SANTA ROSA, Calif.–The North Bay Fire Relief Fund, a partnership between Redwood Credit Union, The Press Democrat and Sen. Mike McGuire, announced it has now collected and distributed more than $32 million from more than 41,100 donors over the past 120 days and is now nearly fully disbursed and is winding down operations.
The fund was created to support immediate needs of fire victims following the devastating fires that impacted Sonoma, Napa, Mendocino and Lake counties in October 2017.
The North Bay Fire Relief Fund represents one of the largest and most successful disaster relief efforts in Northern California history, with 100% of all donations collected directly benefitting neighbors in need, Redwood Credit Union said. The Fund is housed within the Redwood Credit Union Community Fund, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit fund.
“The North Bay Fire Relief Fund has, since inception, been focused on the first phase of the recovery—supporting immediate relief for those impacted by the fires—and now with the fund fully disbursed, it is beginning to wind down, as other groups in the community ramp up to tackle the second and rebuilding phases of recovery and rebuild,” Redwood CU said.
With the affected region shifting from immediate relief needs during the first 120 days to recovery and rebuild phases over the next several years, the credit union said the North Bay Fire Relief Fund ceased accepting funds on Feb. 15.
According to Redwood CU, the numbers related to the North Bay Fire Relief Fund include:
- NBFRF raised and distributed $32,028,981 in the four months since the fires began.
- Contributions came from over 41,100 donors from 23 countries, and nearly 70% of donations came from outside the four affected counties of Sonoma, Napa, Mendocino, and Lake—"proving people around the world care about what happened to the North Bay and are sending a message of care and hope for the community.”
- $20,498,854 was paid out in direct assistance to fire victims, including 6,593 residents who lost homes or experienced economic hardship due to the fires received financial support from the Fund; 102 first responders who lost homes while fighting the fires or protecting the community received funds to support their immediate needs, and 2,253 K-12 and college students throughout the North Bay who lost their homes received gift cards from the Fund to replace school clothes and supplies.
- $9,587,586 was distributed to nonprofits serving immediate needs of fire survivors, including 56 nonprofits providing direct services to fire survivors received nearly $7 million in grants from the North Bay Fire Relief Fund to continue support of fire survivors with financial assistance, food, housing, family and health and well-being services.
- $1,000,000 was paid to small businesses impacted by the fires
- $942,541 to support fire survivor health and well-being including health and dental care, lost sporting equipment and holiday programs
Additional details can be found at www.redwoodcu.org/northbayfirerelief.