FedEx : Delivering Thanks 2017

November 28, 2017

We're delivering thanks to some of our amazing team members who have gone above and beyond to help their neighbors in times of need.

People First Philosophy | Lifesaving Actions | Going the Extra Mile

People First Philosophy

[Attachment] Glenn Dunlap - Miami, FL

Senior Manager volunteers for Hurricane Irma Relief

Glenn Dunlap, FedEx Express Senior Manager of Ramp Operations in Miami, responded to Hurricane Irma's destruction by springing into action to help those in need. First, he volunteered to help the relief effort for a retirement community in Everglades City. Then, he spent all day Saturday and Sunday delivering food and water, removing mud from homes, clearing away debris and moving disabled vehicles.

He also worked with the local Sheriff's Office assisting several people who had experienced great loss. Glenn's compassion and commitment to his community perfectly exemplify what being a humanitarian is all about.

In addition to an individual Humanitarian Award, Glenn is also a member of a group Purple Promise Award and a group Humanitarian Award this year.

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[Attachment]Jorge Vasquez - Industry, California

One veteran honors another

FedEx Ground senior operations administrator Jorge Vasquez served eight years in the U.S. Navy, so it's no surprise that he stepped in to find the proper destination for a World War II-designated copper grave plaque that came through the hub.

'Every item is important, but something like that makes you stop and think,' Jorge says. He picked up the plaque and began to research the name in raised letters. 'I contacted the Department of Veterans Affairs,' he explains. 'Eventually, I learned the gentleman was from a small mining town in Arizona. As a young man, he joined the U.S. Air Force and served as a fighter pilot during World War II in the Pacific.'

Jorge contacted the town's cemetery, confirmed the gravesite and repacked and shipped the plaque to them for placement. During the week-long process, Jorge was reminded of the sacrifice soldiers make when they serve. 'The WWII plaque was meaningful for me personally,' says Jorge. 'It was about giving a veteran the recognition he deserved for the time he served his country.'

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[Attachment]Byron Boquet - Orlando, FL

Traveling chefs serve Hurricane Harvey relief

FedEx Express courier Byron Boquet also happens to be a chef, a skill he put to use after Hurricane Harvey. Byron's friend and fellow chef, Bob Getchell, asked if he would be willing to accompany him to Texas to prepare food for victims of Hurricane Harvey. Byron was granted the time off, and the two-man cooking crew loaded up more than 10,000 pounds of meat for the drive to Houston's NRG stadium.

Working alongside the American Red Cross, Byron helped serve more than 50,000 people in two weeks, and his selfless efforts didn't end there. The two then headed to hard-hit Beaumont, Texas, where they served meals to residents and emergency personnel. They also set up food deliveries to law enforcement personnel at emergency response mobile units.

Overall, Byron and Bob helped serve more than 40,000 pounds of food to about 55,000 people in the Houston and Beaumont areas during the early weeks of the Harvey relief effort.

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[Attachment]Scott Guy - Memphis, TN

Operation Barbecue for Hurricane Irma relief

When FedEx Express Aviation Maintenance Technician Scott Guy heard that the Florida Keys had been devastated by Hurricane Irma, he wanted to help.

Knowing that residents were attempting to salvage their homes in conditions with almost no food, no drinkable water and no necessary supplies, Scott made an official request for FedEx to support Operation Barbecue Relief and fly in meals for residents and responders in the Florida Keys. His company, he reasoned, was in a unique position to support the effort because it was still nearly impossible to reach the Keys by road.

Scott's idea was approved and implemented using FedEx Caravan feeder aircraft operating two flights a day from Fort Myers to Marathon Key. With the support of Operations Managers Julian Cazanas and Scott Zegarelli and their teams, Scott's efforts with Operation Barbecue Relief airlifted close to 40,000 meals to the disaster-stricken area.

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Lifesaving Actions

[Attachment] Allie Martinez - Houston, TX

Manager performs Hurricane Harvey rescues

When Hurricane Harvey rolled through Houston, FedEx Express Ramp Operations Manager Allie Martinez took in a family who had been flooded out of their home, and that was just the start of her exploits as a one-woman rescue team. Using a boat, she managed to evacuate five other families whose homes had been completely flooded.

Allie also towed a number of cars out of her subdivision to get them out of the flood waters, and helped pump water out of flooded homes in her neighborhood.

