Angel Bus

Jerry Hardacre shared the following information about an opportunity for persons who have a coach to help others.  Angel Bus is an organization that helps people who have a medical condition and limited resources to get to a distant facility for specialized medical care.  For many of these folks, a motor home is the ideal mode

to make this trip. The purpose of Angel Bus is to identify these people and put them together with volunteer motor home owner/drivers who can provide the needed transportation. 

There are three different organizations involved.  They are the Angel Bus itself, the FMCA Angel Bus chapter, and the Angel Bus Support Group.The actual missions (trips) are run by Angel Bus. They ensure that the passengers actually need the mission, that their condition will not be worsened by it, and that the driver is qualified. Angel Bus actually plans the mission and informs everyone involved as to the schedule. The Angel Bus chapter will be an FMCA social chapter that is part of the International Area. Rallies and meetings will be held where member can share their experiences and have a good time. In addition to having fun and meeting folks who have a common interest, they will also have a mission of recruiting new motor home owners for both Angel Bus and the chapter. Anyone is welcome to join any, or all, of these three groups.

Angel Bus started in 2000 and regularly conducted missions, where bus conversion owners provided transportation for people who had serious medical problems and had to get to a distant hospital or get back home. Mercy Medical Airlift currently is managing missions and has established a web site for Angel Bus at http://www.angel-bus.org/. If you have any interest in running a mission you should check out
the "Volunteer Handbook" section on the site. It should answer most of your questions.

SOME KEY POINTS

• Angel Bus volunteer drivers only provide transportation, not food or medical assistance.
• Most passengers, including all children, will be accompanied by an assistant (parent).
• Each volunteer will be thoroughly briefed on each mission before committing to it.
• Each volunteer has the right to refuse any mission for any (or no) reason.
• Trips more than 500 miles are usually arranged in a relay with additional volunteers.
• Most volunteers will be offered about one mission a year unless they ask for more.
• In most cases, each mission will begin or end near the volunteer's home.
• Angel Bus and FMCA are not affiliated with each other.
• You must be an FMCA member to belong to the chapter.
• Chapter membership does not require that you are an Angel Bus volunteer.
• Angel Bus is a 501(C)(3) charity and all expenses are tax deductible.
• By joining Angel Bus, you too can experience the personal satisfaction of knowing that you helped make a significant difference in someone's life.

If you have an interest in assisting  in this worthwhile endeavor contact Jerry Hardacre:
jhardmailto:jhard1138@gmail.com