Dr. Pan, Dr. Eng invest in Pembroke, Area Airport’s future
RENFREW COUNTY (Pembroke) — The Pembroke & Area Airport’s Project Runway campaign to repave their 50-year-old runway received a major boost with a donation from local physicians Dr. W.M. Pan and Dr. A.Y. Eng. The physicians made the donation following the Airport’s inaugural Runway Gala. The donation takes the campaign over $200,000 raised thus far.
“The airport is important to the community and serves many valuable purposes including medical,” said Dr. Pan. “We wanted to do our part to help make sure this facility is available to the community which has always been so good to us.”
The donation was facilitated by the Pembroke Petawawa District Community Foundation (“Foundation”) which is already a Project Runway donor. The Foundation will invest and hold the funds until it is time to repave the runway, which is anticipated to be 2022.
“The Board of Directors of the Foundation were thrilled to be the guardian of these funds until such time as they are needed for the repaving project,” said Matthew Bradley, Chair of the Foundation. “We know the Airport is important and we are proud to be on board with Project Runway ourselves. Being able to make this donation happen for the Airport was our pleasure.”
Airport Chair Allan Wren was overwhelmed with the donation which came to his attention just hours after the Runway Gala.
“It was really something to get the phone call that two esteemed professionals who have given so much to our community chose to give even more with this incredible donation,” he said. “We are so grateful and we so appreciate their leadership role in bring Project Runway to reality. They join a list of donors who see the value of this facility and how it contributes every day to our region.”
Dr. Pan and Dr. Eng are well familiar with aviation travel for medical purposes. Having worked on a First Nations Reserve at the start of their medical careers in Canada, Dr. Eng was known as “the flying doctor” as he regularly flew to see patients who were not reachable by land. Dr. Pan also used Pem-Air for medical travel that would not otherwise have been possible without the airport.
The donation brings Project Runway’s total past the $200,000 mark. The inaugural Runway Gala also raised an additional $16,000 with more than 120 tickets sold. The donation by Dr. Pan and Dr. Eng capped off an incredible day for the local airport.
Donations to Project Runway are 100% charitable. For more information, contact Jennifer Layman at [email protected] or by calling the Airport at 613-687-5300. The Airport is continuing its community outreach by speaking to groups and organizations throughout the fall season. They have spoken to more than 60 groups thus far and look to continue to spread the message about the airport’s impact.
