DARIUS AND DELTA

February 1, 2007

Are you ready for DARIUS GOES WEST—the sequel?. That's what yesterday felt like as Darius flew (first-class, no less) for the first time. Our destination: Los Angeles, then on to the Santa Barbara International Film Festival for the official world premiere of DARIUS GOES WEST: THE ROLL OF HIS LIFE. Darius LOVES flying, and thanks to Delta Airlines—and particularly David Martin (Senior Specialist, Disabilities) and his staff, it was an unbelievably smooth experience—plus Darius was treated like royalty.

Accompanied by five DGW crew members (Kevin, Sam, Ben, Jason, and John Harmon), Delta met Darius at the terminal door and whisked all of us to the Crown Room for check-in and chilling. When it was time to proceed to the gate, Delta had a huge surprise waiting for Darius. There was a big banner at the gate that said, "Darius Goes West, on Delta. The Flight of His Life," and the entire flight crew was lined up to greet him. The pilots and flight crew presented Darius with a (signed by all) framed "First Flight Certificate," then—best of all—the Captain of Delta Flight 1079 presented Darius with a set of Captain's Wings (a tribute normally reserved for dignitaries)! Naturally, all this pomp and circumstance created quite a stir, and we were all handing out DGW business cards like crazy.

After getting us all situated on board, Delta took Darius's pimped wheelchair below the plane and placed it in a special compartment for safekeeping. During takeoff, Darius's face lit up with anticipation and excitement, according to Jason, who was riding first-class with him. When the Captain used the P.A. system to welcome everyone on board and thank them for flying Delta, he gave a special shout-out to Darius and the rest of us. And while in flight, Delta Corporate Communications specialist Susan West conducted interviews with Darius and the crew for an upcoming article in their corporate newsletter.

When we arrived in Los Angeles, Daniel and Collin (who had flown out three hours ahead of the rest of us) met us outside the terminal in a wheelchair accessible van they had rented from Mobility Works (thanks for the discount, Kim). Having rented this vehicle sight unseen, everyone was worried that D and his chair might not be able to squeeze inside. When it turned out to be a perfect fit, there were high-fives all around.

After fighting traffic in L.A., we finally made it to Santa Barbara. We expected to grab a shower and a meal, but Logan (who's been in Santa Barbara since the beginning of the festival with John Hadden) had other plans for us: a red carpet party hosted by the Food Network. It was a late night (especially for those of us still on Georgia time), but we had a blast.

We have three wonderful places to stay while in Santa Barbara. (parents of Athenian Max and Shelly Ruston (parents of Athenian Hillary Ruston) have an awesome guesthouse that's within walking distance of the theaters. They've been wining, dining and entertaining Logan and John Hadden since they arrived! UGA alumnus Aaron Edelheit (has given us the spare bedroom in his oceanfront home and stocked the fridge for us (he's got a really cool dog). Aaron and his assistant, Caroline Farrell, have organized a whale watching trip for all of us on Saturday, followed by a cookout. We can't wait! Finally, Darius, along with a couple of crew members, is staying at the Fess Parker Doubletree Resort in a wheelchair accessible room.

This morning, we woke up to t-shirt weather. It's beautiful out here, and we'll try to send some pictures your way soon. Meanwhile, we need to hit the streets of Santa Barbara and drum up some business for our world premiere tonight at 7:45. Our goal is to pack the house! Oh yeah, there's also that Nightline interview!!!

More good news we've just learned about: Delta has agreed to become the official airline of DARIUS GOES WEST! They were so impressed with what we're doing that they will make sure we get to all the film festivals we've been accepted to so that we can raise awareness of DMD and stump for Charley's Fund. If you're familiar with our budget situation, you know how HUGE this is for us!

Delta and Darius…has a really nice ring to it, doesn't it?

DGW…Know about it!