Southwest Airlines Community

Don’t forget Sunday, June 21 is Father’s Day! Here are some ideas on how to green up and say thank you to that special man in your life: DIY Ties: Does the special man in your life have a collection of ties he doesn’t use anymore? If so, did you know you can repurpose them as a gift?  Make them into a rug, a cloth stool, a key chain, or a drink koozie.   Green Gifts: If you aren’t looking to DIY this Father’s Day there are many Eco-friendly gifts out there.  Etsy artists are ready for you with tree branch coasters and recycled leather wallets. You can finish with a green touch by using old cereal boxes and newspaper to wrap your Father’s Day gift. Eco-Savy Shaving: There are more than two billion disposable razors bought every year in the United States that go directly to landfills.  To produce less waste, help wean your dad off disposable razors by buying him an old fashioned straight razor or a safety razor.  Instead of getting him generic shaving cream that pollutes the water, try a clean alternative like coconut oil or use an ecofriendly brand like Pacific Shaving Company. Green drinking:  If your dad is a beer connoisseur, there are many things he can do to be more green.  Buy local beer as a present to reduce the carbon footprint and look for the least amount of packaging.  You can also buy beer in bulk to lessen your carbon footprint by choosing kegs, or reusable growlers over bottles or cans.  To cut down waste even more, get him a home brewing kit as a gift. ... View more

It is the true month of Green with both Arbor Day and Earth Day taking place  in April, so here are some great ways to make your spring more eco-friendly: De-junk Green – During spring cleaning, remember to recycle everything you can!  Donate old clothes and household items to second hand stores, or your favorite charity.  Take your old electronics to an e-cycling center so it doesn’t end up in a place like the Electronic Waste Village in China: Skip the Rinse on your Dishes—Bypass rinsing those dirty dishes before using your dishwasher and you can save up to 20 gallons of water per load. Plus, you will save on energy used to heat the additional water, and you’ll save the commodity we can all use more of, time! Styro-no:   Avoid Styrofoam at all costs as it is non-biodegradable and in many places this material is not recyclable.  The production of Styrofoam releases pollutants into the air along with liquid and solid waste.  These chemicals that contribute to toxic waste can also be released into your food when microwaved in a Styrofoam container! Turn off Computers at Night—If you work at a computer, turn off your computer before leaving for the day.  If you don’t want to wait for it to come on in the morning, you can set it to turn on before you get to work. By making this small change in your daily routine, you can save around 40 watt-hours per day. This can add to about $14 per year, so imagine if we all did this! ... View more

St. Patrick’s Day is coming up Tuesday, March 17, so we are here to help you plan for your big green day celebration! 1)      Eat Green: Make your own green homemade dye instead of using artificial food coloring.  Many artificial dyes come from petroleum, so make your own using spinach powder, wheat grass juice, spinach juice, parsley juice, or parsley powder. 2)      Drink Green: Every St. Patrick’s Day, more than 13 million pints of Guinness is consumed.  Do your part and recycle any bottles or cans, or choose draft over bottles to conserve more.  Better yet, choose an eco-friendly beer such as Fat Tire beer, which we happen to serve onboard! 3)      Celebrate Green: If you plan to attend a local party or event, look for planet friendly items such as green decorations, cups, and more! Green Party Goods offers eco-friendly party supplies and gifts. 4)      Kid-Friendly Green Crafts: Recycle those extra wine corks you have around the house and create shamrocks. Glue together three or four wine corks, dip in green paint, and happy stamping!  Still have green tissue paper from Christmas?  Use the tissue to create a shamrock on paper. How do you plan to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?  Let us know by commenting below and may the luck of the Irish be with you! ... View more

