The Brenda Strafford Foundation Makes Clean Air a Priority and Earns an Impressive Six NAFA Clean Air Awards
BGE would like to congratulate the Brenda Strafford organization, Gerard Batara, Director of Capital Projects and Infrastructure, along with a team of building operators from the Brenda Strafford Foundation on earning NAFA Clean Air Awards for multiple buildings.
The Brenda Strafford Foundation is a registered Canadian charitable organization established in 1975 by Dr. Barrie I. Strafford to honour his late wife, Brenda Strafford. The Brenda Strafford Foundation’s core business is providing premium seniors care out of five long-term care and assisted living seniors care facilities in Calgary, AB, and Okotoks, AB which are home to approximately 1,000 seniors and 1,200 staff. In addition to nursing and clinical care, the foundation provides a full range of health and wellness services and amenities for residents and families. Ensuring that each building provides a healthy and safe environment for higher risk senior populations and staff is a high priority for the organization.
This year, all five continuing care locations, as well as BSF’s Heart Home Network was awarded with NAFA Clean Air Awards. The National Air Filtration Association (NAFA) awards Clean Air Awards to members that have been able to demonstrate that they have taken significant steps towards cleaning the indoor environment through industry best practices with respect to air filtration and system hygiene practices.
The Brenda Strafford Foundation buildings awarded in 2023 include:
- Bow View Manor
- Cambridge Manor
- Clifton House
- Heart Home Network
- Tudor Manor
- Wentworth Manor
Gerard Batara, Director of Capital Projects, and Infrastructure noted that, “The Brenda Stafford Foundation cares about our residents and staff and we wanted to submit for Clean Air Awards to highlight the pride of work and detailed measures we have undertaken to ensure high quality indoor air in our buildings. We have a very dedicated maintenance team and together, in partnership with Dylan Burrows from BGE, we feel confident that we have made educated decisions around our filtration practices and can offer our residents that peace of mind.
Some of the notable enhancements conducted over the past year was upgrading the filtration from MERV 8 to MERV 13 filters and adding MERV 15 final filters. In addition to filter upgrades, a regular cadence of changeouts was established per facility, indoor air quality monitoring was added onsite along with additional gaskets to filter banks to eliminate by-pass. Dylan Burrows of BGE provided regular bi-weekly site visits and worked closely with the operations team to establish goals and plans for IAQ in each building.
Recognizing the importance of indoor air quality, the BSF has also arranged for BGE to provide educational workshops and NAFA Certified Technician (NCT) training to ensure that all building operators understand IAQ and are trained and knowledgeable in filtration best practices.
Congratulations to the team at the Brenda Strafford Foundation on your well-deserved awards. And to quote a leader in this field, Joseph Allen, “The person who manages your building has a bigger impact on your health than your doctor.” For those residents and families who rely on these buildings to keep vulnerable populations safe, we appreciate your efforts in prioritizing indoor air quality and making a huge impact in the lives of those who live and work there.
If you would like to know more about the NAFA Clean Air Awards, please visit nafahq.org/clean-air-awards or contact your local BGE Clean Air Advisor for more information.
If you would like to learn more about the Brenda Stafford Foundation, please visit: www.thebsf.ca/about-the-foundation/news.html?catID=1&nID=162
