'Breathe Puro, San Antonio' Clean Air Awareness Initiative Helps 25+ Downtown San Antonio Businesses Keep Doors Open During Holidays

SAN ANTONIO, Texas, December 21, 2020 (Newswire.com) -  More than 25 downtown San Antonio restaurants and businesses - featuring Mi Tierra, The Buckhorn Saloon & Museum, Pinch Boil House, La Panaderia, the Magik Theatre, and many others - are participating in "Breathe Puro, San Antonio," a grassroots campaign to raise awareness of clean air best practices and COVID-19 prevention while helping these businesses stay open safely through the holidays. Spearheaded by local technology startup WellAware and global filtration experts Purafil, "Breathe Puro, San Antonio'' garnered the support of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, Centro San Antonio, and the San Antonio River Walk Association, as it aims to help their constituents regain valuable foot traffic lost during the pandemic.

The initiative leverages a proven air scrubbing technology - PureAware - that combats the threat of harmful airborne contaminants, reduces the presence of airborne SARS-CoV-2, eliminates up to 99.99% of virus-containing aerosols, and provides peace of mind to patrons through a unique customer assurance QR code and mobile app experience. Businesses that have joined the campaign each receive an air scrubbing unit from PureAware and get free access to PureAware's services through the end of January 2021.

Pinch Boil House, a downtown restaurant founded by entrepreneurs Andrew Ho and Sean Wen and serving Southeast Asian inspired seafood, snacks, and beer, signed on to participate when they learned how PureAware could help promote healthier spaces in their dining room and kitchen. "As we begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel regarding this virus," said Ho, "it's important for us to be as diligent as ever — if not more. This is why we are thrilled and grateful to be able to partner up with PureAware to promote public health and to ensure we can confidently continue to safely serve our food to this amazing community."

Joining this initiative from the theater community is the Magik Theatre, San Antonio's premier professional family theatre located at Hemisfair downtown. Magik Theatre continues to find creative ways to stay open during the COVID-19 pandemic while helping to keep theatre patrons safe, and PureAware air purifiers have provided extra peace of mind for their staff, actors, and patrons, especially its youngest of members, children who attend these in-person performances and educational camps. "We are proud to be part of this city-wide initiative that promotes these clean air practices, offering another safety measure to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the theatre," said Anthony Runfola, Magik Theatre artistic director. "During these challenging times, helping to keep our patrons and our staff safe is our top priority so that we can continue to bring joy and memories through live theatre family performances." 

Another downtown San Antonio staple, La Panadería Bakery & Cafe, joined the "Breathe Puro, San Antonio" initiative as a way to make their restaurant feel safer and more inviting to downtown tourists and local foot traffic. "Peace of mind is one of our highest priorities at La Panaderia," said owner José Cáceres. "That's why partnering with PureAware is key to providing the safest air quality for both our guests and family members."

The Buckhorn Saloon & Museum, located on the River Walk, embraced the opportunity to promote visitor safety and encourage tourists to view Texas' oldest saloon with the added protection of the PureAware system. "We at the Buckhorn chose to participate in the 'Breathe Puro, San Antonio' program because it is a fantastic way to bestow an additional benefit to our guests," remarked General Manager Yvonne Pedigo. "We have worked tirelessly since we re-opened in May to provide a clean, safe, family-friendly environment for our visitors and team members. It is our hope that these air purifiers demonstrate our commitment to guest safety while utilizing the latest technology in the oldest saloon in Texas!"

San Antonio-based WellAware, a leader in industrial remote monitoring, partnered with PuraShield, a proven air scrubbing solution by Purafil that removes 99.99% of aerosols carrying viruses through a patented 4-step filtration process, to create PureAware, the market's only proven, virus-removing air solution that provides remote monitoring and control for operations. "WellAware exists to connect people to the things that matter. PureAware brings the best technology in air filtration and the added ability to demonstrate air filtration status to the public with a simple QR code, providing that connection between the machines, businesses, customers, and the community's health," says WellAware CEO Matt Harrison. "Partnering with the downtown San Antonio community through 'Breathe Puro, San Antonio' is our way to help the San Antonio community fight back against COVID-19 and keep businesses open in the safest possible way." 

