Gala speech
CFBTS is a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to improving the lives of everyone affected by a burn injury or skin disease. Our goal is to foster advancements in Treatment, Research, Awareness, Care, and Education. This will be accomplished by fundraising to support the Calgary Firefighters Burn Treatment Centre and local burn care initiatives.
The CFBTS has been around for 38 years, we are a board of 20 directors that volunteer our time to a cause we believe in. Every director is a member of our local 255 union and an active firefighter with the City of Calgary. We are helped by countless supporters and volunteers from inside and outside the CFD.
From the inception of the society the goal was to support burn patients of Southern Alberta through the purchase of equipment, support of programs, and education of safety. To date we have donated over 6 million dollars to this cause.
In the last few years we have expanded our scope from a Southern Alberta goal to a more global goal. We continue to fulfill our commitment to Southern Alberta but have expanded to support research in “split thickness skin graphing”. We are supporting a 1 million dollar research chair that is getting recognition globally for its findings. Also, we help support the Alberta Firefighters Burn Camp. This camp is for children and their siblings from across Alberta that have been effected by burns.
Our next goal is to keep the Foothills Burn Unit cutting edge in burn care with the purchase and maintenance of a Carbon Dioxide and Pulse-Dye Laser. Scaring is the single biggest hurdle to overcome in burn treatment and recovery. These lasers will greatly improve the quality of life for Burn and Skin disease patients.
With your support of the Gala, the funds from the Gala would be solely used to fund the lasers and keep the Foothills Burn Unit cutting edge.
