Corporate Angel Network flight, bringing a sixteen year old boy home to Detroit for Christmas after having received treatment in New York City.

In a wonderful coincidence, twenty-five years later—to the day, CAN is scheduled to fly another young cancer patient home for Christmas after receiving treatment in New York City. The flight, to Atlanta, was made possible thanks to a generous donation of NetJets fractional time from MBIA Inc.

Corporate Angel Network (CAN) arranges free flights to treatment for cancer patients using empty seats on corporate flights. Since its founding 25 years ago, CAN has grown to include 530 participating corporations, five paid staff, and a team of 50 part-time volunteers who work with patients, physicians, corporate flight departments, and leading treatment centers to coordinate medical travel needs of cancer patients with the scheduled flight activity of participating corporations. To date, CAN has arranged nearly 25,000 flights and currently provides about 200 patient flights a month. CAN has received numerous awards in recognition of its service to cancer patients, including The Volunteer Action Award, the highest volunteer award from the President of the United States.

FMI: www.CorpAngelNetwork.org