Last but not least, she went to the grocery store by kayak to procure and deliver food for those in need. It goes without saying that Allie is the kind of neighbor we would all like to have.

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[Attachment ]Bryce Neilson - Butte, Montana

FedEx Freight driver rescues fellow driver

In 2015, FedEx Freight driver Bryce Neilson received his first FedEx Humanitarian Award for rescuing a pregnant woman from freezing to death after a car accident.

This year, a semi-truck full of liquid oxygen rolled over in front of him and Bryce once again didn't hesitate to pull over and help. Using his previous experience as a volunteer firefighter, Bryce worked with the paramedics to rescue the driver from the truck cab.

'It's your family driving next to us,' says Bryce of the other drivers on his routes. For this effort, Bryce received his second Humanitarian Award.

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[Attachmen t]William 'Blake' Carter - Memphis, TN

FedEx Freight driver stops to help after a head-on collision

FedEx Freight driver Blake Carter witnessed a head-on collision on his way home from work one day.

Blake immediately pulled over and rescued one of the passengers from his vehicle, checked on the others, and stayed with all of them until the paramedics arrived.

'Like I tell everybody, if my family were in that accident, I would expect the same thing,' said Blake.

For his heroic actions, Blake received a Humanitarian award, and we deliver thanks for his willingness to serve.

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[Attachme nt]James Cutler - Las Vegas, Nevada

Courier helps to rescue individuals from an overturned car

James Cutler, a FedEx Express courier/swing driver, was sitting in the passenger seat of another courier's vehicle when he witnessed a terrifying sight. As they came up behind a large tractor-trailer, a smaller car went speeding past, attempting to pass the large truck.

The speeding car suddenly lost control, ran off the highway, and flipped over. The couriers pulled off to the side of the road and James rushed to the overturned car. Both people inside were in shock and very reluctant to get out of the car.

Seeing flames in the vehicle, James knew what had to be done - and fast. He got the two stunned, confused victims to safety by convincing them they had to move. He had to pull one of them from the car. A short time later, the vehicle was engulfed in flames. According to the EMT's who later arrived on the scene, James' brave actions saved two people's lives that day.

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Ed Martinez, Daniel Erickson & Stephen Rodriguez - Houston, TX

Houston Team Members Rescue Numerous Hurricane Victims

FedEx Express Ramp Operations Manager Ed Martinez and couriers Daniel Erickson and Stephen Rodriguez were three of the many Houston area FedEx team members who stepped up to serve others after Hurricane Harvey.

After losing his own home to the hurricane, Ed Martinez called his friends together to put a pontoon boat in the water and volunteer with local teams to rescue 19 families. During these rescue efforts, Ed also transported firefighters and paramedics to a paraplegic individual's home to evacuate him safely.

For five days after Hurricane Harvey, Daniel Erickson assisted local firefighters in evacuating an estimated 300 people. Among those were several residents of a nursing home who would not have been able to evacuate the area of life-threatening flooding without help.

During the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, Stephen Rodriguez also volunteered his time and his boat to help with rescue efforts. Sunday through Wednesday night, Stephen sometimes worked until the early hours of the morning helping trapped and stranded citizens. Over a four-day period, Stephen rescued 94 people from their homes.

For their heroic work during the Houston community's time of need, these team members received well-deserved Humanitarian Awards.

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Jazmin Hernandez - Chino, California

[Attachm ent]Injured motorcyclist receives quick, competent aid

Traffic came to a sudden halt as FedEx Ground Operations Manager Jazmin Hernandez was driving on a busy highway.

As she inched along, Jazmin discovered the reason for the abrupt slow down: a motorcyclist was pinned under his bike. Two bystanders were already on the scene when Jazmin pulled over to assist and called 9-1-1. As the two bystanders were attempting to help the injured man to stand, Jazmin intervened. She explained how important it was for the victim to remain undisturbed until he could be treated by medical professionals.

While they waited, Jazmin assessed the injured man's condition and was able to make a full report to paramedics as soon they arrived.

Thanks to her quick thinking and first aid training, as well as her leadership skills, the victim received quick and thorough medical treatment. Jazmin received the FedEx Ground Humanitarian Award for assisting a stranger in a time of need.

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Pedro Thomas - Santa Catarina, Brazil

One day this past October, FedEx Express Courier Pedro Thomas was on route in Florianópolis City when a gentleman in the car in front of him started having a heart attack. Noticing that something was wrong, Pedro didn't think twice about pulling over and getting out of his van. After assessing the situation, Pedro began to perform heart massage for 15 minutes until a rescue crew arrived.