According to Purafil's President Tony Querciagrossa, "We're excited to join this campaign to support these San Antonio businesses. For these owners, employees, and their customers, safety is the number one priority and there is no other technology on the market like PuraShield that has this patented molecular technology that has been tested and proven by air experts. San Antonians can rest assured that the PuraShield technology maximizes air cleaning performance in even the most critical environments. People spend about 90% of their time indoors. Now more than ever, it is imperative that we actively remove air contaminants to ensure a safe environment for employees and customers in San Antonio and all over the world." 

With restaurants in the United States expected to lose $240 billion in revenue by the end of 2020, this campaign will ensure that restaurants and other hospitality businesses can operate safely while continuing to stay open for business. Especially in San Antonio, where tourism generates over $15 billion in annual revenue, the initiative provides assurance not only for patrons but business owners as well, who are struggling with the financial impact caused by the current pandemic. 

The San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, whose mission is to be an advocate for its members and the business community in building and sustaining a diverse and prosperous economy, counts 1,850 local businesses as members and knows full well how COVID-19 has affected them. The Chamber signed on to help spread the word about the initiative and connect businesses with the purification technology. "As the San Antonio Chamber prepares for 2021 and kicks off our One City initiative to help rebuild our downtown business community, we are eager to share resources that may help business owners," said Chamber President and CEO Richard Perez. "The 'Breathe Puro, San Antonio' program is a great resource for our downtown businesses to try over the holiday season, and it is our hope that the PureAware system will help these restaurants, hotels, landmarks, and small businesses safely regain customers, excitement, and opportunities to recover."

Partnering with the Chamber and participating businesses are Centro San Antonio, a non-profit organization that seeks to create a more beautiful, playful, welcoming, and prosperous downtown by providing resources and community for downtown businesses, and The San Antonio River Walk Association, which supports River Walk businesses through events and promotion. "We are excited to connect downtown small businesses to this innovative solution from PureAware, a San Antonio startup looking to give back this holiday season," said Matt Brown, CEO of Centro. "Maggie Thompson, Executive Director of the River Walk Association was also pleased to hear about the initiative to support safer tourism on the River Walk. "We have worked hard to ensure the River Walk businesses are safe," she said, "and we are glad to promote products that provide a safer experience for visitors."

This is the full list of participating businesses and organizations:

• Be Frida Fine Mexican Handcraft
• Best Quality Daughter
• Bier Garten Riverwalk
• Biga on the Banks
• Blue Star Contemporary Art Museum
• Blue Star Provisions
• The Buckhorn Saloon & Museum
• The CE Group
• CommonWealth Coffeehouse & Bakery
• The County Line BBQ
• Estate Coffee Company
• Iron Cactus Mexican Restaurant and Margarita Bar
• La Frite Belgian Bistro
• La Panaderia Bakery & Cafe
• Mad Dogs British Pub
• Maddy McMurphy's Irish Sports Bar
• Magik Theatre
• The Magpie
• La Margarita Mexican Restaurant and Oyster Bar
• Mi Tierra Café y Panadería
• On the Bend Oyster Bar and Cigar Lounge
• Pico De Gallo
• Pinch Boil House
• South Alamode Panini & Gelato Company
• Sukeban Sushi & Champagne Bar
• Truth Pizzeria

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About WellAware

WellAware empowers organizations to be efficient, safe and sustainable by streaming mission critical data to their employees, so they can remotely monitor and control physical assets. Our open technology is easy to deploy, affordable and secure. WellAware is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas with a world-class team of management and advisors. To learn more, visit www.wellaware.us.

About Purafil

Purafil, the leader in gas phase filtration, has been making the world safer, healthier and more productive since 1969. Its 50 years of experience fuels a passion to continually improve air quality by removing harmful and unpleasant contaminants from the air. Purafil protects thousands of people, processes and environments every day. Purafil's PuraShield air scrubbing solution removes 99.99% of aerosols carrying viruses through a patented 4-step filtration process. Learn more about Purafil at www.purafil.com.

Media Contact: Sylvester Palacios, [email protected]

Source: WellAware