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San Diegans Help During 2007 Wildfires

San Diegans Help During 2007 Wildfires

PHOTOS BY GRAHAM BLAIR AT THE ROCK CHURCH

Almost as soon as the 2007 wildfires broke out October 21, the San Diego community was out in force to help. People’s generosity was far-reaching, with individuals, nonprofits and businesses offering food, water, shelter, medical care and emotional support. It seemed if people and organizations could find a way to help, they did.

One such organization that stepped in immediately to help during the fire efforts is the American Red Cross. Over the course of just a few days, the Red Cross helped open 14 shelters around the county, providing residents a safe place to stay, along with meals, snacks and basic health services. By October 26, hundreds of Red Cross volunteers and 30 truckloads of disaster supplies arrived in San Diego from across the country. Locally, the Red Cross trained nearly 3,000 volunteers in the first few days of the wildfires.

“We have been floored by the outpouring of generosity from the San Diego community,” says Peyton Roberts, public information officer of the American Red Cross San Diego/Imperial Counties. “Everyone from individuals to large corporations has done something to contribute, and it’s efforts like these that will help speed the recovery.” One such example, he says, was a man who walked in with his kids on one of the first days of the fires and dropped off a personal check for $25,000 to help with the recovery efforts.

Another example of going to extraordinary lengths to help was the week-long work of the Urban Kitchen Group, operator of Laurel, Chive, the Kensington Grill and Urban Kitchen Catering, which worked in association with the California Restaurant Association to prepare and deliver food to evacuee centers, as well as to firefighters and police officers.

Urban Kitchen Group’s three chefs and kitchen staff, with the help of chefs such as Stephane Voitzwinkler of Bertrand at Mister A’s and Amiko Gubbins, formerly of Parallel 33, prepared about 3,700 meals out of Laurel’s kitchen during the week. In addition, Urban Kitchen Group organized food and meal donations from more than 10 suppliers and nearly 80 restaurants, including Anthony’s Seafood Group, George’s California Modern, Outback Steakhouse, Panda Express and Subway. “People were so eager to help that they were just sending food [to the shelters],” says Tracy Borkum, owner of Urban Kitchen Group. “We tried to get the message out to coordinate through us so that we weren’t wasting food and everyone who needed it got food.”

Another organization that responded quickly to the fires was The Rock Church in Point Loma, which opened its doors as an evacuation center and was quickly certified by the Red Cross and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to shelter special-needs evacuees. Over the week, hundreds of people stayed at the church, including 118 elderly people ages 67 to 97, plus about 70 of their caregivers and doctors, all of whom were evacuated from Mount Miguel Covenant Village in Spring Valley. In addition, about 40 children and their caregivers from a group home in Descanso stayed at the church.

Again, the larger community’s support was immediate. As soon as word got out that The Rock Church was an evacuation center, a line of cars appeared, bringing donations. “We have rooms piled up with toiletries, little kids’ clothes and a 300-square-foot room filled with water,” says Miles McPherson, senior pastor of the church. About 1,000 church volunteers sorted the donations, cooked, answered phones and, in time, turned the church into a distribution center that delivered supplies to other evacuee locations. “In one day we went from being a church to a distribution center and a convalescent home,” says McPherson.

While The Rock Church may be a new addition to disaster relief efforts, the Salvation Army is not. So it’s no surprise that it also mobilized when fires struck. The Salvation Army also delivered sustenance to evacuees—distributing more than 31,000 meals and snacks as well as 35,000 drinks. In addition, the organization provided personal- care kits, cots, cups and other materials, as well as emotional and spiritual care. The Salvation Army also took mobile kitchens into burned-out neighborhoods, offering a kind word, supplies or a sandwich.

Such efforts were part of the Salvation Army’s initial focus on helping people who were evacuated from their homes by providing food and comfort, according to Lieutenant Colonel Doug O’Brien, Sierra del Mar’s divisional commander. “At the same time, we are planning for the long-term recovery,” he says. The recovery phase includes providing store vouchers, gift cards and other practical assistance so survivors can replace personal effects, furniture and other lost items. This phase will likely continue for a long time, considering that the Salvation Army completed its long-term recovery efforts from the 2003 fires just a few weeks before the 2007 fires ignited.