Alaska Airlines shines bright for Pride in Palm Springs
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We parked a Boeing 737-900 aircraft lit with the Pride rainbow in full view along a main arterial through the city.
Although this year has presented us with new challenges, our Pride continues to fly. Even in a year when we can’t celebrate like before, we have not lessened our long legacy of supporting the people and communities we serve. When Palm Springs’ annual Pride Parade and community events were on the cusp of cancellation, our employees put their heads together to create a colorful alternative.
Over the weekend, our LGTBQ+ business resource group “GLOBE” and employees with Palm Springs community organizers created a show-stopping socially distanced “Light Up The Night” event using one of our aircraft.
Lights were projected onto the aircraft both Friday and Saturday evenings.
It was truly something to see—and a team effort—the aircraft awash in a rainbow of colors against the night sky was made possible thanks to local businesses, residents and our employees. Drivers honked and waved from afar and some even stopped to snap photos.
This was a team effort and could not have been accomplished without the support of so many,” said J’Keren Sears, brand activation manager. “Creating moments of joy in the communities we serve is a privilege. We all feel so honored to be a part of Pride celebrations across the country.”
Teamwork makes the dream work
The teamwork and coordination behind this colorful event proved yet again that our innovative and scrappy team can support our communities, even in this difficult time.
Getting lit. Employees Kevin Larson, a manager of central baggage and Jeremy Naz, senior HR systems analyst, worked with Pacific Northwest Theater Associates (PNTA) a Seattle based production company, to install the lighting and monitored the light projection throughout the event.
PNTA was just as excited and motivated as we were to bring this together, we couldn’t have imagined a better partnership!” said Larson.
Smooth talkers. Fellow GLOBE leaders Chad Gabagat, workforce planning specialist and Alice Tam, codeshare & interline revenue program manager, worked communications from Seattle to make sure everything went smoothly.
All good on the ground. Palm Springs Manager of Station Operations Deana Engelke-Spence and her team provided support with on- the-ground logistics.
Best PJ in town. The plane’s park job was coordinated by Contract Service Lead Donald Walker and Palm Springs SkyWest Maintenance. They made sure of the safe delivery and parking of the aircraft—which looked better than ever.
Our Pride flies nonstop.
Alaska is fully committed to celebrating diversity, inclusion and the fight for equality. As longtime supporters of the LGBTQ+ community, we will continue to build a more equitable society and bring people together—even if we are social distancing. Our incredible employees are our driving force as we strive for full equality, diversity, and inclusion for all people and the communities we serve. We’re proud to sponsor Pride in Seattle, San Francisco, Honolulu, Anchorage, San Diego, Portland and Palm Springs.
