Hero Miles: Keeping families together
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It was nearly Christmas last year, and U.S. Army airborne paratrooper Justin Isham was facing the prospect of another holiday spent alone in the barracks at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska.
Isham’s wife and family were thousands of miles away in Phoenix while he completed 1.5 years in the Warrior Transition Unit at JBER, preparing Isham and fellow wounded or disabled soldiers for the transition to civilian life.
A career of physically intense jumps had put wear and tear on Isham’s knees and back. His 2012 deployment to Afghanistan had additional effects, including some hearing loss and intense flashbacks to combat.
“The Warrior Transition Unit is designed for soldiers who can’t be soldiers any more – essentially, my body was no longer qualified and able to do what a soldier has to do to be a soldier. I can’t run anymore, I can’t rough-march. And mentally some of those things you experience, you have flashbacks – it really breaks you down,” said Isham. “If it wasn’t for that unit, and what I experienced … it saved my life is what it did.”
Isham couldn’t afford to fly home to Phoenix in the middle of the program, and had resigned himself to spending the holidays by himself. Then he learned about Hero Miles, a program of Fisher House.
Through frequent flier mileage donations, Hero Miles provides round-trip airline tickets to wounded, injured and ill service members and their families. Service members may be given a round-trip airline ticket for a trip from the medical center where they are receiving treatment to their home; or to bring family to visit them while they are undergoing treatment at an authorized medical center.
“We rely on the generosity of the American public to help bridge the gap between what the military can and can’t do,” said Tish Stropes, Vice President for Strategic Initiatives for Fisher House.
Isham applied for tickets from Hero Miles and was approved to fly home for the holidays on Alaska Airlines.
“I couldn’t believe it. It’s ordinary, everyday citizens donating their leftover miles that they aren’t using to this organization to help wounded and disabled soldiers,” he said. “My family was ecstatic. I don’t think a lot of people really understand how taxing the healing process is, not just for the soldier, but for the soldier’s family.”
Hero Miles is one of nine organizations supported year-round by Alaska’s Mileage Plan members through the airline’s Charity Miles donation program. Members raised approximately 54 million miles in 2014, and are well on their way to reaching that goal again in 2015.
“Year after year our customers amaze us with their generosity in supporting our Charity Miles program. With that spirit in mind, we’ll be donating an additional one million miles to Hero Miles in recognition of our frequent fliers this holiday season,” said Shaunta Hyde, Alaska’s managing director of community relations.
“Hero Miles does amazing work to keep families together in the most challenging of times. On behalf of all of us here at Alaska Airlines, including the many Alaska and Horizon employees that are military veterans themselves, we’d like to say thank you to Fisher House for all that you do to care for our military families around the country.”
More than 50,000 U.S. service members have been wounded in action since Sept. 11, many of them requiring long term treatment that may not be available near their homes or their families. Another 320,000 are believed to have experienced a traumatic brain injury, and 400,000 are estimated to be living with the “invisible wounds of war” – stress, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
How to give
Mileage Plan members can donate as few as 1,000 miles through Alaska’s Charity Miles donation program. Bonus: donating will help keep your account active if you haven’t been flying or redeeming as frequently.
Mileage Plan members can donate miles through Alaska’s Charity Miles program at alaskaair.com/charitymiles. Learn more about making mileage donations from other airline loyalty programs at fisherhouse.org.
Fisher House also accepts cash donations for its various programs, including Fishers Houses, which are located at major military and VA medical centers nationwide and allow military and veterans’ families to stay at no cost while a loved one is receiving treatment. Learn more at fisherhouse.org.
Comments
IF MY FRQUENT FLYER MILES HAVE NOT BEEN DELETED YOU MAY HAVE ALL OF THEM. I AM ASKING MY HUSBAND TO DONATE HIS MILES.
Elva, that is wonderful! If you need help checking on the status of your miles, you may email socialcare@alaskaair.com. Happy holidays!
Les and Hazel Smith,
We are very happy that you are giving this help to our brave men and women in the military. My husband gave 30 years of service to the Air Force and was wounded in Viet Nam, and is disabled.
We are happy to give back our miles, but don’t know how to do this. Please advise.
Hi Les and Hazel –
You can donate by logging into your Mileage Plan account at alaskaair.com. Once you are logged in, simply click the “donate miles” button at alaskaair.com/charitymiles and choose “Hero Miles” from the drop-down menu. If you need further assistance, you may contact customer care at 1-800-654-5669. Thank you!
I could not donate my miles because I had below 1000. Seems to be a major flaw in what would otherwise be a good program. What a shame these miles could not be used for a good cause!
I lost a lot of miles when they were cancelled since I had not used them. This happened while I was still working and too busy to travel. Is there a way Alaska Airlines could give a month notice and repeat the offer to donate instead of loosing miles?
Hi Linda – it looks like your account is still active with miles in it! Feel free to reach out to socialcare@alaskaair.com if you’d like more information.
Next time you do this, please provide a link to the donation site?
Hi Paul – you can donate by logging into your Mileage Plan account at alaskaair.com. Once you are logged in, simply click the “donate miles” button at alaskaair.com/charitymiles and choose “Hero Miles” from the drop-down menu.
Give me a break. You should give us a direct link. Don’t have time to search your site and the link is not obvious.. You are actually irritating your customers.
Hi Jim, I’m sorry you’re having trouble! You have to be logged into your Mileage Plan account before you can access the donate portal. Once you are logged in, simply click the “donate miles” button at alaskaair.com/charitymiles and choose “Hero Miles” from the drop-down menu.
Feel free to send me an email at newsroom@alaskaair.com if you continue to have trouble.
Jim – It’s pretty easy. Go to Alaskaair.com and log-in. But I guess you are just being lazy like many other Americans.
How do you go about donating your miles?
Hi there – You can donate online by signing into your Mileage Plan account and visiting this page.
I have been saving miles for several years so that I can afford to take my family to DC. However, I want to help in this important goal of helping our dedicated men and women in uniform be with family. I am donating 3,000 miles.
That’s wonderful, Marilynne – thank you!
Thanks Alaska Airlines for the great cause! Also, special thanks to the armed forces, may you all have a wonderful and joyous Holidays! I have donated miles! Betty
Thank you, Betty!
I love what you are doing here! We have so much to be grateful for. Please donate all of my remaining miles to this wonderful cause. They have given so much…
Wonderful! You can donate online by signing into your Mileage Plan account and visiting this page.
Please donate whatever miles I have, thank you!
Thank you, Kim! You can donate online by signing into your Mileage Plan account and visiting this page.
Please donate my miles for such a worthy cause
That’s wonderful, Sherry. You can donate online by signing into your Mileage Plan account and visiting this page.
Merry Christmas – enjoy my miles!
Merry Christmas! You can donate online by signing into your Mileage Plan account and visiting this page.
I just used my miles for a family vacation but believe I have 1400 some odd amout left I will happily donate those to the fisherhouse.org.
Wonderful! You can donate online by signing into your Mileage Plan account and visiting this page.
I don’t have time to read all this…just give what ever miles I have to them…thx
I don’t have many miles but what I do have please donate to those brave men and women of the armed forces and their families. Thank you for your consideration to this cause.
Bravo!
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