OUR FOUNDER

The National HART Foundation was
founded in 2009 by a Los Angeles
City Fire Captain, Thomas Stafford, as
a vehicle to bring attention, education
and support to the many children, young
adults and community members who
succumb to sudden cardiac arrest daily
in Southern California. Mr. Stafford was
involved in the original development and
execution of a highly successful program
(HART) that was previously operated by
the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD),
where he played an intricate role in training
thousands of Los Angeles Unified High School
students alongside fellow firefighters, paramedics, and explorer scouts over a five year period.

Born in 1961 and raised in Southern California, his career first began as an Emergency Medical Technician for several different ambulance companies' from 1979-1984. In 1986, Thomas was hired by the LAFD as a single function Paramedic. He has been trained as a Firefighter and promoted up through the ranks as an Emergency Dispatcher, Fire Inspector and now Fire Captain. Thomas is certified as a California State Fire Marshall (CSFM) Fire Prevention Officer, CSFM Fire Instructor and an LAFD Fire Officer and is currently in his 25th year of service with the Los Angeles City Fire Department (LAFD).
In addition to his career with the LAFD, Thomas began a business in 2004 as a CPR Instructor. He created a company called Superior Life Support (SLS). Since that time, SLS has grown from an authorized Training Site of the American Heart Association (AHA) to an authorized AHA Regional Training Center. Furthermore, recognizing the need for the continuation of a community based education program, Mr. Stafford received authorization from the LAFD to expand the HART program into the National HART Foundation, becoming a 501c3 Tax Exempt Organization with the mission of educating our future leaders nationwide, with the goal of empowering them to take action and save a life in an emergency situation.