5 Ways To Give Back With Your United Airlines Frequent Flyer Miles

When most people think of frequent flier programs and airline miles/points, they think of booking flights or using their points for upgrades. But miles and points have many uses that also include paying for checked luggage, seat selection, inflight WiFi, and even inflight meals and/or beverages. Additionally, frequent fliers can use their points/miles to do good by supporting various organizations.

United Airlines’

MileagePlus

program offers members a variety of ways to donate their miles, with 23 partnerships with organizations doing work all over the United States (US) and worldwide. The full list of partners is below:

• Air Camp
• Airlink
• American Red Cross
• Americares
• Dream Foundation
• Fisher House/Operation Hero Miles
• Girl Scouts of the USA
• Global Glimpse
• Good360
• Guide Dogs of America
• Make-a-Wish (International)
• Make-a-Wish America
• MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Mercy Medical Angels
• Miles4Migrants
• Rise Against Hunger, Inc.
• Sesame Workshop
• Shriner’s Hospital
• Special Olympics
• The Ayuda Foundation
• Transplant Recipients International Org. (TRIO)
• USO
• World Central Kitchen

In addition to its 23 partners, MileagePlus also gives members the opportunity to support certain campaigns, each with their own duration and deadline.

5

Guide Dogs Of America

Guide Dogs of America was founded more than 70 years ago because Joseph Jones Sr. needed a dog to help with his mobility issues. After several organizations declined to assist Jones because of his age, he turned to a union, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW), for help. This eventually led to the founding of International Guiding Eyes, Guide Dogs of America’s parent company.

Today, Guide Dogs of America breeds, raises, and trains dogs to assist veterans, children with autism, and people who are blind or visually impaired. All of this is done at the company’s facilities in Los Angeles, and dogs are provided to individuals at no cost.

MileagePlus members can donate to Guide Dogs of America through the online portal, starting with a minimum donation of 1,000 miles.

Here is the full list of services provided:

• Professional training
• Personalized instruction
• Air and ground transportation to and from our school
• Room and board for in-residence training
• Delicious meals prepared by our professional chef
• Veterinary services are available to graduate teams on campus
• Specialized guide dog harness or service dog vest
• Extensive post-graduate support services

4

Make-a-Wish (America)

Make-a-Wish is one of the most well-known organizations on the list. Since 1980, it has specialized in fulfilling dreams for children with critical illnesses. In its 44-year history, Make-a-Wish has expanded to 50 countries around the world and granted more than 300,000 wishes in the United States alone.

Important statistics:

• more than 40,000 volunteers in the US
• one wish is granted an average of every 34 minutes
• nearly 10,000 wishes granted annually
• more than 2.8 billion miles needed annually to grant every wish

Some airlines in the US, like American Airlines, partner with Make-A-Wish to help make dreams come true. Earlier this year, American Airlines partnered with Make-A-Wish to send 20 children and their families to Disney World. During an event at AA’s headquarters, the children were presented with envelopes that had boarding passes and they were told they were going to Disney for six days. It was a wonderful surprise as none of the children knew what to expect while on their visit at AA.

Related

American Airlines And Make-A-Wish Surprise 20 Children With Disney World Trip

The two organizations have worked together for over three decades.

3

Special Olympics

The Special Olympics Games were founded in 1968 by Eunice Kennedy Shriver. In the 1950s, Shriver saw how unjustly and unfairly people with intellectual disabilities were treated. What really struck Shriver was that children with special needs did not have places to play, and she wanted to change that. While Shriver’s work began long before the first games, the first competition was held in ’68 at Soldier Field.

Since then, the Special Olympics has grown significantly, expanding to more than 46,000 competitions worldwide every year. According to the Special Olympics website, there are an average of five competitions hourly around the globe. The organization’s reach has grown to 177 countries and has reached nearly 4 million athletes and Unified Partners.

In addition to supporting the Special Olympics through mileage donations, since 2019, United has invited Special Olympics Employees to work in airports as part-time employees through the Special Olympics Service Ambassador (SOSA) Program. As of last month, there were 18 SOSA staff members at United’s hubs in Chicago, Houston, Denver, and Washington D.C. United has also sponsored Special Olympics plane pull competitions, supported local events, and supported the World Games.

2

USO

Anyone familiar with the US knows how important the military is and how culturally, service members are recognized and respected. One of the ways in which United supports service members is by partnering with USO in its mileage donation program. USO was founded in 1941 and is the primary organization serving members of the US military and their families.

USO supports service members in six primary categories:

• when they enlist
• on the front lines
• with their families
• away from home
• in their hour of need
• transitioning home

Today, USO has 250 locations worldwide with more than 20,000 people volunteering annually. This year alone, more than four million service members and family have participated in location-based programs.

1

Rise Against Hunger

Rise Against Hunger is an international organization that targets remote communities that are considered serious or higher on the Global Hunger Index. The organization gets involved in those communities to empower them by promoting improved agricultural methods, business skills, and market access. But it does not stop there, Rise Against Hunger also offers meals and provides disaster relief.

Photo: Rise Against Hunger

Important statistics in 2023:

• 3,665,952 lives impacted
• 4,836 metric tons food produced/procured
• 57.4 million meals packaged
• 78.9 million meals distributed
• 37 countries served
• $45 million donated in goods, primary medicines, and medical supplied.