NEWS Receives Fire Relief Preliminary Funding to Help Victims

NAPA VALLEY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION DISTRIBUTES

$565,000 TO SUPPORT THOSE AFFECTED BY FIRES

"Thanks to the generosity of donors near and far, we've been able to move quickly to get services to those who need them," said NVCF President Terence Mulligan.  As of yesterday afternoon, more than 3,400 donors had contributed $1.2 million to the Disaster Relief Fund in response to the fires.  Additional cash gifts are needed, but the Foundation is not able to accept in-kind contributions.  Moreover, most nonprofits helping those affected by the fires don't have the capacity at this time to accept the significant volume of in-kind donations that are generously being offered.  "After the devastating fires in Lake County in 2015, it took 15 tractor trailers to haul away all the in-kind donations that poured in but couldn't be used by people," said Mulligan.  One exception: gift cards purchased to assist evacuees, particularly pre-paid Visa, MasterCard or American Express gift cards in $25, $50 and $100 denominations, which are being accepted by Cope Family Center at 707 Randolph Street in Napa and UpValley Family Centers at 1440 Spring Street in St. Helena.

Today, NVCF convened key nonprofit and public sector leaders for a second time since the outbreak of the Napa Fire Complex on Sunday night, to identify emerging needs related to the ongoing disaster in Napa County.  "Interim housing, health services, mental health services and assistance for people unable to work on account of the fires" are likely to be addressed by the Disaster Relief Fund moving forward, said Mulligan.  So are services to help local residents navigate the application process for private insurance reimbursements or grants from FEMA, he added, noting that a second round of distributions from the Disaster Relief Fund would be forthcoming in the weeks ahead, probably after Napa County establishes a Local Assistance Center (LAC).

Meanwhile, the Disaster Relief Fund has ordered several thousand N-95 respirator masks, which are washable and reusable.  These will be distributed for free to local residents in partnership with the nonprofit organizations listed below.

The sixteen organizations receiving grants today are: 

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