A SOUTHWEST AIRLINES COMMUNITY AFFAIRS & GRASSROOTS PUBLICATION

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BUILDING A STRONGER AMERICA EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP THROUGH OUR NATION’S LATINO POLICYMAKERS

Christine Ortega, Southwest Airlines Manager Community Affairs & Grassroots, Leticia Van de Putte, Texas State Senate, Ron Ricks, Executive Vice President Chief Legal & Regulatory Officer, the honorable Sylvia R. Garcia, NALEO President, Arturo Vargas, Executive Director NALEO Educational Fund, Lidia S. Martinez, Southwest Airlines Manager Community Affairs & Grassroots.

The numbers are in! The recent release of the 2010 Census data now confirms that one in six Americans is Hispanic, and one

of every four children and youth is Hispanic. Hispanics now comprise the second largest population group and fastest growing segment of the American population! Such growth represents both challenges and opportunities for

communities across the country. Our nation’s leaders, at all levels of office, need to have a deliberate strategy for securing the success of this growing segment of the population. It is critical that public-private partnerships work together toward the full educational attainment and integration of Hispanics as full stakeholders in American civic life. The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed

Officials (NALEO) Educational Fund is the nation’s leading nonprofit, non-partisan organization that facilitates the full participation of Hispanics in the American political process. Their mission includes increasing the effectiveness of our nation’s Hispanic policymakers who represent the diverse and growing Hispanic demographic. Their governance training initiatives for Hispanic policymakers aim to equip them with the knowledge and

skills to develop and implement bold visions for their communities. By partnering with the NALEO Educational Fund, Southwest

Airlines is supporting communities across the nation to ensure that American democracy is well and thriving. In recognition of our spirit of community that also encompasses our corporate citizenship and philanthropic leadership, Southwest Airlines was awarded the prestigious NALEO President’s Award at their 28th Annual Conference in San Antonio, TX. Executive Vice President Chief Legal & Regulatory Officer, Ron Ricks, accepted the award on our behalf. “The Spirit of Giving back is so intrinsic in the culture of Southwest Airlines,” said Executive Director of the NALEO Educational Fund, Arturo Vargas. “This award recognizes this genuine philosophy, which is a core element of Southwest’s business practices, and serves as a natural extension of Southwest Airlines’ dedication to the communities they serve, as well as live and work in.” For more information on the NALEO Educational Fund,

please visit www.naleo.org.

ART IN ACTION CELEBRATING WOMEN SHOWING THE LUV SUMMER CAMP A VILLAGE OF HOPE CELEBRATING 40 YEARS

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Alison Hoefler

Meet

Alison Hoefler has been a Manager on the dynamic Community Affairs & Grassroots Team since 2009. Prior to joining the Communication & Strategic Outreach Department, she held various positions at Southwest Airlines in Sales as the Southeast Corporate Relations Manager, in Marketing as the Florida Area Manager, and in Ground Operations as a Customer Service Agent and Operations Supervisor in Ft. Lauderdale. Alison recently celebrated her 15th anniversary with the Company and has “LUV’d every minute”. Alison lives in Tampa and enjoys everything Florida has to offer from the sun and sand to boating on the bay.

About 35 miles south of Miami, Florida, sits Homestead, a quaint town of about 60,000 people with approximately 30

percent of the population living below poverty level. It is a community characterized by low education and cultural prejudices, both of which contribute to social problems. A bright spot in this town is the organization enFAMILIA, a nonprofit agency that provides educational programs to help improve and preserve family life for a large population of migrant farm workers as well as low-income and special needs families living in the deep South. Founders Carlos Salgado and Rocio Trafur-Salgado demonstrate their social responsibility by building healthy family relationships and enriching the quality of life through education and the arts. Southwest Airlines supports enFAMILIA in a partnership that provides services to approximately 2,500 individuals in marriage and family training camps as well as after school programs. In addition, Southwest sponsors the Art-In-Action Summer Camp, a program where the youth of Homestead are empowered with communication and leadership skills to help them transcend the barriers they face. This camp provides invaluable education .

Art-In-Action Summer Camp students

focusing on drug abuse prevention, gender equality, and ending gang violence. Southwest provides tickets to fly in educators from around the country (some hailing from the prestigious Julliard School) to facilitate the program which helps students express their cultural values through dance, drama, music, and drawing. Dr. Larry Feldman, Vice-Chair of Miami-Dade Public Schools, spoke this year at the 2011 summer camp performance.

