Qantas 2004 Annual Report Download - page 32

As Australia’s national carrier, Qantas has always taken pride
in supporting the Australian community.
In 2004, Qantas launched Sharing the Spirit, an extensive
program of events and activities aimed at bringing Australian
people together – connecting the city with regional Australia
and the bush, connecting young people with their futures
and connecting Qantas staff and customers with their
families and the broader community.
Sharing the Spirit extends the airline’s support of charities,
arts and sporting organisations by building on existing
initiatives and launching new projects such as:
regional and outback performances by Qantas sponsored
arts and performance groups;
the Qantas Spirit of Youth Awards, a way of nurturing
and mentoring talent in a diverse range of creative
fields
including business, tourism, industrial design,
photography, music, writing, film and fashion design;
and
opportunities for Frequent Flyers to attend special
functions and events such as the series of fundraising
dinners hosted by Qantas Ambassador-at-Large, John
Travolta, in May 2004.
Sharing the Spirit benefits five charitable organisations –
CanTeen, CARE Australia, Mission Australia, the Starlight
Children’s Foundation of Australia and UNICEF – and is a
long-term commitment by Qantas to the future of Australia.
During the year, Qantas continued its support for UNICEF
through the Change for Good program, which raises money
for the world’s poorest children by collecting foreign currency
from airline customers. Qantas was the first airline to take
part in the program. Change for Good is now the global
charity for oneworld alliance airlines and a total of US$40
million is expected to have been raised for the cause by the
end of 2004. In June 2004, donations from Qantas
customers passed $10 million. Qantas today collects more
in one month for Change for Good than was raised in the
program’s first year.
While Qantas customers do so much for UNICEF, Qantas
staff also donate their time and efforts to raising funds for
a range of causes through groups such as Pathfinders
and the Qantas Cabin Crew Team.
In October and November 2003, Qantas fulfilled its role,
alongside British Airways, as the Official Airline for one
of the world’s biggest sporting events – Rugby World Cup
2003. Qantas flew players, officials and tens of thousands
of fans into and around Australia in an enormous logistical
effort that was crucial to the successful running of
the tournament.
Qantas has been the Official Airline of the Australian
national rugby team – the Wallabies – for many years
and earlier this year the airline extended its support for
the game when it became naming rights sponsor of the
team up to and including the 2007 Rugby World Cup.
30 Qantas Annual Report 2004
Our Community
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