The Log Book is a weekly rundown of human-interest stories related to the transportation industry. This week: Russia-based Aviacon brings animals of U.S. troops and contractors from Kabul to Canada; Averitt Express raises over $1 million for St. Jude; and FedEx launches its HBCU student ambassador program.
Aviacon Zitotrans transports pets from Kabul to Canada
Russia-based air transportation provider Aviacon Zitotrans announced this week that it had completed a safe withdrawal of more than 300 pets from Kabul, Afghanistan, that were left behind during American troop evacuation of the region.
The transport mission was in partnership with Kabul Small Animal Rescue (KSAR), a small veterinary clinic run by U.S. citizen Charlotte Maxwell-Jones, who had been caring for the animals since their owners, U.S. troops and contractors and other Western diplomats, left the city in August.
Labeled Mission Possible, Maxwell-Jones, two veterinarians and a cargo crew loaded 146 cats and 171 dogs into a Ilyushin IL-76 in a process Maxwell-Jones called “cat-crate Tetris.”
The vets and a few volunteers stayed onboard for the flight to help feed, water and clean the animals as they traveled from Kabul to British Columbia with two layovers in Turkey and Iceland.
After arriving in Canada, the animals were transferred to a specially built facility at the Vancouver International Airport to begin reuniting the pets with their owners.
Averitt Express raises over $1M for St. Jude
Freight transportation and supply chain services company Averitt Express announced this week that the company set a record in 2021 by raising $1.05 million for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Over the past year, Averitt employees participated in the company’s Cares for Kids program by donating $1 a week to either St. Jude or an important cause of their choice. For every dollar an employee gives, Averitt Express matches that gift toward the charity of choice in that employee’s honor.
The Averitt Cares for Kids campaign began in 1987 and has raised more than $13 million; $10 million has gone to St. Jude, including a $1.5 million endowment that was set up this year to help with the construction of the St. Jude Leukemia and Lymphoma Clinic within the Memphis, Tennessee-based hospital.
“I continue to be amazed by our associates’ giving spirit and how they always rise to the occasion,” said Gary Sasser, Averitt’s chairman and chief executive officer. “For 50 years, our team has been committed to helping others and our partnership with St. Jude is an important way we do that. We also continue to remember how each person can make a difference — we call it ‘The Power of One’ — and that’s why we add the extra dollar to our donations.”
The Cares for Kids program also has supported Ronald McDonald Houses, American Red Cross, Leukemia Society and the Special Olympics.
FedEx launches student ambassador program at HBCUs
Multinational shipping services company FedEx announced it has launched a student ambassador program that will focus on preparing students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) to be future leaders and entrepreneurs. Students will be attending Jackson State University, Tennessee State University, LeMoyne-Owen College, Mississippi Valley State University, Lane College, Paul Quinn College, Miles College or Fayetteville State University.
Starting in March, the first student group will be part of both virtual and hybrid meetings and participate in seminars focusing on subjects including e-commerce, sustainability, technology, marketing, communications, sales, data analytics and operations.
FedEx hopes that these student ambassadors will, over time, help improve the diversity of the company’s talent pool and prepare individuals to take on leadership roles.
“The FedEx-HBCU student ambassador program will continue to strengthen our important relationships with HBCUs across the country,” said Judy Edge, corporate vice president of human resources at FedEx. “We’re preparing tomorrow’s leaders, and the students we reach through this program will gain valuable practical experience that will help prepare them to enter the workforce. It will also help us to continue to bring diverse talent into our pipeline at FedEx.”
In honor of Black History Month, student ambassadors and HBCU school presidents joined FedEx leaders on Feb. 1 to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange.
Watch now: Recapping last weeks Log Book – February 2, 2022
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