WE ARE PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THAT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES RECEIVED “HONORABLE MENTION” IN THE INFLUENCER COMMUNICATION CATEGORY OF THE 2011 PLATINUM PR AWARDS FOR OUR COMMUNITY AFFAIRS & GRASSROOTS PUBLICATION, MOSAIC! A special thank you to our wonderful community partners for bringing Mosaic to life with the stories of the amazing work you are doing in the community. We couldn’t have done it without you!

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UPCOMING EVENTS

2011

Dan Patterson, Aviation and Smithsonian Lecturer, Lateea Horton, Columbus (CMH) Customer Service Agent, David Smith, CMH Ramp Agent, Beth Norris, CMH Ops Agent, Betty Blake, World War II Pilot, Matt Miner, CMH Customer Service Agent at National Aviation Hall of Fame President’s Dinner.

Student poets from America SCORES perform on stage at the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem with music legend, Martha Reeves, of Martha and The Vandellas. Southwest Airlines provided transportation to New York for the students and their chaperones.

AirTran Acquisition Celebration in Orlando. Left to Right: Jeff Lamb, Senior VP Admin Chief People Officer Southwest Airlines, Steve Goldberg, Senior Dir Customer Service Southwest Airlines, Alison Hoefler, Community Affairs & Grassroots Southwest Airlines, Phil Brown, Executive Dir Greater Orlando Airport Authority, Rob Amsler, Chief Pilot Orlando Southwest Airlines.

Monica del Rio, Community Affairs & Grassroots (CA&G) Specialist Southwest Airlines, Anabell Odisho, CA&G Specialist Southwest Airlines, Patty Kryscha, CA&G Manager Southwest Airlines, Eve Rodriguez, City of Chicago Dept. of Aviation, at the Latino Leaders Maestro Awards in Chicago.

“Ignite the Light” Hispanic Federation Annual Gala at New York’s Waldorf Astoria (Top left to right): With LatinoJustice PRLDEF Jose L. Perez, Associate General Counsel; board members Cid Wilson and Fernando Bohorquez Jr.; (Seated left to right): Diana DeJesus-Medina, Director and Juan Cartagena, President & General Counsel of LatinoJustice PRLDEF; Christine Ortega, Southwest Airlines.

HOPE-hosted Reception to honor Commissioner Catherine Sandoval, California Public Utilities Commission with Lidia S. Martinez, Manager, Southwest Airlines Community Affairs & Grassroots.

Celebrating at ASPIRA of NY’s 50th Anniversary are celebrity award recipients, Jimmy Smits and Rosie Perez; pictured with Community Affairs & Grassroots Senior Manager, Laura Nieto (in blue), President Arcos Communications, Roy Cosme, and Community Affairs & Grassroots Manager, Patty Kryscha.

HAPPENINGS AROUND THE SYSTEM

OCTOBER 18 BOISE, ID

• BOISE METRO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNUAL GALA

OCTOBER 20 CHICAGO, IL

• BUSINESS CHAMPIONS AWARD DINNER

NOVEMBER 1-2 WASHINGTON, D.C.

• NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LATINO ARTS & CULTURE (NALAC) ADVOCACY INSTITUTE

NOVEMBER 1-3 WASHINGTON, D.C.

• CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL CELEBRATION

NOVEMBER 3-4 LOS ANGELES, CA

• NHLI (NATIONAL HISPANA LEADERSHIP

INSTITUTE) ANNUAL CONFERENCE

NOVEMBER 3-5 DALLAS, TX

• WOMEN OF COLOR STEM CONFERENCE

NOVEMBER 7 JACKSONVILLE, FL

• JACKSONVILLE CHAMBER 9TH ANNUAL MILITARY APPRECIATION LUNCHEON

NOVEMBER 10 SAN FRANCISCO, CA

• GOLDEN GATE BUSINESS ASSOCIATION GALA

NOVEMBER 15 LOS ANGELES, CA

• MALDEF (MEXICAN AMERICAN LEGAL

DEFENSE AND EDUCATIONAL FUND) ANNUAL

GALA

NOVEMBER 18 WASHINGTON, D.C.

