Recovering From a Disaster

The unbelievable love and support I've seen from the community has inspired me to stay strong and forge ahead. I wish I could provide work to those who are unable to work because they've lost their home and have had to relocate, or because their place of business is no longer standing. 

Thanks for starting this conversation, Bill. :heart: It's such an important topic to think about right now. 

Hello Bill,

I hope you are doing well and persevering through the recovery. How has it been in Napa and for yourself?

I grew up in Rincon Valley (Santa Rosa) but haven't lived in the area for about a decade. When I heard the news it was surreal - all I knew was I had to get home. I drove back to the Bay Area from LA that night, hopped in the car next morning with some food donations and drove to Santa Rosa without a plan. 

I was turned away at several places due to the overabundance of support; a fantastic problem to have (as far as problems go). Eventually, I was able to volunteer at the Redwod Empire Foodbank and watched for hours as individuals and businesses donated food, some even brought their store's stock (gas and power were off, didn't want food to go to waste).  

Some of my friends lost their homes, others their place of business, a few are going to rebuild and some aren't going back. Yet people are showing resilience in different ways. I heard this story on NPR (http://www.npr.org/2017/10/12/557444669/northern-california-wildfires-destroy-thousands-of-businesses) last week when I was driving, the gentlemen talking seems to be optimistic and provides some good silver lining. People seem to be rallying - lots of local places opened their doors and offered free support (http://www.petaluma360.com/news/7534571-181/petaluma-restaurants-pitched-in-to?artslide=0).  The friend I initially went to help works as a FoH manager at Kendall Jackson Wines near the evacuation area. Their story never made it to the news. He wasn't able to work for a few days, but eventually, KJ opened their doors and let operations run for free. They served 11,000 meals to shelters, gave the staff the opportunity to help and supported the local community.

Others I talked to said the fire was more than anything a learning experience - what they would do differently down the road and perspective on the importance of life and not material possessions. As an outside observer, I can't pretend to know how that all feels, but it does make me think. 

I use this website (a friend of the friend built it) for the up-to-date, accurate, community-contributed information. It has all kinds of resources and facts, some for Napa and Sonoma as well. Specifically, the recovery page (http://sonomafireinfo.org/#/recovery) seems to have many good contacts - maybe there is a group you can connect with? Maybe there's some information you could contribute as well. 

Facebook also seems to have quite a few support groups (Sonoma County Fire: Community Response, Santa Rosa Fire Storm Update, Santa Rosa/Sonoma County Fire Support). These might be worth exploring, though not all the information may be useful. 

I hope this helps. Very best to you in your recovery, happy to chat if you'd like. 

Best,

James Ong

I received an email today from Quickbooks but not sure if it's legit.  It's not on the calendar for the hotel and can't confirm online with quickbooks.   I've been on hold with QB's for and hour, not sure if I'll get thru tonight.   Has anyone else received?

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