Teamster Flight Attendant Helps Haitian Orphans

When Jeff Abney, a flight attendant for Shuttle America and member of Local 135 in Columbus, Ohio, first learned about the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that devastated Haiti on January 12, he knew he needed to do something, anything, to help the victims.

He had no idea that just five days later, he would be part of an extraordinary effort that helped change the lives of 53 Haitian orphans.

Abney’s journey began with a phone call. Republic Airways, which owns and operates Shuttle America, was in search of employees who were ready and willing to help in the relief effort.

The main goal of the operation was to safely transport Haitian children, whose orphanage was destroyed in the earthquake, to Pittsburgh. Once in Pittsburgh, the orphans would receive medical treatment and eventually be placed with families who had elected to adopt them.

When the call came in, Abney jumped at the opportunity to be part of a historic flight and to help those in desperate need.

“I didn’t even think. The first words out of my mouth were ‘yes,’” Abney said.

Less than 24 hours after he agreed to help earthquake victims, Abney was on a flight from Ohio to Pennsylvania. His first assignment was to help transport doctors, nurses, teachers and medical supplies from the United States to Haiti.

From Pennsylvania, Abney flew to Florida with a team of 30 medical professionals who were trying to make their way to the island nation. Packed on board were thousands of pounds of medical equipment, first-aid supplies and non-perishable food items for the Haitian people.

“We had 5,000 pounds of medical supplies, food and water on the aircraft—basically anything we could fit on the plane we took,” Abney said. “The overhead bins were packed with medical supplies.”

Destination: Pittsburgh

Once in Florida, the plan was for Shuttle America crews and medical personnel to fly to Haiti together, collect the orphans, and fly back to Pittsburgh. Federal in-flight laws, combined with the ground situation in Haiti, however, prevented that plan from happening.

Instead, the medical team switched aircraft and flew to Haiti leaving Abney and his co-workers behind in Florida.

Shuttle America employees weren’t idle for long, though. During the night, the U.S. Air Force had collected the orphans—as well as the American medical professionals—and flew them safely to Orlando.

It was the job of Republic Airways crews to take the group to Pittsburgh—and fast.

“The goal was to get the children out of Haiti and into the safety of the United States before more governmental red tape could prevent us from doing so,” Abney said.

Even with the whirlwind of activity and uncertainty of the situation, Abney was stunned when he landed in Orlando. Seeing the orphans for the first time is a sight he will not soon forget.

“The poor things were wrapped up in these nasty, yellow emergency blankets. A lot of them had no clothes; the clothes they had were just what they were able to find,” Abney said. “A lot of them didn’t understand English, but they were smiling.”

‘It Tore My Heart Apart’

During the six-hour flight, it was Abney’s job to help feed the children, who ranged in age from 2 to 14. Food was donated by the governor of Pennsylvania, Edward Rendell, who accompanied the children on the flight. Republic Airways partnered with American hospitals to donate toys to the children.

As he cut sandwiches and handed them out, Abney couldn’t help but notice how famished the children were. Many of them had had little to nothing to eat for nearly a week.

As he passed through the aisles, children pulled on his pant legs and shirt, begging for more food. Most were looking for food not for themselves, but for younger siblings and peers.

“It was as if survival skills set in. I saw older kids just eating the meat and bread from the sandwiches and giving what was left to the younger children,” Abney said. “They were all so young and it tore my heart apart.”

When he wasn’t handing out food, Abney did have an opportunity to bond with some of the children. Despite the donated toys, many of the orphans found his Republic Airways ID, which was on a retractable lanyard, most intriguing.

“This one little guy got a kick out of pulling my ID and letting it go,” Abney said. “It would whap me in the nose and this kid just laughed and laughed. It was good to see them happy, even if it was just for a few moments.”

Precious Moments

Though Abney shared some happy moments with the Haitian children, most of time he spent with them was somber and delicate.

Abney experienced a particularly touching moment when the children exited the aircraft in Pittsburgh. Before stepping out of the plane, a small girl handed Abney the only thing she owned: a stuffed koala that had been donated to her by the airline.

“I tried explaining to her that the koala was hers to keep,” Abney said. “But she handed it to me and said ‘thank you.’”

It is moments like those that will stay with Abney forever.

“I look back now and can’t believe how many things I have that I take for granted. I will never go to bed mad again; I will never overlook the smallest piece of food or take for granted the clothes I’m wearing,” he said. “There is so much out there that we can get mad at; but we never look at the other side of the fence and see a 3-year-old fending for himself, trying to find food. There are so many people who have it so much worse.”

Abney and his co-workers are donating all monies they make from the trip to the Haitian relief effort.