• NATIONAL GAY & LESBIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE NATIONAL DINNER: AN EVENING OF COURAGE

NOVEMBER 18 LAS VEGAS, NV

• CHICANOS POR LA CASA LUNCHEON

DECEMBER 1 PANAMA CITY BEACH, FL

• WALTON AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ANNUAL DINNER MEETING

DECEMBER 12 LOS ANGELES, CA

• BLACK VOICES FOUNDATION ANNUAL GALA

DECEMBER 15 PANAMA CITY BEACH, FL

• NAVIGATOR LUNCH & LEARN WORKSHOPS

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Partnership is a powerful word at Southwest Airlines. The Airline LUVs creating new ones and celebrating milestones with long time friends. This year, Southwest celebrates with a partner of ten plus years, the Women’s Business Development Center (WBDC)! Chicago-based WBDC, the country’s oldest, largest, and most comprehen-sive small business assistance center for women, is marking its 25th Anniversary this year. WBDC uses tickets provided by Southwest to fly their consultants to assist women entrepreneurs in six states and to fly in experts from across the country to share their knowledge with attendees at the Women’s Empowerment Conference. Co-founded in 1986 by Hedy Ratner and Carol Dougal,

WBDC launched the nation’s first third-party Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) certification program in 1991. Hedy says, “Once a woman business owner is certified, she can take advantage of WBDC’s role as match-maker, ultimately increasing her capacity and grow her business to the next level.” The services available to women entrepreneurs go well

beyond certification. The Center provides one-on-one business counseling, networking opportunities, and

financial and procurement assistance. They serve women entrepreneurs in nine states. Since its inception, WBDC has helped more than 65,000 clients receive more than $80 million in business loans and nearly a billion

dollars in corporate and government contracts. Those are impressive numbers! Another way in which WBDC helps women business owners is through its annual Entrepreneurial Woman’s Conference, which

attracts more than 2,000 attendees annually. The one-day conference features educational sessions with business and finance experts. The Buyers Mart helps connect women entrepreneurs to buyers. Congratulations to Co-founders Hedy Ratner and Carol Dougal, and the dedicated WBDC staff on 25 wonderful years of helping

women business owners achieve success! To learn more about this dynamic organization, visit www.wbdc.org.

Hedy Ratner, Co-founder of the Womens Business Development Center, reveals the new logo commemorating WBDC’s 25th Anniversary.

HELPING WOMEN SUCCEED FOR 25 YEARS

SOUTHWEST AND AIRTRAN SURPRISE ATLANTA WITH RANDOM ACTS OF COOLNESS

Southwest and AirTran representatives clad in bright blue T-shirts are taking Atlanta by storm all in an effort to give

back to the community. Throughout the summer, we’ve popped up at schools, fire stations, and police stations all over the Metro Atlanta area handing out gifts as a way to say “thank you” to these employees for their service.

The campaign, called “Random Acts of Coolness,” is a joint community appreciation project between Southwest and AirTran and is a unique way of introducing ourselves to Atlanta while helping Atlantans beat the heat. The most fun part about this project is its randomness nature - no one knows where we’ll show up, when, or what fun gifts we’ll have to give away.

So far, we’ve given breakfast, lunch, sweet treats, note-books, pens, tote bags, and $100 gift cards to dozens of schools and several community pools. We’ve also given bottled water and popsicles to firefighters and police officers.

The response has been very positive and everyone is excited about Southwest’s entrance into Atlanta (1st Quarter 2012). The

Random Acts of Coolness representatives spread the LUV at Atlanta Fire Station 11. Each fireman received a popsicle, bottled water, and a thank you card as a show of appreciation for all they do to keep Atlanta safe.

goal of the project, which continued through the summer, was to get to know Atlanta and expand the outstanding commitment to the community that AirTran is known for in the market.

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On a beautiful evening at the Dearborn Heights, Michigan campus of Vista Maria, over 350 business, community, and political leaders gathered for the 12th Annual

“Celebrating Women” Event, an evening that recognizes the amazing achievements of Women. “Celebrating Women” Event acknowledged the success of three outstanding women

role models, as well as three exceptional young ladies who have overcome immense obstacles and are excelling in their academic studies and treatment. The evening also serves as one of two major fundraisers for Vista Maria, an organization that for over 128 years has restored hope for girls who once believed they would never be able to overcome their painful pasts or achieve their dreams. Today, Vista Maria’s Village of Hope is changing girls’ lives by offering the ongoing education, support, and services they need to ensure bright and successful futures. As the Official Airline of Vista Maria, Southwest supported the event by providing roundtrip tickets that were packaged with fabulous

resort stays in Phoenix, Orlando, and Denver—the $128,000 raised will be used to provide girls at Vista Maria (nearly 1,000 yearly) the unique programs that are vital to their healing and future successes. “Girls come to Vista Maria having suffered unimaginable pain and stress in their young lifetimes,” said Vista Maria Chief Development Officer Diane Kochis. “We are able to heal young girls like Tracey, Tyreia and Monica and help them to dream again.” Thank you to the entire Vista Maria Team for making a difference in the lives of these young girls. For more information on Vista Maria,

please visit www.vistamaria.org.

