If you’ve been following along on this blog for awhile, you might know that Heather and I are both graduates of Chico State in Butte County. I also lived there for 5 years post-college and it’s the birth place of both Harrison and Sullivan. There are so many people we know who are affected, so many humans who are displaced and unsure if they even have a home anymore. It is gut-wrenching.
If you are not in California and are wondering what the heck I’m talking about, this article was written by my friend, Professor Sarah Pape for the New York Times and it does an excellent job illustrating just what this tiny town of Paradise and the surrounding communities are going through. An excerpt:
“Everyone I know is connected to someone who has nothing left. We are flailing, trying to find words to express to the rest of the world what has happened to us. How it’s still happening.”
Because this is an area so near and dear to our hearts, we wanted to put together a resource list for those who want to help but maybe don’t know exactly how.
Photo by Noah Berger/AP
Donate cash or gift cards to these organizations
North Valley Community Foundation (NVCF): 100% of all donations made will go to the organizations and agencies on the ground. This fund will provide financial resources to organizations and agencies responding to those affected by the fires in Northern California. Click here to give your support.
Caring Choices Chico: 100% of your donation will be used to directly offer aid to those in need. Please make sure to indicate if you are making a contribution or a donation to a specific person, area or need. Click here to give your support.
Butte County Sheriff’s Office: Many officers are among the displaced and many have lost their homes. The ones that I know personally are still working overtime in hazardous smoky conditions to help victims when they are victims themselves. Their office has put together an Amazon wishlist to help the officers effected. Click here to give your support.
Friends of the Mounted Patrol Unit: 100% of donations will help buy supplies for 54+ officers and their families displaced by the fire. The money will go toward purchasing items on their immediate wish list. Click here to give your support.
Wildcats Rise: Chico State has organized this fund to allocate financial resources to those who were directly impacted by the Camp Fire. Click here to give your support.
Fund for Butte College Students: The Foundation is a 501(c)3. Funds givens are currently going to distribute funds donated to students who have lost their homes. Click here to give your support.
Donate supplies and goods to these organizations
Oroville Hope Center: A Facebook page has been set up to communicate the immediate needs of the center. Victims of the Camp Fire can pick up directly at The Hope Center, 1950 Kitrick Ave. A, Oroville. Click here for more information.
Donation centers:
Consider helping a family directly
Every person displaced by this horrific fire has a different set of needs. Please consider contacting a friend of a family you may know or checking out my public Facebook post full of GoFundMe links below to help. Gift cards and cash are in high demand. Every little bit helps.
Donate to the animals of the Camp Fire
North Valley Animal Disaster Group: Donations to this organization will go toward supporting various teams conducting jobs such as: transferring animals just outside the evacuation road-blocks to emergency response volunteers, transporting animals to emergency shelters, working behind the fire lines evacuating, feeding and watering animals. In addition, veterinarians are on staff providing emergency animal care/triage. Click here to give your support.
Donate your time
Caring Choices: Sign up here to be a volunteer. As they are experiencing a higher than normal rate of applications (AMAZING), please be patient. Volunteers are going to be needed for many months to come.
American Red Cross: Sign up here to volunteer with the Red Cross.
If you have any other resources, please post them in the comments or email me britta[email protected] and I will be happy to add them to this post.
[…] I always assumed wildfires burned in remote areas. However, the Wine Country Fires of 2017 and the Camp Fire that ravaged through the town of Paradise in 2018, proved that fires don’t care where you live and can happen […]