It's Never Too Late

Here is a great article I came across:

Passavant home resident sees dream take flight

Sunday, September 21, 2008

By Kathleen Ganster

Darrell Sapp/Post-Gazette

Leola Zialkowski, 83, visits with passengers aboard a Southwest Airlines flight at Pittsburgh International Airport. The visit was part of Second Wind Dreams, which helps senior citizens realize lifelong dreams. Mrs. Zialkowski, of Passavant Retirement Home in Zelienople, had always wanted to be a flight attendant.

Passengers flying from Pittsburgh to Tampa Bay on a recent Southwest Airlines flight were more than surprised when they saw the brand new flight attendant helping them board. When the gate attendant asked them to "Welcome our honorary flight attendant, Leola Zialkowski," they rose from their seats and gave her a standing ovation.

Maybe it was because Mrs. Zialkowski is 83 and was finally fulfilling her lifelong goal to become an airline attendant. "I was just too short back then," she said of her younger days.

Mrs. Zialkowski is a resident of Passavant Retirement Community in Zelienople and was taking part in Second Wind Dreams, a program that helps senior citizens realize lifelong wishes. For Mrs. Zialkowski, it was becoming a flight attendant. At 5-foot-1, she didn't fulfill the height requirements the airlines had when she was younger.

"After we found out about her dream, I called Southwest Airlines," said Pat Goetz, director of Passavant's Community Life Program. "I had heard they are very customer-service oriented, so I thought I would start there."

It paid off. She was put in touch with Silia Holder, grounds operation manager at the airline's headquarters in Dallas. Ms. Holder not only made all of the arrangements with the airline for Mrs. Zialkowski to work, she also flew in from Dallas to oversee the experience.

"I couldn't believe it when [Mrs. Holder] called and said she was flying in," Mrs. Goetz said.

At the retirement community, arrangements were made for Mrs. Zialkowski to have her hair, makeup and nails done and then she was transported to Pittsburgh International Airport with her friend and fellow Passavant resident Delores Fruth and her two sons, Gary and Greg.

Once there, the airline gave Mrs. Zialkowski several gifts, including a smock that she immediately donned and filled the pockets with snacks to hand to the passengers. Mrs. Zialkowski, who uses a wheelchair, waited at the end of the entrance ramp, greeting passengers and giving them crackers and peanuts. "It was so much fun. I asked them what they wanted and just welcomed them," she said.

"It was wonderful. She was overwhelmed by the whole thing," said Mrs. Fruth, who is also on the committee for Second Wind Dreams. "Southwest Airlines went all out. It was just such a delightful day. ... And the passengers were just great. They all congratulated her."

After the passengers boarded, the airline took Mrs. Zialkowski on board and presented her with her wings. "I couldn't believe it. I just couldn't believe so much attention was being paid to me," she said.

Once her flight attendant duties were done, Ms. Holder and her colleagues from the Pittsburgh office of Southwest took Mrs. Zialkowski and her group to lunch.

Back home, Mrs. Zialkowski was eager to show her fellow residents the gifts Southwest had given her, including flowers, a balloon, T-shirts, the apron, a large teddy bear -- and the wings.

"I still have them on," she said.

Although she enjoyed the experience, once was enough. "I'm not applying for a job, but it sure was fun," she said.

Freelance writer Kathleen Ganster can be reached at suburbanliving@post-gazette.com.

First published on September 21, 2008 at 12:00 am

Flight Attendant Hiring

Unfortunately hiring for flight attendants has slowed down considerably. Here is an article about Alaska:
"STATEWIDE – Due to soaring fuel costs and a stalling economy, Alaska Airlines is cutting up to 1000 jobs, ten percent of its workforce. The layoffs affecting pilots, flight attendants, aircraft technicians, customer service agents, and ramp workers, will begin in November."

Fortunately for flight attendants, most airlines ask for voluntary leaves. There is usually more than enough flight attendants that are willing to take a leave, so the junior new hires aren't usually furloughed. If you get furloughed, when the airlines need to start hiring again, they first call back the flight attendants that are furloughed.

