Atlantica - 01.05.2007, Page 104

103
ICELANDAIR AT WORK
70 Children Receive Grants From the
Special Children Travel Fund
Icelandair and Design District Helsinki
Icelandair has become a member of the Helsinki Design District and its goal is to
become the first choice for Nordic, European and American designers when cross-
ing the Atlantic. "It is a great honor to co-operate with design professionals and
as our office is located in the heart of the Design District in Helsinki, this was a
natural choice for us. We want to offer fashion- and design-interested travelers the
possibility of a stopover in Iceland," says Helsinki-based Pekka Mäkinen, Icelandair
General Manager for Finland, Russia and the Baltics. Icelandair has had great success
with its stopover in Iceland option. The stopover has evolved from being a techni-
cal necessity in the 1970s to becoming a trendy option for those traveling with
Icelandair across the Atlantic.
Design District Helsinki is a neighborhood for design lovers. It incorporates 25
streets and more than 140 locations, from shops to galleries and from design studios
to design hotels. It is creativity, uniqueness, exoticism, design and Finnish city culture.
The District offers something new all the time: new tastes, novelties to buy, aesthetic
experiences and events from exhibitions to club nights. Helsinki is a design city and
the Design District is its heart. More details may be found at designdistrict.fi.
This year, in celebration of Icelandair’s 70th anniver-
sary, 70 children and their families will receive grants
from the Special Children Travel Fund. Grants are
awarded twice a year, with the first one being awarded
on the First Day of Summer, which marks the official
beginning of summer according to the old Icelandic
calendar.
The main objective of the fund is to help children
suffering from long-term illnesses or other diffi-
cult circumstances to see something of the world.
"Whether it is Disney World in Florida or the Tivoli
in Copenhagen, these trips give families memories
that are cherished. The Fund gives us at Icelandair and
our customers a chance to make a difference in these
children's lives. It is important for the whole family to
be able to travel together and for all expenses to be
covered by the Icelandair Travel Fund," says Sigurdur
Helgason, former President and CEO of Icelandair.
The fund has been an unqualified success since
it was founded by Icelandair in 2003. Funded by
contributions from Icelandair and the generosity
of Icelandair passengers, this year it will give more
children than ever the opportunity to travel. Having
reviewed applications from the first half of the year,
the selection committee awarded grants to children
and their families in Iceland and the United States. This
marks the first time that children in the United States
have been awarded a grant by the fund. Applications
are welcomed from children in all of the countries
that Icelandair serves.
All information regarding the Special Children Fund
may be found on the fund’s website vildarborn.is.