Beginning October 13, Dallas Love Field is FREE!  The restrictions of the Wright Amendment will be gone, ushering in nonstop destinations that span from coast to coast.   Southwest has been counting down the years and weeks (literally—we have a billboard at the Love Field entrance and a countdown clock in our Headquarters lobby) until we can say, “Goodbye, Wright Amendment. Hello, America!"   We are excited to begin this new era by serving five new nonstop destinations on October 13, followed by ten additional new nonstop destinations on November 2.  The addition of these 15 new nonstop destinations will bring Southwest to a total of 31 nonstop destinations from Love Field. In anticipation of this momentous event, each week we will take a look at one of the cities North Texas Customers will be able to soon visit nonstop on Southwest.  Each post is written by a Southwest Employee who is affiliated with city and can give an insider’s view of what to see and do while visiting.  Enjoy! In 2006, I moved nearly 1,500 miles from Houston to Baltimore and started my career with Southwest.  It was such a different atmosphere to say the least!  I lived Downtown near the Inner Harbor, started attending Orioles games, and tried my first bite of Maryland blue crab.  While I have since moved to Dallas, I still visit every chance I get.  My husband and I try to attend O’s games throughout the year, including their last home game each September.  We cannot wait for nonstop flights!  It will be so much easier flying in to see our O’s play—an activity I recommend to every Baltimore traveler! In terms of daily departures, Baltimore/Washington is Southwest’s third busiest airport.  Birthplace to the great Babe Ruth, a wonderful waterfront, and a wide variety of art museums, Baltimore is a great place to explore on a summer day.  After living there for three years, I’m happy to recommend some fun things to do, see and eat (emphasis on the “eat”)! Your Baltimore to-do list: To Eat: Berger Cookies: Chocolate fudge-covered cookies that give the New York black and white cookie a run for their money.  These award-winning tasty treats can be found at some Baltimore grocery stores.  Grab some for dessert after dinner—and a few more for the cravings you’re sure to get when you get home from your trip. Baltimore Crab Crab cakes: There are many places to get crab cakes, and locals fight over which place is best.  You be the judge and try crab cakes at a couple different places.  Phillips Seafood in the Inner Harbor is very touristy, but a great place to start if you are staying in the area, or if you’re near the airport, G&M Restaurant & Lounge is a good option too! To Do: Camden Yards: Attending an Orioles’ game is a blast!  Tickets are reasonably priced, and Camden Yards offers fun events, give-a-ways or promotions at/for most games.  Wear your orange and cheer on “dem O’s, hon!” in typical Baltimore fashion. Camden Yards Fort McHenry: Best known for its role in the War of 1812, this star-shaped fort is a great place to discover.  The valiant defense of the fort inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that became our national anthem, so there are plenty of things to see and learn about.  The Fort’s grounds are also a great place to have a picnic and easily accessible by Water Taxi. To See: Vaccaro's Coffee Federal Hill: This area is technically a neighborhood, but it hosts a hill that provides an amazing view of the Inner Harbor.  Admire the scenery from the walkways and benches.  You’ll instantly recognize the view from many movies! Edgar Allan Poe’s grave site:  Resting in Westminster Burying Ground, Edgar Allan Poe is buried with his wife and her mother, a site viewable by the public.  After viewing his grave, be sure to stop by the Edgar Allan Poe House and The Museum, where Poe lived for some of his life.  Fun Fact: The Baltimore Ravens football team is named after the mythical bird from one of his famous poems. My City Secret: Vacarro’s Italian Pastry Shop: This cafe located in Little Italy is a must-visit for their delicious food and luxurious desserts!  Pick a scoop of gelato or a cannoli—everything is good! ... View more

Throughout April, we teamed up with the Student Conservation Association and other environmentally-minded organizations to focus our volunteer efforts on our planet by participating in hands-on conservation projects across the system. We had 30 cities “Spring into Action” and roll up their sleeves to give back in their communities and donated nearly $30,000 of volunteer time. Here are our five winners who earned four roundtrip tickets for their nonprofit organization, which can be used for staff travel or fundraising opportunities. BHM—Turkey Creek Nature Preserve  After learning that bees are close to becoming extinct, BHM volunteers at Turkey Creek Nature Preserve built a pollinator and planted plants that would attract bees and give them a place to pollinate! BNA—Friends of Beaman Park BNA Employees traveled more than 30 miles to the site to help clean out the wild flower garden, mulch, replant trees, and clean debris from the creek. They even hauled about 100 bags of mulch! DCA/IAD—Earth Day Project at Fort DuPont Park with Student Conservation Association DCA/IAD Employees partnered last year, and had such great success, they did it again this year, even bringing some of their family members out to help! They removed dead foliage, resurfaced plant bed areas, and planted flower and vegetable seeds at Fort DuPont Park. MKE—Earth Day Project at Washington Park with Student Conservation Association Even though Milwaukee still thought it was winter, MKE Employees cleared two acres of brush at Washington Park to prepare the land for the next generation of growth!  They also worked with inner city high school students to help them prepare for a summer internship. PIT—Earth Day Project at Point State Park with Student Conservation Association The PIT SWA Team cleaned up by raking and weeding sections of Point State Park in preparation for the native plants being introduced back into the park. Five other cities won a pair of roundtrip tickets for their nonprofit just for participating and turning in their volunteer information. Congratulations to BOI, CMH, DEN, HRL, and ICT! How do you give from the heart and give back to your community and the Planet? ... View more

