Quality medical care, community involvement and ongoing training helped the McCandless-Franklin Park Ambulance Authority earn the 2026 Emergency Medical Service Agency of the Year by the Pennsylvania Emergency Health Service Council and the Pennsylvania Department of Health Bureau of EMS.
The award was presented to the nonprofit May 21 at its headquarters along Grubbs Road.
“Today’s award recognizes the strong example of this care and compassion as a team dedicated to community and the people who live, work and visit here,” said Anthony Martin, director of the Bureau of EMS within the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
The selection of the award recipient and ceremony is a joint project of the Bureau of EMS and the Pennsylvania Emergency Health Services Council.
“I think this speaks very largely of all of the things we do,” said MFPAA Chief Chris Dell, who attributed the designation to the hard work of his staff and board. “It’s such a tremendous honor, and it all goes back to you guys.”
The MFPAA received the large agency division award honoring an EMS agency with a volume of more than 5,000 calls annually. The honor recognizes the agency’s contribution to the development and growth of quality pre-hospital care within its community by demonstrating a consistent pattern, timely care delivery, working cooperatively with other area EMS agencies and supporting professional development activities for its providers, according to Martin.
Brian Shaw, director of EMS West, which is comprised of 16 counties in Western Pennsylvania, noted MFPAA’s accomplishments.
With six ambulances operating out of three stations, MFPAA has 41 clinical staff members responding to about 10,000 EMS calls throughout a 64-square-mile region encompassing the communities of Bradford Woods, Franklin Park, McCandless, Marshall and Pine. They also respond to emergencies in North Park.
The organization consistently receives the American Heart Association Gold status.
In 2025, the MFPAA notched 22 successful CPR resuscitations, Shaw said.
The award recognizes the ambulance organization’s community outreach, including holding public vaccine clinics, conducting community CPR and AED classes, child car seat checks and providing ambulance standbys at local school functions.
The MFPAA also participates at the local community day celebrations for each of the five municipalities it serves.
Additionally, it hosts an annual open house to kick off EMS Week.
The MFPAA conducted an estimated 4,400 hours of training for emergency medical students from the Community College of Allegheny County, Center for Emergency Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, Indiana University of Pennsylvania and A.W. Beattie Career Center.
The organization is active with the Pennsylvania Emergency Health Services Council, Ambulance Association of Pennsylvania, American Ambulance Association, EMS West regional council, Allegheny County EMS Council and Western Pennsylvania EMS Honor Guard.
The nonprofit has an active state-certified workplace safety committee, according to the Shaw.
The MFPAA received national accreditation by the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services in 2024.
“That’s a great feat for your staff and for your board to do that,” Shaw said.
It recently started a partnership with UPMC hospitals to provide a Community Paramedic-led Transitions Intervention Program for patients with dementia and their caregivers.
These efforts of “outstanding service to community and dedication to excellence” were the reasons for the award, Shaw said.
Each award recipient by PEHSC is given a poster designed with the award. An identical poster also was displayed in the main rotunda of the state capital in Harrisburg during EMS Week.
James Bonomo has been a member of the MFPAA board for six years.
“To witness the growth that this organization has gone through over that period of time is breathtaking. I speak on behalf of the board that it’s an absolute privilege to be involved in this,” Bonomo said.