OPA-LOCKA, FLA. (WSVN) - Some very special children got the chance to soar through the skies above Opa-locka as part of a unique program.
Volunteer pilots at Miami-Opa Locka Executive Airport gave children with special needs and their families a chance to take a free airplane ride on Saturday, thanks to the nonprofit Vital Flight.
The organization gave back to the community with the annual celebration.
“This is what we call ‘a special day for special kids,'” said Vital Flight pilot Michael Coviello. “As an organization, we take special needs children and their families on a special event trip up and down the beach, as a way of giving them a special day and a way for us to get some community recognition and who we are because of what we do the remainder of the year.”
Vital Flight’s goal is to share the thrill of flying with these families, and in the process give them some relief from their daily struggles.
“My favorite part is going part on the runway and flying,” said Spencer Fagen, who took part in one of the flights.
“My son loves airplanes, and he really gets the experience of going into the cockpit and flying the plane,” said his mother, Kara Fagen, “and it’s just like a day that he gets to be himself, and no one looks at him. He just enjoys the day, and I don’t have any worries because everyone is the same here.”
When asked what is the takeaway from the event is, Coviello said, “We’re all connected. We’re all one — as a community, as people. The more we’re able to connect and touch one another in some way or another that helps move people forward, is the ultimate gift that we can give to one another as people.”
During the rest of the year, Vital Flight provides free flights for humanitarian and medical needs.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.