A new perspective

Our job can be very mundane. If you just walk through and serve the passengers. It is when you actually stop to hear or get to know someone's story that your job can be very interesting and inspire new perspective on life.

I was working a trip from Chicago to Atlanta. An Asian family with four children came on. Shortly after that two African twin boys came on. They were all very cute. I didn't give it a second thought until the gate agent called to tell me that the family of four kids weren't sitting together. She gave me two seats that were available together so that it might help get the family together. I went down to where the family was sitting. It took some convincing but finally people move around where at the family was a least all sitting with another family member. The eldest daughter originally was sitting in a middle seat by herself. As I was moving people around I could tell the Asian family didn't speak English. The young girl sitting by herself, when put by her father and given a window seat broke into a big smile. Happy to be with her father and by a window.

After take off I walked by the aisle where the father and eldest daughter were sitting and a passenger in the aisle seat stopped me and asked me to help the family out. He handed me papers they gave him and he said the family didn't speak English nor did they know where they were going. I took the papers and started reading one that stated the American government lent the family four thousand and six hundred plus dollars for their move from the Thai refugee camp they were living. It stated that they agreed to pay it back in 42 months at a rate of $128.00 a month until paid off. That's a lot of money for a refugee who doesn't speak the language and so can't get a job. I am sure they signed the papers with no concept on how much money they were borrowing. You can however, petition to extend the payment if there is a financial hardship.

I called the cockpit to send a request for assistance for the family once we landed. I went back to the family and could see how exhausted the family was. The kids were all pretty much passed out asleep in the seats. The parents were awake, but especially the father, the head of the household, looked confused and a little scared. I thought of how scary this must be to head to a foreign country with your family. Not know a word of the language or have ever seen the country your are about to move and become your new home. I tried to show them how to put their seats back. It was a challenge but they were able to figure it out. I showed the father where the reading light was, an although there wasn't food being served on the flight, I went up to first class and got extra breakfast cookies, pretzels and a bag of potato chips someone had left, and brought it to the family. I am sure all the food was very foreign to them. They did eat it all. We played it safe and gave them water and orange juice to drink. I handed the mother a pillow wrapped in plastic. She took it and toss it in the plastic on one of her sons. I then took the blanket and unwrapped the plastic off it to unfold the blanket so she could drape it on the baby and her son that was sleeping. Understanding that this was all new and foreign to them. I am sure this journey was their first time on an airplane and also the first time they were exposed to many stuff we take for granted.

Once we landed there wasn't any kind of assistance for the people at the gate. I called the number on a tag that was hanging on the mother's neck and spoke to their sponsor. We walked the family to baggage claim where their sponsor and someone who spoke their language was there to greet them ( I found out they were Burmese). The parents looked very relieved when they met the Burmese person to help them. They walked toward baggage claim with worried but not as confused or scared looks on their faces. The children oblivious to the fear of the unknown that they were about to live seem carefree and happy.

When we came off the airplane there was also another man that was a refugee that needed assistance. He was on our flight but there was never any attention brought to us that this man was a refugee. We brought him with us assuming that his sponsor would be there also to greet him. He spoke a little English. He traveled from Jordan to Frankfurt to Chicago to Atlanta and was exhausted. He had no family in the United States and was just by himself. When we got to the place where the Asian family's sponsor was, they had no idea where the man from Jordan was suppose to go, but they said they would help him out and figure it out.

My heart goes out to these people. It must be so confusing and scary to move to a foreign country where you barely speak or don't speak the language or know the culture. I know what it feels like to travel half way around the world and be exhausted and have to figure your way around a foreign country. My assumption is, since they are refugees, their home country must have been so bad that the United States gave them refugee status to come live here. I wanted to give the children hugs and welcome all of them to their new home, but they didn't understand English. I only hope that they only run into kind and caring people to help them out and adjust to their new home and life.

This family and this man are starting out new in a foreign country. Hopefully to better conditions from where they came, and hopefully to a happy and full filling lives.