At Southwest Airlines, we believe in giving from the heart—not just during the holidays, but all year-round.  Making a positive difference is part of our DNA—we may be an airline, but we do some of our best work on the ground. Of course, it's our Employees who serve our Customers and our communities with their Servant's Hearts every day who make us so successful. Back in November, we launched our “Season of Giving From the Heart,” a volunteer recognition initiative that runs through January 10, 2014.  We want to say thank you to our Employee volunteers, and what better way to do that than to reward the nonprofit organizations where our Employees give their time and their hearts. Each weekday we are drawing from our volunteer database one lucky nonprofit (at which our Employees have volunteered and recorded at least four volunteer hours) to win a pair of Southwest Airlines roundtrip tickets for use to offset their costs or raise funds. While we partner with a host of different nonprofit organizations, we are excited to use this unique way to recognize the organizations that our Employees have deemed personally meaningful.  Below is a list of the nonprofits who have won roundtrip tickets so far through this initiative. We’ve found that by giving from the heart, together we make far more of an impact! Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County The Southwest Volunteer staff that work our events are a joy to work with. They show up happy and are eager to dive right in to whatever assignment we give them. Most of them have been volunteering at our events longer than some employees and we are very happy with our partnership. Ronald McDonald House Houston For 30 years Southwest Airlines Employees have been an anchor at Ronald McDonald House Houston by cooking dinners the 2nd Tuesday of every month. Their dedication to our mission and their passion for our families is a testament to the spirit of giving.  They are a true partner and we look forward to another 30 years. St. Paul Lutheran School—Oak Lawn, IL Thank you again for this amazing gift!  We are very grateful for the volunteer work that your employees do for St. Paul.  They are an integral part of our school family and we appreciate the generosity of Southwest Airlines. St. Paul will use the tickets as part of our annual Dinner and Auction; with funds raised go to support three year old to eighth grade education.  Last year our dinner and auction raised over $20,000, which was used to add video projectors and televisions to all of our classrooms. We were also able to provide wireless access in our building. These are just three of the nonprofits that received a pair of tickets. Be on the lookout next week for more stories from the winning nonprofits about how these tickets can make such a huge difference. #LUVfromtheheart ... View more

