CALIFORNIA FIRE FOUNDATION
The California Fire Foundation’s Supplying Aid to Victims of Emergency (SAVE), is bringing immediate, short-term relief to victims of the recent Lightning Complex Fires.
CALIFORNIA FIRE FOUNDATION: A Beacon of Hope at Times of Crisis
California is once again faced with a challenging wildfire season. The state no longer experiences ‘normal’ wildfire season and with the COVID-19 pandemic affecting most aspects of our lives, this wildfire season is truly testing the resolve and limits of all Californians.
The California Fire Foundation’s Supplying Aid to Victims of Emergency (SAVE), is bringing immediate, short-term relief to victims of the recent Lightning Complex Fires. The foundation has already dispersed over 550 SAVE cards into the field in response to these fires and will continue to monitor the need. Donations, large and small, to our disaster relief programs have provided needed aid to those who have lost everything.
As thousands of California firefighters worked tirelessly to protect our communities during the wildfires, a few of our own firefighters lost their homes. Through the California Firefighter Benevolent Fund, the foundation has disbursed financial assistance to firefighters who remained on the front lines, even as their own homes were lost.
The California Fire Foundation has also stepped forward to help communities severely impacted by the pandemic. Just as California firefighters are on the front lines of wildfires and other natural disasters, so too are the many organizations supporting families and communities through the COVID-19 crisis.
The California Fire Foundation partnered with NextEra Energy Foundation to provide direct grants to groups providing nutritional and economic support in hard-hit regions of the state.
The Foundation also collaborated with the food distributor, Sysco Corporation, and together gifted over $10,000 in relief effort between the South Lake Tahoe Family Resource Center, a school based non-profit organization, and the Food for People Food Bank in Humboldt County.
In addition, the California Fire Foundation donated $5,000 in relief effort to the Imperial Valley Food Bank that plays a critical role in providing food to families, veterans, the disabled, and seniors living on fixed incomes.
“As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded we wanted to assist the most vulnerable in our communities,” said Brian K. Rice, chair of the California Fire Foundation and president of California Professional Firefighters. “Our foundation has supported communities heavily impacted by disasters, and we are proud to continue that commitment in this pandemic and during this wildfire season.”
This aid from the California Fire Foundation is part of the ongoing commitment to provide funding and support for community-based organizations that are on the front lines helping those facing the greatest risk from COVID-19.
“We will be made stronger by meeting the challenge of COVID-19 and working through these difficult times together,” said chair Rice.