Paramedics informed Pedro that if wasn't for him, the individual would have passed away before they came with the defibrillator.

Thanks to Pedro's heroic actions, the gentleman was able to undergo a lifesaving surgery, and was soon awake, walking and talking to his loved ones. When Pedro's station manager Robert Schoneweg talked to the man´s wife, she was especially gratefully to learn that her husband had been saved by a complete stranger passing by on his route.

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Going the Extra Mile

[Attach ment]Karen Roberts-Ashline & Pompano Beach, FL Station Team Members

Pompano Beach team gets their station back on track after Hurricane Irma

In the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, FedEx Ground senior manager Karen Roberts-Ashline and her team went above and beyond to get their station fully functioning as quickly as possible.

As soon as the roads to the station were clear, Karen and assistant managers Luc Van Tricht and James W Delph were there cutting trees, moving debris and clearing walkways to gain access to the facility. The maintenance team under Dwayne Jackson were also there assessing and repairing damage, including shoring up the roof so continued rain did not enter the facility, testing sortation systems, addressing outages and powering the station on generators to continue operations.

Brandon Gagnon, Karlyde Johnson and Victoria Owens ensured that every vehicle was safe in the facility the Friday before, then moved every vehicle back to their staged positions to ensure dispatch would be seamless. They too helped clear debris and also reached out to the station's teams to ensure everyone's safety.

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[Attac hment]Chucky-Rei Austria - Pasay City, Philippines

Customs support rep ensures surgery stays on schedule

When FedEx Express Senior Customs Support Representative Chucky-Rei Austria learned that a surgery depended on the arrival of a medical shipment currently in customs, he knew the package absolutely needed to arrive that day. The shipment did not clear Philippines customs until 5:30 that evening.

After attempting to arrange an after-hours delivery, Chucky decided to hand deliver the shipment himself. He then rode to the location nearly 90 minutes away and personally made the delivery.

Thanks to Chucky's efforts, the surgery could happen in a timely manner and both the patient and surgical staff were extremely grateful.

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[Atta chment]Carlo Diana - San Giovanni Lupatoto, Italy

A Christmas Day hospital delivery

While FedEx Express Operations Manager Carlo Diana was having Christmas Eve dinner with his family, he received a request for an urgent delivery.

A medical shipment had not been delivered earlier in the day because the local hospital's warehouse was closed. Recognizing the importance of the shipment, Carlo excused himself from his family's holiday gathering and returned to the station to retrieve the package just after midnight.

On Christmas day, Carlo successfully delivered the medical shipment directly to the hospital.

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[Att achment]Michael McGrath - Honolulu, HI

All weddings need a ring

An email alerted FedEx Express Ramp Manager Mike McGrath that an inbound package containing a wedding ring had been upgraded to Saturday delivery for a wedding later that day.

The plane was scheduled to land at 7:30 in the morning in Honolulu, but the wedding was on Maui, and there was no Saturday service to the island.

When Mike realized the only way to get the ring to Maui that day would be to take it himself on a commercial flight, he didn't hesitate to get the necessary approvals and book the trip. After delivering the ring to the tearful and overjoyed bride at the Maui airport, Mike raced back through the terminal just in time to catch the return flight.

A member of the flight crew who had noticed his mission remarked, 'That must have been an important package.' Mike replied, 'Yes it was, but then they're all important.' Later that night, he received a text message photo of a sparkling ring on the hand of a happy bride, who promised she would be a FedEx customer for life.

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[At tachment]Patricia Marcelline - Mississauga, Canada

Customer service rep hand delivers EpiPen for Kindergartener

While attempting to locate a shipment for a customer, FedEx Express Customer Service Representative Patricia Marcelline discovered the package contained an EpiPen.

The customer explained that her son would not be able to start kindergarten without it. When it became clear that the package wouldn't arrive in time for the child's first day of school, Patricia took matters into her own hands.

On the Saturday morning of Labor Day weekend, she drove 67 miles from her home to the shipper's location. With the replacement EpiPen, she then drove another 26 miles to deliver the vital shipment to the customer. The grateful mother later said this of Patricia's selfless act, 'Patricia went above and beyond to help me get this package on time. I am now FedEx for life.'

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