thedrifter
04-17-08, 07:19 PM
Pilot donates phone cards to troops
Nwes Sentinel staff
Originally published 10:49 a.m., April 17, 2008
Updated 10:49 a.m., April 17, 2008
Pilot Travel Centers recently donated $178,000 worth of prepaid phone cards to area charities and the military, the Knoxville based company announced today.
Most of the cards — $125,000 worth — went to members of the Army, Navy, Marines and Air National Guard who are currently serving overseas, are preparing to be deployed or who have been wounded, as well as to their families.
Also receiving donations were East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, Knoxville Area Rescue Ministry and Salvation Army of Knoxville, which each received $15,000 worth of cards; and Ronald McDonald House of Knoxville, Mobile Meals, Hope for Healing and Knoxville Habitat for Humanity, which each received $2,000 worth of cards.
Military members and their families have already received the phone cards, John Dyess, Army Reserve ambassador for Tennessee, said in a news release.
“Soldiers serving overseas in Iraq have been able to keep in touch with their loved ones with the cards,” Dyess said.
“Pilot is proud and honored to have the opportunity to support these local charities and our service men and women,” James A. Haslam II, chairman and founder of Pilot Corp., said in a statement.
On April 17, the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve presented Pilot Travel Centers with an Above and Beyond Award for its support of the Army Reserve. The award is scheduled to be presented at 2 p.m. today at Pilot Corp. headquarters, 5508 Lonas Road.
One of the service members who has received one of the donated calling cards is Sgt. Lilian Caparo Ariza, who is on medical leave at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., after being wounded in Iraq.
For Ariza, the free card provided a chance to stay connected to her loved ones while she is recuperating.
“My aging father has been ill for the past three months, and it has been very important to me to stay in constant contact with him and with my brothers and sisters as well,” Ariza said in an e-mail statement released by Pilot. “There was not a greater gift than hearing the voice of your beloved ones, in times of sorrow, when seeking comfort, reassuring faith or even regaining hope.”
Ariza is a resident of California, but her father lives in Lima, Peru. A phone call is the only way she is able to stay in touch with her family.
Pilot also supports its own employees who are members of the National Guard and Army Reserve by offering differential pay. If these employees are called to duty, Pilot makes up for any difference in pay from their usual salary while they are away from their job.
“Differential pay ensures that the Pilot employees’ service to the country does not harm their usual pay or ability to support their families,” said Parmly. “I am very proud to work for a company that supports our service men and women, both through this donation and through our company policies.”
The Pilot Volunteers, a group of Pilot employees, decided who would receive the phone card donations. The Pilot Volunteers log approximately 2,000 volunteer hours each year, and members have worked with all the charities that received a phone card donation.
Pilot is the largest operator of travel centers in the U.S. with more than 300 locations in 40 states. In 2006, Pilot entered the international market opening a travel center in Tilbury, Ontario, Canada.
Ellie
Nwes Sentinel staff
Originally published 10:49 a.m., April 17, 2008
Updated 10:49 a.m., April 17, 2008
Pilot Travel Centers recently donated $178,000 worth of prepaid phone cards to area charities and the military, the Knoxville based company announced today.
Most of the cards — $125,000 worth — went to members of the Army, Navy, Marines and Air National Guard who are currently serving overseas, are preparing to be deployed or who have been wounded, as well as to their families.
Also receiving donations were East Tennessee Children’s Hospital, Knoxville Area Rescue Ministry and Salvation Army of Knoxville, which each received $15,000 worth of cards; and Ronald McDonald House of Knoxville, Mobile Meals, Hope for Healing and Knoxville Habitat for Humanity, which each received $2,000 worth of cards.
Military members and their families have already received the phone cards, John Dyess, Army Reserve ambassador for Tennessee, said in a news release.
“Soldiers serving overseas in Iraq have been able to keep in touch with their loved ones with the cards,” Dyess said.
“Pilot is proud and honored to have the opportunity to support these local charities and our service men and women,” James A. Haslam II, chairman and founder of Pilot Corp., said in a statement.
On April 17, the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve presented Pilot Travel Centers with an Above and Beyond Award for its support of the Army Reserve. The award is scheduled to be presented at 2 p.m. today at Pilot Corp. headquarters, 5508 Lonas Road.
One of the service members who has received one of the donated calling cards is Sgt. Lilian Caparo Ariza, who is on medical leave at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., after being wounded in Iraq.
For Ariza, the free card provided a chance to stay connected to her loved ones while she is recuperating.
“My aging father has been ill for the past three months, and it has been very important to me to stay in constant contact with him and with my brothers and sisters as well,” Ariza said in an e-mail statement released by Pilot. “There was not a greater gift than hearing the voice of your beloved ones, in times of sorrow, when seeking comfort, reassuring faith or even regaining hope.”
Ariza is a resident of California, but her father lives in Lima, Peru. A phone call is the only way she is able to stay in touch with her family.
Pilot also supports its own employees who are members of the National Guard and Army Reserve by offering differential pay. If these employees are called to duty, Pilot makes up for any difference in pay from their usual salary while they are away from their job.
“Differential pay ensures that the Pilot employees’ service to the country does not harm their usual pay or ability to support their families,” said Parmly. “I am very proud to work for a company that supports our service men and women, both through this donation and through our company policies.”
The Pilot Volunteers, a group of Pilot employees, decided who would receive the phone card donations. The Pilot Volunteers log approximately 2,000 volunteer hours each year, and members have worked with all the charities that received a phone card donation.
Pilot is the largest operator of travel centers in the U.S. with more than 300 locations in 40 states. In 2006, Pilot entered the international market opening a travel center in Tilbury, Ontario, Canada.
Ellie