Yes, you read that headline correctly! During Southwest’s “Month of Giving Back” in April, our Employees donated nearly $40,000 of volunteer time to the environment to make our communities a better place, benefitting more than 50 nonprofits across the nation. That’s enough time and money for a nonprofit organization to employ one staff member for an entire year!   To celebrate National Volunteer Week, we partnered with the Student Conservation Association, the National Wildlife Refuge Association, and other environmental nonprofit organizations to celebrate our Planet through hands-on conservation projects across the nation. Employees competed by location for the chance to give back even more to the organization where they volunteered their time with complimentary roundtrip tickets. I’m excited to announce our top four city winners who reported back the difference they made to keep the heart of their communities beating strong.  First Place (featured above): Team Richmond Gives Back to Maymont Park Team Richmond, along with family members and friends, helped with planting flowers and preserving the natural habitat for the future at Maymont Park. “The camaraderie of all participants demonstrated once again that success happens with teamwork.” - Team Captain and Customer Service Agent Taqui Johnson Second place: Team Dayton Helped Beautify Carriage Hill MetroPark “This was our first nationwide volunteer event to participate in as part of the Southwest Airlines Family, and we got to plant trees and acorns. We had volunteers from every department participate. We worked hard planting new trees, checked on small seedlings planted in previous years, fostered teamwork within our Station, had a lot of FUN, and celebrated our successes at the end of the day.”  The park consists of open grasslands, diverse successional areas, created ponds, wetlands, a 14-acre lake, and two forest tracts, which made for a very diverse experience.” - DAY Team Captain and Customer Service Agent Roxanna Gibson Third Place: Team ATL Mulched at Piedmont Park “To celebrate Piedmont Park’s 2013 expansion and the opening of our newest Southwest Porch at Park Tavern, we volunteered our time to help with the park’s mulching process.  It was so rewarding at the end of the day to see how we helped beautify OUR city!  It’s always a joy to work alongside my Coworkers, but to give back to our community together makes the moments we spend at our local park even more special.” – Team Lead and Customer Service Agent Pam Hilliary Fourth Place: Team FLL Cleaned Up North Hollywood Beach “It was a beautiful morning cleaning up the beach and removing marine debris.  We had a wonderful turnout from our Employees and their families. We made it just in time because the skies opened up with a torrential downpour after the cleanup!  - FLL Team Captain and Assistant Station Manager Anita Santiago Thanks to our Employees for giving from the heart and for participating in our spring Nationwide Volunteerism Campaign to make our communities a better place. At Southwest Airlines, it’s important for us to do our part and give back to the Planet.  It’s just another reason why I’m proud to work for the LUV airline! ... View more

What a great event and amazing display of Servant’s Hearts we saw at the volunteer event following our exciting announcement of Colorado One! More than 120 Southwest and AirTran Employees and their families rolled up their sleeves to help beautify Commons Park. Here’s a huge thank you to our partners at Denver Parks and Recreation for all their help! Here’s how we helped: Cut 20 cubic yards Removed 5 cubic yards of weed debris Removed 3 cubic yards of leaf debris Used 12 gallons of paint to update the railing and plaza Seeing my Co-Hearts, AirTran Employees, and the community come together for one purpose—to clean up Commons Park—is just one of the many reasons why I LUV my job and working for a Company that embraces giving back.  I’m already looking forward to the next opportunity to make a positive difference in the communities we serve. Wednesday, August 22 Mile High City, we are coming your way! Southwest Airlines and Denver Parks & Recreation have teamed up to show a strong commitment to the environment and passion for volunteering by sending nearly 200 Southwest Employees and community members to mulch trees, paint tables and benches, and pick up trash at Denver’s historic Commons Park.  Southwest Airlines is dedicated to Denver and to making a positive difference in the communities we serve.  Let us know your favorite part of Commons Park by commenting below! Update 3:20 P.M. Central Time Senior Vice President Culture & Comunications Ginger Hardage gets the crowd pumped for the Share the Spirit event.   Cutting down trees and working hard. ... View more

What do the following have in common: 7,000 decks of cards, 3,500 granola bars, over 10,000 bags of Southwest Airlines pretzels, 3,500 bags of popcorn, and 7,000 handy wipes?  These were some of the items featured in the 3,500 Armed Forces Foundation family kits created at all six of our Messages to the Field. This year over 400 Employee volunteers came early to each Message to help assemble family kits for the Armed Forces Foundation. These kits were donated to local families with a loved one serving in the military at one of the following locations: Phoenix kits went to Luke AFB; Orlando kits went to MacDill AFB; Baltimore’s were given to Fort Meade; Atlanta kits went to the Georgia National Guard; Chicago’s were presented to Jesse Brown VA Medical Center; and those from Dallas were sent to Fort Hood. The following is a story from Mary Mis, whose daughter works for the Armed Forces Foundation, and who helped our Employee assemble family kits at our Orlando Message to the Field: On February 2, 2012, Southwest Airlines Employees put together 500 Care Packages for the U.S. military in partnership with the Armed Forces Foundation.  My daughter works for AFF, and I was invited to help with this wonderful event.  As a spouse and a mother of a soldier, it was a very moving experience to see firsthand all the SWA Employees who volunteered their time and personal donations to put the care packages together. These care packages will be used for all branches of the military; and for unit members, their spouses and their dependents.  It was a pleasure to meet so many wonderful members of the SWA Team … thank you all so much for all you do and for your continued support of the U.S. military!   ... View more

