BCPFF Burn Fund Building to Boost Burn Care and Research

April 7, 2008 – With a recent donation of $750,000 in services from a union construction company, the British Columbia Professional Fire Fighters (BCPFF) Burn Fund is even closer to breaking ground on a new one-of-a-kind facility in Vancouver, British Columbia. When completed, the Burn Fund Building will be the first facility in North America to offer clinical research, accommodations for families of prolonged care patients and an educational resource center under one roof.

“The BCPFF Burn Fund has been working hard to further burn research and victim care since 1978,” says BCPFF Burn Fund Executive Director Tony Burke, a member of Coquitlam, BC Local 1782. “We believe the Burn Fund building is the natural next step in the advancement of treatment for burn patients. The facility will provide a higher level of care that is not currently available to patients and their families.”

The inspiration for the building began in 2001 after the BCPFF Burn Fund donated $1 million to Vancouver General Hospital for the creation of a new burn unit and the burn fund’s subsequent donation of $400,000 in 2005 to establish the BC Professional Fire Fighters Burn and Would Healing Research Laboratory.

As a function of furthering the two Vancouver General Hospital projects, the BCPFF Burn Fund was heavily involved in the strategic planning process. Soon it became clear that a multi-purpose facility was needed.

With great interest in the building, the burn charity began extensively researching the idea. Gradually, the initiative became a $25 million project.

One of first steps was securing a location now set for central Vancouver, convenient to both Vancouver General Hospital and the British Columbia Children’s Hospital. Simultaneously, the BCPFF Burn Fund began work on fundraising and building plans.

The project got a big boost last year when British Columbia Minister Rich Coleman earmarked a $2 million Housing Endowment Fund (HEF) grant for the building. In March 2008, Concert Properties, a union construction company, donated $750,000 in services. The company will oversee project and construction management.

Mock-up of the Burn Fund Building

Once complete, the Burn Fund building will encompass 25,695 square feet and include suites for burn survivors and their families, an interactive multi-media educational/resource component and a research facility for clinical trials in burn and would healing.

“We have raised approximately $8 million in donations and services so far,” states Burke. “Our next steps will include more fundraising, lobbying the federal government to match funds provided by our provincial government and project planning meetings.

“The road to completion on this project is a long one, but in the end, it will all be worth it,” he adds.

The first cornerstone of the building is set to be dedicated during the British Columbia 2009 World Police and Fire Games.