2024 California Disaster Response

Philanthropy California is an alliance of Northern California Grantmakers, Southern California Grantmakers, and Catalyst of San Diego and Imperial Counties. We partner with the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) to support immediate disaster relief and long-term recovery efforts. Philanthropy California monitors wildfires & natural hazard events and provides individual and institutional funders with vetted funds, resources, and events on this response page.

 

Philanthropy California is deploying its deep work in disaster resilience efforts toward:

  • Publicizing trusted funds for place-based relief and recovery
  • Prioritizing funds that support marginalized or under-resourced communities
  • Sharing emerging issues, and where funders can make the most of their contributions
  • Advising how best to meet short and long-term recovery needs
  • Connecting funders, government partners, and organizations active in responding to disasters
  • Supporting funders with tools, connections, and expertise

Philanthropy California does not:

  • Directly connect community-based organizations to funders
  • Provide general public information on wildfire or natural hazard events. For more information on active wildfires/hazard events or emergency response efforts please visit the CalOES webpage or the California Resiliency Alliance (CRA) wildfire quick-links
  • Direct fire or disaster-impacted individuals to resources. If you have been affected by a recent disaster in California you can call 211 for information on where to find help locally

Please visit our government & non-profit partner websites, California Resiliency Alliance, CalVolunteers and CalOES, for more information about how you can help, as well as how to prepare for and recover from wildfires and other natural hazards.

 

  

 

If you have questions about Philanthropy California's disaster response, please contact:

 

Northern California: Katie Oran, Climate and Disaster Resilience Manager (kaoran@ncg.org).

Southern California: Lily, Bui, Climate & Disaster Preparedness Manager (lily@socalgrantmakers.org).

 

Philanthropy California believes that, in addition to funding immediate and long-term recovery efforts, it’s essential for funders to support building long lasting wildfire & disaster resilience. For every dollar spent on building disaster resilience, communities save six on recovery costs.  If you are a funder interested in supporting wildfire & disaster resilience efforts across the state get in touch with us!

The Philanthropy California team has vetted the list below to help you direct resources to funds supporting non-profits active in place-based relief and recovery efforts with a special focus on supporting communities facing structural inequities. Additionally, some funds specifically support long-term resilience building & recovery efforts, which provide support for communities recovering in the years after a hazard event.

 

You can filter funds based on region to view locally established relief/recovery funds, or you can support statewide funds that re-distribute money to disaster-affected communities. Tags for specific disaster events or hazard categories will be added as needed.

League of California Community Foundations: Disaster Relief, Recovery, and Resilience Fund

This fund supports relief, recovery and resilience for natural hazard events in communities across the state of California. Through a statewide coalition of community foundations, funds support:

 

Relief

  • Provide emergency disaster relief for individuals, families, and communities
  • Fill critical gaps in local safety net services that may include food and housing security, physical and mental health access and support, and emergency assistance

Recovery

  • Support the long-term recovery of impacted individuals, families, and communities
  • Support the capacity of organizations to provide long-term recovery services
  • Support case management, project management and construction management associated with recovery
  • Support community-based leadership activities such as convening recovery committees

Resilience

  • Prepare for and minimize damage from catastrophic events
  • Invest in hazard mitigation and prevention for communities at risk of and impacted by natural hazards
  • Support coordinated planning with public/private sector entities, reduce duplication of efforts, and increase the overall effectiveness of disaster prevention and preparedness activities

 

VISIT FUND

San Diego Foundation: San Diego Flood Response Fund

San Diego Foundation (SDF) launched the San Diego Flood Response Fund to rapidly deploy flexible resources into the community and support organizations responding to the January 2024 unprecedented flooding in San Diego County.

 

The fund will receive donations and make emergency grants to nonprofit service organizations engaged in disaster response and relief. SDF will match donations up to $100,000.

 

VISIT FUND

San Diego Seniors Community Foundation: Flood Recovery Fund for San Diego Seniors

The recent floods have devastated many seniors in San Diego, leaving them to face recovery alone. The San Diego Seniors Community Foundation has launched the San Diego Seniors Flood Recovery Fund to ensure no senior faces this hardship alone. Your tax-deductible donation will provide immediate relief, help rebuild homes, offer emotional support, and maximize impact by directing funds to established organizations adept at disaster response. Together, we can nourish hope and ensure no senior alone goes hungry, lacks shelter, battles trauma, or tries to rebuild without support. Call (619) 684-9114 or visit the link below to donate and make a difference.

 

VISIT FUND

Santa Barbara Foundation: Community Disaster Relief Fund

Our communities in Santa Barbara County have proven time and again to be resilient in times of disaster. The Community Disaster Relief Fund was created to support our county during times of crisis and has previously been activated to respond to disasters such as the Thomas Fire and 1/9 Debris Flow, the COVID-19 pandemic, and last year’s winter storms which caused major damage in North County and elsewhere.