Educators and researchers have long told us how important it is to master reading by the end of third grade. Yet two-thirds of U.S. schoolchildren are not reaching that benchmark, and children who don’t read by the end of third grade are six times more likely to fail to graduate from high school and to live in poverty. The National Civic League (NCL), one of the country’s oldest

advocates of community democracy, thinks that’s unacceptable, so they are working with The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading to improve those numbers. The Campaign is a national movement of funders, business and community stakeholders working in collaboration to increase the number of children from low-income families who read at grade level by the end of third grade. “NCL will focus its signature All-America City Award in 2012 on

communities that work to develop strategies for locally-owned community solutions in the three areas that have real potential to drive improvements in grade-level reading including school

readiness, attendance, and summer learning,” says Gloria Rubio Cortés, President of the Denver, Colorado-based nonprofit organi-zation. Southwest Airlines is the Official Airline of the 2012 All-America

City Awards which will take place in June 2012. Rubio-Cortés thanks Southwest Airlines for the Company’s long-time support of NCL’s awards program and, now, for the Campaign. Jane McAtee, South-west Airlines Community Affairs & Grassroots Manager is a member of NCL’s Advisory Committee which is helping to spread the word about the Campaign. “We recognize how important it is to ensure all children have the opportunity to succeed in school and in life,” Jane says, “and we’re extremely pleased to help promote the Campaign to our partners and get them involved in the solution.”

National Civic League All-America City Grade-Level Reading Award

CELEBRATING WOMEN A Village of Hope Serving Michigan’s Most Disadvantaged Young Girls

Vista Maria Girls Tyreia, Tracey, and Monica.

Kids and adults celebrate reading success in Richmond, Indiana, at Third Grade Reading Academy.

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“OUR NEXT GENERATION IS THE NOW GENERATION” - National CAPACD Co-Founder Uncle Bob Santos

National CAPACD Next Generation Leadership Class in Washington, D.C.

The National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD) is dedicated to addressing

the housing, community, and economic development needs of diverse Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. Founded in 1999, the nonprofit builds the capacity of community-based organizations, and today has more than 100 member organizations in 17 states. Three years ago, National CAPACD launched its Next Genera-

tion Leadership Program with the support of Southwest Airlines. This exciting program is building a pipeline of innovative AAPI community organizers, social justice advocates, and community development professionals ready to take on the challenges facing low-income neighborhoods. “The Next Generation Leadership program is an amazing way for National CAPACD to connect directly with some of the most creative, smartest and dedicated leaders in Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities and to provide hands-on opportunities to influence national policy,” said Lisa Hasegawa, Executive Director of National CAPACD.

National CAPACD Co-Founder Uncle Bob Santos with 2011 Next Gen Leadership Program participants Kim Kawasaki and Christina Baggao.

During National CAPACD’s 12th Annual Convention in Washington, D.C. this past summer, the 20 program participants shared ideas, wisdom, and histories with each other, or as they say in Hawaii “talk story.” They “talked story” about the issues they are addressing through their organizations back home – from the impacts of the foreclosure crisis, to the economic recovery of Gulf Coast Southeast Asian communities, to urban revitalization strategies in Chinatowns. The leaders returned to their communities rejuvenated and recommitted to their work, inspired by the reminder, as one participant

pointed out, “that we are in this together as part of a larger movement.”

“Throughout my time working in community development, I have often felt like the youngest person on staff as well as the only one amongst my friends who “gets it.” This is a lonely place to

be, but it was refreshing and reaffirming to learn from the leaders in the field who have been doing community development for years. Through the structure provided by the Next Gen program, I met

other young staff who share the same goals, struggles, and small triumphs as me. To me this was invaluable because I see it as the beginning of a support network for my generation.”

– Junette Sheen, California Community Economic Development Association and 2011 Next Generation Leadership Program Participant

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On August 22, Southwest announced that on August 17, 2011, our Board of Directors appointed J. Veronica Biggins, a former member of the Board of Directors for AirTran Holdings, Inc. to

the Southwest Board. “We are honored to have Veronica join the Board, and we know that she will be a great

addition to the comprehensive Leadership that currently sits on the Southwest Board of Directors,” said Gary Kelly, CEO Southwest Airlines. “Her ties to the Atlanta community and her previous experience as a member of the Board of Directors for AirTran Holdings, Inc. will be a tremendous asset to our Team. Her background and experience in human resources, recruitment, and diversity also will serve us well.”

