TUCKER, Ga. (November 1, 2019) – Friends of Disabled Adults and Children (FODAC) will be honored as an ABBC 2018 Top Performer in the upcoming Atlanta Better Buildings Challenge Celebration (ABBC), scheduled for Wednesday, November 6, 2019, at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. In addition to being recognized with the Atlanta facilities whose efforts over the past year produced the highest levels of energy and water savings, FODAC will also be accepting the 2018 Nonprofit Leadership MVP Award.
In partnership with the City of Atlanta, Central Atlanta Progress, Southface, Midtown Alliance and Livable Buckhead, the Atlanta Better Buildings Challenge is a public/private voluntary initiative to reduce energy and water consumption by at least 20% by 2020 across the Atlanta area. Led by the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Resilience, the program supports the U.S. Department of Energy’s goals to create jobs and make buildings more energy efficient. This year’s ceremony will celebrate ABBC participants like FODAC meeting the savings goals two years early.
In 2016, FODAC’s capital campaign not only paid off the mortgage on its corporate headquarters and warehouse but also provided the funding for a series of energy-efficient upgrades to its building. FODAC worked with the Grants to Green (now GoodUse) initiative to leverage matching funds to undergo a building audit, implement retrofits and benchmark its pre- and post-implementation energy and water usage. Water savings were realized with a number of upgrades including installation of low-flow aerators on all facility faucets. The energy-efficient upgrades included installation of wireless thermostats, seven new high-efficiency HVAC units, replacement of all lighting with LED bulbs and motion sensor controls, and the installation of 100 kw solar panels on the facility roof. The facility upgrades accounted for a 32% reduction of energy costs over a one-year period – or over $15,000 which goes directly to support the organization’s mission.
Since its founding in 1987, FODAC has operated as a green company; its mission to provide home medical equipment (HME), such as wheelchairs and hospital beds, is supplied primarily through collection, refurbishment and redistribution of used HME. Its reuse and recycling of HME keeps over 400 tons of metal and batteries out of landfills on an annual basis.
“Going green may make us a more responsible member of the Atlanta business community but it also makes us a more responsible member of the charitable community,” said Chris Brand, president and CEO of FODAC. “By significantly reducing our energy costs, we are helping not only to ensure a more sustainable future for Atlanta, but also to ensure the sustainability of our organization by shifting more funding to the fulfillment of our mission.”
Visit fodac.org for more information.
