Women in Philanthropy AZ is honored to name Arizona Burn Foundation (ABF) as our Beneficiary of the Month for August. We sat down with ABF CEO Bridget Doherty to learn more about the organization’s history, its programs, and how our members and the greater Phoenix community can get involved.
Since 1967, ABF has stood by burn survivors and their families across Arizona. As Doherty shared, one of the foundation’s founders, Dr. MacDonald Wood, put it best: “With medical advances, I can repair a person’s body after a burn incident, but to what end?” That question set the tone for everything ABF has built since. “Dr. Wood was ahead of his time in recognizing that burn recovery extends far beyond the hospital,” Doherty said. Nearly six decades later, that belief remains at the heart of ABF’s mission: improving quality of life for burn survivors and their families while advancing burn prevention education statewide. What started as a founder led vision has grown into a true statewide presence, with a satellite office in Tucson and partnerships with the Diane & Bruce Halle Arizona Burn Center at Valleywise Health and Banner University Medical Center in Tucson. ABF has also continued expanding to meet real needs as they arise. After learning of a fatal house fire involving a Surprise resident who was deaf and could not afford a specialized alarm system, ABF added Deaf and Hard of Hearing Smoke Alarms to its Community Smoke Alarm program at no cost to residents, and a new partnership with Rescue Retriever now helps protect pets as well.
That full circle philosophy shows up most powerfully in the stories of individual survivors. ABF’s support often begins at the hospital bedside and continues through compression garments, peer connection, camps and retreats, family support, and years of rebuilding confidence. Doherty pointed to Joe Burnside as a story she often thinks of. Joe was 12 years old when he was injured in a freak accident while playing baseball, back when ABF was known as the Foundation for Trauma & Burns. He was hesitant about attending Camp Courage at first, but once there, he found something different from other camps. “People would often ask what happened to his leg. At Camp Courage, everyone had a story,” Doherty said. Joe drifted away from ABF for a few years as he got older, until an invitation to Camp Hope, a program for young adults, brought him back. That led him to Camp Connection, a camp for survivors and their significant others. Joe’s leg will never be fully recovered, but he recently hiked 21 miles from rim to river in the Grand Canyon as part of a fundraiser that raised $30,000 to support other survivors on their own recovery journeys. “We always say that recovery from an injury is not linear, and Joe’s journey with ABF is proof. Whether you need us today, tomorrow, or in five years, we will be here,” Doherty said.
Right now, Doherty is especially excited about ABF’s camps and retreats, which she says show what long-term healing looks like in action. Camp Courage just celebrated its 35th year, bringing together 60 campers and 100 volunteers for a week of connection, courage, healing, and joy. ABF also offers four additional camps tailored to specific groups, each one evolving year to year based on feedback from survivors and volunteers. At the same time, ABF’s fire safety prevention programs continue reaching new communities across Arizona, from Williams to the Hopi Village of Sichomovi. Milo & Moxie helps children and families learn memorable, life-saving safety lessons early, while Community Smoke Alarm Walks protect homes in a direct, hands-on way. ABF is also growing its volunteer network through partnerships with nursing colleges and academic institutions, welcoming volunteers from diverse backgrounds to support smoke alarm walks and community safety events. As Doherty put it, ABF’s mantra for 2026 is simple: “Find a way to say yes. We may be a small foundation, but we are mighty, because of the trust and partnerships we’ve built by showing up and making a difference, one home and one survivor at a time.”
Many people, Doherty noted, weren’t familiar with Arizona Burn Foundation until they or someone they loved experienced a burn injury, and that is not uncommon. But when that moment comes, ABF is there with immediate support, long-term resources, and a community that understands what survivors and families are going through. That is exactly why WIP wants our members and the greater Phoenix community to know ABF’s story now. One of the simplest ways to help is spreading the word, since awareness ensures more people know where to turn when they need it most. Beyond that, there are meaningful ways to get involved directly: volunteering at a Community Smoke Alarm Walk, supporting camps and retreats, helping provide compression garments for survivors, or making a financial gift.
As we celebrate Arizona Burn Foundation as our August Beneficiary of the Month, we hope our community will join us in supporting an organization that has spent nearly 60 years turning some of the hardest moments in a family’s life into stories of resilience and hope. In Doherty’s words, “however you choose to get involved, your support helps transform lives and strengthen communities. Thank you.”
To learn more, volunteer, or donate, visit azburn.org.