Supports More Than 20 Canadian Charitable Organizations Helping Children

To mark Giving Tuesday, the Air Canada Foundation will donate more than $1.6 million (Canadian) by year's end to support programs or projects by eligible registered charities that contribute to the health and well?being of children and youth in Canada.

The Air Canada Foundation, a registered charitable organization, is dedicated to helping connect sick children to the medical care they need, make their wishes come true, and alleviate child poverty. Each year, the Air Canada Foundation helps hundreds of charitable organizations across Canada, whether through financial support, by donating plane tickets to support their fundraising activities, or through in-kind support, including the donation of Aeroplan Miles to pediatric hospitals in Canada.

"The health and well-being of children are at the core of the Air Canada Foundation's mission. That is why we are always extremely pleased to present these funds to organizations whose programs and projects are aligned with the Foundation's mission," said Priscille Leblanc, Chair of the Air Canada Foundation.

"Air Canada Foundation's mission to help connect children who are sick to the medical care they need aligns directly to our vision to give kids the best chance to live a long and healthy life," said Mike House, president and CEO of the Stollery Children's Hospital Foundation. "One of the ways we're doing this is through the Awasisak Indigenous Health program at the Stollery that provides inpatient and outpatient services to 57 indigenous communities in Alberta, thanks to Air Canada Foundation's generous support of our family-centred care services and community outreach programs."

"Thanks to the Air Canada Foundation's donation, our clown doctors will be able to visit hospitalized children with cancer and their families to bring them some joy and fun in this difficult time. The program would not be possible without this support," said Martin Goyette, Executive Director of the Dr Clown Foundation.

Other charitable organizations that have received funding from the Air Canada Foundation this year include:

• Starlight Children's Foundation Canada, which will purchase 10 additional Fun Centre units for Canada's largest pediatric hospitals based on their urgent needs.
• The IWK Foundation for the redevelopment of their Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU). This transformational equipment will enable the PICU to have a state-of-the-art family sleep room, which is vital to the family-centered approach to care.
• Breakfast Club of Canada will be able to sustain three Indigenous schools by covering food and kitchen equipment purchases and develop two additional programs in the Northwest Territories and Yukon.
• Dreams Take Flight will enable eight trips from across Canada (Halifax, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Vancouver) for a magical day at Disney for approximately 1000 children.
• Missing Children's Network Canada plans to visit 125 schools and educate 12,500 students through its SHINE program to reduce the number of reports of runaway youth in Quebec and their likelihood of being sexually exploited.
• Starting January 2019, customers can view in the AC TV section of the in-flight entertainment system, two videos produced by the Janeway Hospital and McMaster Children's Hospital that show the impact that financial support from the Foundation has had for the children and families that benefited from it last year.

The Air Canada Foundation raises funds through a number of initiatives including its Every Bit Counts program, currency collection on board flights and in dedicated containers in select Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounges. It also raises money at special fundraising events, notably at its annual golf tournament and the Wanderluxe Gala. With its Aeroplan Miles campaign, the Air Canada Foundation lightens the financial burden frequently linked to their hospitalization by donating millions of Aeroplan Miles to 15 pediatric hospitals in Canada, giving sick children access to medical care that is not available where they live.

(Source: Air Canada news release)

FMI: www.aircanada.com/foundation