Bridgewater Motorworks and Transworks sponsored a “compassion flight” for an ill 6-year-old girl and her mother from Philadelphia to Virginia through Patient AirLift Services, or PALS.
Patient AirLift Services (PALS) arranges free air transportation for medical care, special needs camps and other compelling human needs. The service helps people who cannot reach needed care because of the cost, or are too ill to fly commercially or drive long distances.
Six-year-old Charlotte Childers, accompanied by her mother, Catharine, scheduled PALS on a 3.5-hour flight from Philadelphia to Leesburg, Va. Charlotte has been diagnosed with Willi Prader Syndrome and severe scoliosis, complicating extended travel. Charlotte needs to travel from her home in Blacksburg, Virginia, to Shiner Hospital in Philadelphia.
The aircraft was piloted by Greg Burchette, owner of Bridgewater Motorworks, a PALS volunteer and a Hillsborough Township governing body member. Mr. Burchette has volunteered to complete compassion flights for four years. He has been piloting his own aircraft for a total of 12 years.