December 20, 2005
Hooters Air and Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority Help Dream Come True® Foundation Take Children to the North Pole

IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS….at the Lehigh Valley International Airport this year…especially for children from the Dream Come True® Foundation of the Lehigh Valley as they board the Polar Owl Express.

The Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority (LNAA), in conjunction with Hooters Air, Inc., have arranged to take 67 children from Dream Come True® to the North Pole this year for personal visits with Santa.

The flight will take place on Tuesday, December 20th, 2005. Hooters Air, operated by Pace Airlines, developed the concept and provided a 737-300 airplane, captain, first officer and flight crew. The Airport Authority donated the fuel, ground crew and ticket counter agents.

On Tuesday, December 20th, at approximately 5:15 p.m., The “Polar Owl Express Flight 2005” will officially depart from the Lehigh Valley International Airport on its inaugural run. The Dream children, elves, reporters and broadcasters will make the long trip to the North Pole.

From official carry-on luggage provided by Binney & Smith to antlers, jingle bells and more, the children will board the 737-300 bound for the North Pole. In flight, they will be treated to cookies and milk and a reading of “The Night Before Christmas.” Upon reaching the North Pole headquarters of the jolly one, children will have the opportunity to have their photo taken with the volunteer crew before departing the jetliner. Once on ground, they will be greeted by a cast of characters such as “Tip the Crayon," elves, and fairy princesses, to name a few. They will see to it that the children are fed a hearty meal. Before Santa will his appearance, the children will be entertained by the Liberty High School Bagpipers and the South Mountain Middle School Kaleidoscope Show Choir.

Santa and Mrs. Claus will arrive in grand style on the top of a LNAA fire engine and proceed to the party. There, each child will have a chance to whisper a wish in his ear, have their photo taken, and receive a goody bag filled with gifts and surprises. Santa, Mrs. Claus and his fairy princess will reveal the clue as to how the children will return to the Lehigh Valley!!!

The project has been a labor of love for the Dream Come True® Foundation and all aspects of airport operations who could not have done the job without the assistance of the following businesses: Hooters Air, Inc., Lehigh Valley International Airport, Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority, Binney & Smith, The Crossings, CPG Partners, Inc., Macy’s, Sacred Heart Hospital, Wal-Mart (Whitehall), Just Born, Great Wolf Lodge, Lehigh Valley Magazine, Emmaus Bakery, Lehigh Valley Dairy, Bicycling Magazine (Rodale Press), Allentown FOP and Alvarez Orthodontics.