Bethany Care Foundation is a registered charity that creates opportunities for donors to support Bethany Care Society’s mission of Creating Caring Communities. Over the past two decades, thanks to the generosity of donors, the Foundation has raised over $20M to support Bethany’s communities, programs, and infrastructure.
Bethany Care Society is one of Western Canada’s largest not-for-profit providers of care, housing and community services for seniors and persons with disabilities. For 80 years, Bethany has provided high-quality, person-centred care focused on the unique physical, emotional and spiritual well-being of our residents and tenants.
Bethany provides care, housing and programs across 11 care sites, spanning 8 Alberta communities: Calgary (3 sites), Red Deer, Sylvan Lake, Didsbury (2 sites), Airdrie, Cochrane, Olds, and Sundre. We support more than 2,000 Albertans annually through long-term care, supportive living, dementia care, housing, and adult day programs.
We are responding to Alberta’s aging population by combining expert care with innovation, compassion, and building for the future and our new campaign embodies this – It’s time to reimagine care, for our loved ones, for ourselves, and for generations to come.
The Next Chapter Campaign is an opportunity to transform how care is delivered in Alberta and to build something extraordinary together! Our goal is to raise $20 million to help redevelop Bethany Calgary, one of Alberta’s largest and oldest care homes, into a first-of-its-kind, 420-room care home in the city’s core. It will be purpose-built for seniors and adults with disabilities and will offer a mix of residents’ private spaces in a neighbourhood setting, with dining and living spaces as well as more communal spaces where residents, neighbours, families, volunteers and employees can connect and spend meaningful time together.
Watch our campaign video to learn more: The Next Chapter Campaign
Some of the design features of this state-of-the-art care home include:
– Dementia-friendly environments
– Private rooms with ensuite bathrooms
– Integrated communal spaces (Main floor Bistro, Outdoor Courtyards, Resident Pub & Gathering Space and Themed Enrichment Spaces)
– Cultural and spiritual gathering areas
Being ready and having the appropriate systems in place for our aging population is critically important, and Bethany is leading the way in Alberta in providing exceptional care to some of our most vulnerable and The Next Chapter Campaign will build a care home for the future.
– In the next four to five years, seniors will outnumber youth as a proportion of working-age Albertans
– By 2031, seniors will make up a larger share of the overall population in Alberta, more than children aged 0-14; and
– By 2045, there will be more than 1.2 million Albertans aged 65 and over
Our overall life expectancy is predicted to increase; however, with that comes an increase in chronic diseases and the possibility of developing dementia.
– Over 46,000 Albertans are living with dementia right now. That number is expected to increase to 225,000 by 2043; and
– The number of people living with dementia in Alberta is projected to grow by 286% between 2020 and 2050 – the highest in Canada
By planning and building proactively now, Bethany can lead the way through the significant changes in our community and with generous support, we can provide a home that offers excellent care, fosters a sense of community, and is a dignified place for all Calgarians to age well.
“We are all aging, and what that looks like should matter to everyone!”
– John Osler & Janet Annesley, Campaign Co-Chairs
Innovation in Care – Donor support ensures we stay innovative and responsive to our residents’ needs. For example, because of donor support our front-line care team at our Riverview location has access to PainChek®, which is a Health Canada certified pain assessment tool utilizing AI technology to assist our teams in accurately assessing and managing pain, which is especially important for our residents who are non-verbal. As well, through the generosity of donors every Bethany care home integrates sensory equipment which promotes comfort, connection and emotional well-being.
Meaningful Daily Programming – Support from donors helps make programs like music, art, pet, horticulture and other therapies possible for our residents. These incredible programs give residents joy, create community and engagement opportunities, and for many allows them to express themselves in a meaningful way.
Creating Home – The generosity of donors helps create warm, welcoming spaces where residents can gather, celebrate, and relax. From cozy furnishings to essential care equipment like lifts, specialized bathtubs, and linen warmers, support helps ensure that every resident feels safe, supported, and at home.
Aging touches all of us. Whether people are considering that next step of care for a parent, a sibling, a partner or making decisions about your own journey, growing older with changing care needs is an experience every family will face. Together with our generous community, we can reimagine care and create a brighter future for Alberta’s seniors and adults with disabilities.