YVR’s fourth annual Haul for Hope raises more than $125,000 for access to vital health care

Vancouver International Airport (YVR) hosted its fourth annual Haul for Hope event in Musqueam Territory/Richmond, B.C., on Sept. 22, raising more than $125,000 for Hope Air. Teams from YVR, airport businesses and across Metro Vancouver competed to pull a 67,000-pound WestJet Q400 aircraft 100 metres in the fastest time.

YVR president and CEO Tamara Vrooman said the airport was proud to support Hope Air and help ensure distance does not prevent British Columbians from receiving needed care. Hope Air completed more than 5,594 travel arrangements at YVR last year.

At the event, Devon and his mother Vanessa, from Kamloops, B.C., described how Hope Air-supported flights and ground transportation helped their family. Devon was diagnosed with acute advanced Crohn’s disease at age 11 and continues to travel to BC Children’s Hospital for specialized care. Vanessa was later diagnosed with Stage 3 uterine cancer. She said flying to appointments instead of driving gave the family more time for work, school, friends and family, while reducing travel time, costs, stress and missed school days.

Hope Air Chief Hope Officer Mark Rubinstein said the charity was founded 40 years ago on the belief that where people live should not determine their access to health care. WestJet Group director of external affairs Christina Iversen said WestJet has partnered with Hope Air for more than 30 years to help connect Canadians with essential health care.

Hope Air is Canada’s only national charity supporting Canadians in financial need who must travel far from home for medical care, through flights, accommodations, meal vouchers and ground transportation. The organization said all funds raised will support that mission.

Neptune Terminals won the 2026 Haul for Hope aircraft-pull competition with a time of 32.93 seconds. YVR matched the funds raised by its four employee teams, bringing their donation total to more than $39,000.00.