Jetrader - Spring 2014 - 39

ISTAT foundation

2013 ISTAT Foundation
Humanitarian Program
UK toys bring smiles to Syrian refugee children

Julian Balaam
ISTAT Foundation Humanitarian Chair

T

"The daily routine at kindergartens in Jordan's
Za'atri refugee camp rarely begins with the
laughter of Syrian children, despite the valiant efforts of their teachers and guardians.
This Monday's cold but sunny morning in the
'Sunshine' kindergarten in Za'atri's District Six
was quite different. Excitement, joy, happiness and disbelief rang out as hundreds of
toys found their way into the hands of some
of the youngest Syrian refugees.
Created, donated or collected by children in the United Kingdom through the
Pitt Rivers Museum and the UK Scouts and
Guides Fellowship during the autumn, the
toys travelled more than 2,300 miles to their
final destination-a journey made possible
by the U.K. branch of Aviation Without
Borders, which was financially supported by
the ISTAT Foundation and the UNHCR. The
initiative, titled 'Toys for Smiles' proved this
week to be worthy of its name."
The Humanitarian Committee of the
ISTAT Foundation, which I am honored to
chair, was established in 2013 to broaden
the activities of the ISTAT Foundation in
supporting humanitarian causes around
the world. The above excerpt from a press
release issued by the United Nations High
Commission for Refugees on Christmas
Eve 2013 demonstrates the extraordinary
impact we can have on the lives of needy
individuals through the donation of carefully targeted funds.

Toys donated by U.K. children and transported with funding provided by the ISTAT Foundation are
received by excited Syrian refugees. (Photo by Andy Needham of the UNHCR.)

The alleviation of suffering and promotion of human welfare is, of course, an
endless task, and there are thousands of
organizations, both professional and voluntary, seeking to achieve similar goals.
However, the commercial aviation industry
is perhaps uniquely positioned to make a difference and, through this committee, which
currently consists of aviation professionals
based in the Americas, Europe and Africa,
the ISTAT Foundation intends to maximize
the impact of its funds upon those in need.
In addition to funding the Toys for
Smiles initiative described above, the ISTAT
Foundation made four other important

humanitarian grants in 2013 to the following entities:
Aerobility, a U.K.-based charity that
offers people with disabilities, without
exception, the opportunity to fly in or learn
to fly an airplane;
Airlink, founded by the ISTAT Foundation in the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake in 2010, mobilizes humanitarian aid,
especially relating to disaster relief, by
connecting donated or discounted airline
transport capacity with the transport needs
of non-governmental organizations around
the world. Airlink become independent at
the start of 2013;
Jetrader * Spring 2014 39
Jetrader - Spring 2014

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