One of the topics that we were briefed on during the recent Center Rep meeting was the ongoing disaster relief efforts. If you didn’t read the notes from the meeting, Puerto Rico and St. Thomas are still devastated and will not be back to normal for years to come. Frankly, they may never fully recover.
I am currently in a meeting with the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and this matter is of great concern and as you read this, tireless efforts are underway to help those affected and displaced by these disasters. Lodging is near impossible to obtain and efforts to deliver aid is difficult at best.
For those that remain, homes are destroyed and the stories of a lack of food, water and electricity are sadly accurate. A number of our Brothers and Sisters that remain to keep ATC functioning are being squeezed into the few remaining hotels until homes can be rebuilt. At this point, the FAA has declined to pick up the tab for these expenses. NATCA is fighting to rectify this and, in the meantime, paying for the hotels.
All of this is to say that they still need your help. One way you can is to donate to the NATCA Relief Fund. Many of you have and for that our membership is grateful. As of the writing of this update, we are showing about $87K in charitable contributions. We can do better. I am asking that you all join me in doing recurring contributions to this fund as I will be putting in at least $10 every payday (I’ll tell my wife after this) to keep the efforts going.
Again, here is the link, please consider, and thank you for taking the time to read this.