 

VISIT FUND

United Way of Merced County: United Way of Merced County Relief

There have been many Merced County residents evacuated from their homes due to the severe flooding brought by the storm hitting California. Their homes, belongings, and communities submerged underwater.  The County of Merced, the City of Merced, United Way of Merced, and many other organizations across the county are asking for your help to raise money to help our neighbors in their time of need.  The donations in this fund will be used to assist the Merced County communities impacted by the flood.

Please help donate today! All your donations are extremely helpful and 100% of your contribution will go towards helping the Merced County communities recover from this disaster.

 

VISIT FUND

United Way of Northern California: NorCal Disaster Fund

United Way of Northern California is a trusted leader in disaster response, relief, and recovery, working with partner organizations across multiple sectors to meet the needs of communities impacted by disasters. UWNC is there every step along the journey, helping individuals and families return as close to their pre-disaster normal as possible and achieve long-term stability. We do this through various programs designed to help survivors move to the next phase in their recovery process.

 

VISIT FUND

United Way of the Wine Country: Emergency Readiness Fund

An integral part of United Way of the Wine Country’s mission to help families and individuals improve financial stability, donations made to the Emergency Readiness Fund are distributed as strategic grants to emergency readiness and response efforts across Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, Humboldt and Del Norte Counties. Grants are awarded primarily to nonprofits providing equitable access to information and resources including financial assistance before, during, or after an emergency. Emergencies range from fires, floods, wind events, power outages, and other natural and human-made disasters, including pandemics and industrial accidents along with associated economic impact.

 

VISIT FUND

Ventura County Community Foundation: Storm Fund

In partnership with Ventura County Emergency Management and the cities of Oxnard, Ventura, and Port Hueneme, the Ventura County Community Foundation is making an urgent appeal for assistance on behalf of the resilient residents who were devastated by the catastrophic floods that struck our communities in late December.  Over 400 homes, 50 of which saw water over 18 inches, have been damaged, with many destroyed.  Many of the affected residents are seniors living in low-income communities, most families have no insurance support, and FEMA assistance is not available. This fund will provide emergency financial assistance to the very low-income residents and families who have been severely impacted.  100% of each donation will be distributed directly to those in need. 

 

VISIT FUND

2-1-1

211 is a free information and referral service that connects people to health and human services in their community 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  211 serves people of all income levels, languages and cultural backgrounds and is available to 96% of Californians and to 85% of U.S. households. 211 also plays a critical role in providing information and support in times of disaster, such as evacuation, shelter, food, medical and recovery information, and provides public officials with feedback from callers about changing conditions.  211 programs are supported by United Way, public and private funders, city and county agencies and more. California United Ways operate and/or provide major funding for 2-1-1 programs throughout the state.

 

California Governor's Office of Emergency Services

The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (CAL OES) connects residents with a wide range of services and programs targeted specifically at those who have been affected by wildfires.

 

California Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters (VOAD)

 VOAD associations improve outcomes for people affected by disasters by facilitating cooperation, communication, coordination, and collaboration among nonprofit organizations, community-based groups, government agencies, and for-profit companies. Contact your local VOAD to learn how your organization can support disaster relief and recovery efforts.

 

California Resiliency Alliance (CRA)

The California Resiliency Alliance (CRA) is a 501C(3) non-profit sitting at the nexus between the public and private sectors facilitating cross-sector information sharing and partnerships to empower local and regional resilience. The CRA facilitates information sharing across public-private sectors and across industry sectors. For information on active wildfires visit CRA’s wildfire quick-links webpage

 

Disaster Relief Guide

You'll find support for business assistance, capital programs, cybersecurity for business, and additional resources.

 

Get Earthquake Alerts: MyShake

Earthquake Warning California is the country’s first publicly available, statewide warning system providing California residents crucial seconds to take cover before you feel shaking. Managed by the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), Earthquake Warning California uses ground motion sensors from across the state to detect earthquakes before humans can feel them and can notify Californians to “Drop, Cover and Hold On” in advance of an earthquake.

 

Guide to Disaster Assistance Services

The State of California’s Guide to Disaster Assistance Services for Immigrant Californians provides information on health, housing, emergency supplies, employment and other services available to all Californians, regardless of their immigration status.

 

Listos California Resource Hub

Listos California has free materials in many languages that you can use and share to promote disaster preparedness in your home and community.

 

National Weather Service

Provides information on weather conditions across the United States and California. Includes current active alerts, forecast maps, radar, rivers, lakes & rainfall information, air quality, satellite, and past weather data.

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