  Last Thursday at The Thompson Center in Chicago, you might have seen a crowd of people hanging around the area listening to music and eating lunch…they weren’t just there to enjoy the famous Jean Dubuffet sculpture at the front entrance, even though it is nice to look at!  They were there because SWA just unveiled the Southwest Front Porch Chicago, our new temporary venue for Chicagoans to hangout and relax, listen to live music, enjoy free snacks and water, and plug into free WiFi on Thursdays in September.     Live music included Grammy-nominated artist Vanessa Carlton, who gave an amazing live performance during the Porch opening. You should have heard her sing her popular lyrics, “Cause You Know I’d Walk a Thousand Miles…” and the famous piano intro while performing A Thousand Miles surge through the area!     Many current and potential Customers stopped by to play a game of Bags, which was invented in Illinois, and tried to get the Bags Fly Free® suitcase into one of our popular destinations from Chicago—SEA, Bay Area, DEN and New York!  They also had a chance to win a pair of tickets anywhere we fly!   The purpose of the Southwest Front Porch Chicago is to educate Chicagoans on our 200+ flights to 50+ destinations out of Chicago Midway Airport and let them know we are dedicated to Chicago! As a thank you, all visitors were given a special ten percent discount coupon off their next flight! So if you happen to make it to The Thompson Center on a Thursday in September, please stop by to say, “Hello.”  We will be there from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. in our yellow shirts, so we will be hard to miss!   ... View more

You might have seen our blog post a few weeks back about the Chicago Cubs Trading Places with our Chicago Employees and meeting our Customers. (If you missed it, click here.) Now it’s your turn, Cubs fans! As the Proud Sponsor of the Chicago Cubs,  look for the Southwest Airlines yellow tent at Wrigley Field  at the corner of Addison & Sheffield this Monday from 3:30pm-5:30pm for your chance to win an on-field photo prior to the start of the game, Southwest Airlines tickets, and other prizes! The first 25 people to stop by with code word of “BAGS FLY FREE” will win one pair of Cubs tickets to the game, including a wristband to our pre-game party!  Stephanie Kinghorn and I look forward to seeing you there! GO CUBS GO! ... View more

The Northsiders come to the South Side Andrew Cashner and Justin Berg, both pitchers for the Chicago Cubs, “traded places” with Southwest Employees last week at Chicago’s Midway Airport. This was the first time Cubs players swapped places with Southwest Employees even though Southwest Airlines has been the proud sponsor of the Chicago Cubs for the past several seasons. I have participated in events like these all over the country, and we couldn’t have met two nicer guys! Justin helped a Customer sing Take Me Out to the Ballgame to help her win tickets to an upcoming Cubs game and signed autographs with a big grin to anyone who asked! Justin and Andrew signed autographs, helped board flights and played trivia. (Did you know that Andrew’s fastball clocks in at 102 mph?!)  Justin and Andrew with Southwest Airlines Employees celebrating after getting the flight out ontime! You never know who you might run into when you fly Southwest Airlines! GO CUBS! ... View more

Walking on stage to 1,200 screaming fans isn’t something I am used to, but Patrick Murphy, Ryan Lacey, Jessie Burns, Pete Purvis, and Steve Twigger from the band Gaelic Storm call it a normal night. Southwest Airlines sponsored Gaelic Storm's SOLD OUT show at The Pabst Theater in Milwaukee to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day! And what a St. Patty’s Day it was…two lucky winners at the concert and their guests won a pair of tickets anywhere Southwest Airlines flies, AND  they got to go backstage to hang with the band after the show! Here's the start of this  amazing show which Southwest Airlines sponsored! As a thank you from Southwest Airlines and Gaelic storm, click on the link for your FREE DOWNLOAD from their new CD “Cabbage” out soon http://www.gaelicstormdownload.com/     ... View more