To celebrate our 40th anniversary, we hosted a giveaway of 40 roundtrip tickets each to 40 deserving nonprofit organizations (1,600 tickets total). We asked nonprofits to send us a photo illustrating the positive work they do in the community and tell us in 200 words

or less how they would use the 40 tickets to achieve the organization’s mission in the community. Our winners were chosen based on how they impact the community in the areas of education, diversity, military, environment, or

families facing serious illness. We announced 10 winners a week for four weeks and brought the contest to a close with our final announcement of winners on

Tuesday, August 16. To learn more about the contest, view the complete list of winners, and watch a special surprise announcement to a winner out of Nashville, TN, please visit: http://www.blogsouthwest.com/video/southwest-announces-final-10-winners-showing-luv-our-communities-1600-ticket-giveaway

AN ATLANTA WARRIOR JOINS THE SOUTHWEST BOARD

J. Veronica Biggins

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VICE PRESIDENT, COMMUNICATIONS & STRATEGIC OUTREACH LINDA RUTHERFORD

MANAGING EDITOR LAURA NIETO

EDITORS CHRISTINE ORTEGA, MILLIE RICHTER

CREATIVE EDITOR ERIC DANIELS

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“He, who would bring home the wealth of the Indies, must carry the wealth of the Indies with him. So it is in traveling; a man must carry knowledge with him,

if he would bring home knowledge.” Spanish Proverb

You can find this carved on the marble wall between two giant eagle statues perched at Washington’s Union Station. Karen J. Lewis, Southwest Airlines Vice President of Governmental Affairs, shared this quote with almost 2,000 attendees at the National Council of La Raza’s (NCLR) Affiliate Luncheon.

For this year’s conference, Southwest Airlines hosted national leaders; co-spon-sored a national community conversation; and sponsored the “Connecting Our Communi-ties” affiliate contest and the Affiliate Luncheon. The latter is where Mrs. Lewis recognized community leaders who possess a wealth of knowledge and by carrying it forward, elected officials can make better decisions with this shared wisdom. Mrs. Lewis expressed how honored the Airline feels when chosen to carry each traveler with their wisdom, of course, to a Southwest Airlines destination--along with their two free bags!

Karen J. Lewis, Southwest Airlines Vice President Governmental Affairs, addresses attendees at NCLR s Affiliate Luncheon.

Southwest Airlines also hosted community leaders at various sponsored events. For example, Dr. Ramona Houston, from Atlanta, GA, studies Black-Latino relations. Dr. Houston joined the Southwest Airlines group at the luncheon featuring President Obama. After that, she and other community-minded thinkers joined Southwest for an evening of “National Meaningful Commu-nity Conversation”. The evening’s conversation ranged from health, to the 2012 Election; from education to race relations; from arts to the art of listening. Dr. Houston described it like this:

Dr. Ramona Houston & Elisa Glazer, at an “Evening of National Community Conversation co-hosted by Aetna (mid-America Region) & Southwest Airlines.

“Attending the NCLR Conference is an invaluable experience! The workshops, the keynote speakers, the new friendships, and the ecstatic energy reinforces everyone’s commitment to community service, and making America

all that it can and should be!”

With approximately 4,000 registered individuals, it was an enlightening week of listening, learning, and sharing. Be prepared for more excitement when the conference moves to Las Vegas, NV, July 7-10, 2012.

“I would not have been able to attend the NCLR national conference if I had not been a guest of Southwest Airlines. During the conference, the

airline’s constant support through introductions to VIP’s accelerated the ability to forge new relationships and provide for my nonprofit

organization. The knowledge I gained from the workshops and expo was invaluable, as I came home and shared it with our constituency in Illinois.

Thank you Southwest Airlines!”

—Alfred Ramirez, President, Quad City Hispanic Chamber of Commerce National community and corporate leader, Alfred Ramirez, is also Vice President Government Relations & Diversity, Group O, Inc.

Vice President, Communication & Strategic Outreach I Linda Rutherford Director, Strategic Outreach & Preparedness I Laurie Barnett

Managing Editor I Laura Nieto Editors I Christine Ortega, Anabell Odisho, Brian Lusk

Creative Editor I Eric Daniels

Southwest Airlines helps champion causes that matter most in the daily lives of our Customers.

Vice President, Communication & Strategic Outreach I Linda RutherfordDirector, Strategic Outreach & Preparedness I Laurie Barnett

Managing Editor I Laura NietoEditors I Christine Ortega, Anabell Odisho, Brian Lusk

Creative Editor I Eric Daniels