Before I get to the wonderful part, I have to start with some sad news. I have some very good friends, (no I don't have to pay them - very much) Bruce and Kim. In early October Bruce was diagnosed with cancer and a couple of weeks ago he returned to our Father in Heaven. Bruce was a wonderful man who loved everyone he knew, even Kim (sorry Kim couldn't help it). OK, OK Kim is also pretty great and truly a good friend to me.
As if the stresses of battling cancer and loosing a loved one are not enough, the financial strain can sometimes seem too much to bear. Medical bills, funeral costs, missed work, and in Kim's case the added stress of going from a two income household to a one income household. It can leave a grieving person with a choice between going back to work before he or she is ready or going weeks without pay.
OK, this is where the cool part starts. Kim works for a wonderful company, "Allegiant Air." When they got the news that Bruce had passed they immediately did a fundraiser for her and raised $2,000 in cash for her. A few days later, the Vice President of the company called her and told her they were planning to pay her minimum flight hours (probably more that 3/4 of her regular pay) until she was ready to return to work. Not because it was company policy, but because they cared! Imagine that. At the funeral, no one could help noticing that at least a dozen of Kim's coworkers all dressed in their snappy blue "uniform" suits were in attendance. In fact I heard several comments like, "who is flying the planes today" and "WOW, wouldn't it be great to work for a company that supported their employees like that." As if all of this wasn't enough, Kim just read on the employee website that they are planning another fund raiser. Is that awesome or what?
Kim with a few of her Allegiant Airlines Friends
Now, you should all know that I was a Die-Hard Southwest Airlines (SW) flier before all of this happened. In fact, if I had to fly somewhere that SW didn't fly to I have been known to drive up to three hours in order to avoid flying another airline. Now, I can't help thinking that a company that takes care of it's employees like that deserves my business. So, from now on, if I have to fly, I am going to see if there is an Allegiant flight available before taking a Southwest flight. Hopefully some of you will too.
Today I am grateful for Allegiant Airlines and the way they have taken care of my friend Kim in her time of need.
Does anyone else know of a company that has gone so far above and beyond to take care of it's employees or customers? If you do, leave a comment, let's recognize them.
2 comments:
Lisa,
Love this! I fly allegiant home to my parents all the time. In fact they got rid of their flight that fly's to St. Louis but still go to the lake. I also flew Bren home from BYU-I on it all the time. I am glad to know they take care of their own!
Beautiful, isn't it?
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