$11,000 grant helps St. Andrew’s Parks replace aging AEDs at West Ashley facilities
from Staff Reports
From youth sports and summer camps to fitness classes and senior programs, thousands of West Ashley residents make use of St. Andrew’s Parks and Playground facilities each year. A new grant will help make sure staff members have potentially lifesaving equipment nearby if a medical emergency occurs.
The St. Andrew’s Parks Legacy Foundation recently received an $11,000 grant from the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation to purchase new automated external defibrillators, commonly known as AEDs.
The new units will replace aging equipment and be placed at strategic locations throughout St. Andrew’s Parks and Playground facilities.
AEDs are portable devices designed to help someone experiencing sudden cardiac arrest by analyzing the heart’s rhythm and, when necessary, delivering an electrical shock to help restore a normal rhythm. Having one readily accessible can be particularly important in recreation settings, where people of all ages are participating in sports and other physical activities.
“We are extremely grateful to the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation and our local Firehouse Subs West Ashley restaurant for this vital support,” said Joshua Singleton, president of the St. Andrew’s Parks Legacy Foundation. “Having reliable, up-to-date equipment enhances our ability to protect lives and better serve our community as they participate in our programs.”
The grant also represents an early success for the St. Andrew’s Parks Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit organization established in 2025 to provide additional support for the programs and facilities operated by St. Andrew’s Parks and Playground.
While the foundation itself is relatively new, the organization it supports has deep roots in West Ashley. Founded in 1945, St. Andrew’s Parks and Playground is the oldest active parks district in South Carolina and has provided recreation opportunities to generations of local residents.
The Legacy Foundation was created to help strengthen those programs and facilities while preserving resources for future generations.
The Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation was established in 2005 by the founders of the restaurant chain with a mission of providing equipment and other resources to first responders and public safety organizations. The foundation also supports prevention education, scholarships and continuing education, disaster relief, and military veterans.
Since its creation, the organization has awarded more than 7,200 grants totaling more than $109 million to public safety organizations across all 50 states and Puerto Rico. More than 70 percent of the money raised by the foundation comes from donations made by Firehouse Subs customers and the restaurant brand.
For St. Andrew’s Parks, its latest grant will remain much closer to home, putting updated emergency equipment in the places where West Ashley residents play, exercise, compete, and gather.
