Skip to main content

Credit Unions Donate to Aid Lake County Fire Survivors

Generous Donation to Aid Rebuilding of Homes and Provide Local Childcare Services

From left:  Diana Dykstra (California Credit Union League), Brett Martinez (Redwood Credit Union), Richard Cooper (Mendo Lakes Credit Union) and Robin McCarthy (Fire Family Foundation). 
MIDDLETOWN, CA — Fire survivors who lost homes in the devastating Lake County fires and residents struggling with local childcare will benefit from a generous donation of $80,000 from Fire Family Foundation. A contribution of $60,000 was made in mid-February at the Middletown Fire Station to Hope City/Hope Crisis Response Network (HCRN), a disaster relief agency rebuilding several homes destroyed by the fires, and a donation of over $20,000 went to the Lake Family Resource Center (LFRC) for much-needed childcare in the community.

Fire Family Foundation (FFF) provides assistance to individuals and families affected by fire-related disasters throughout California and is the charitable hand of Firefighters First Credit Union. FFF worked with both Redwood Credit Union (RCU) and Mendo Lake Credit Union (MLCU) along with the California Credit Union League (CCUL) to identify the greatest needs of the fire survivors and provide the funding. Foundation Executive Director Robin McCarthy along with credit union and league representatives presented the check to Hope City Chief Executive Officer Kevin Cox and Team Lake County Chair Shelly Mascari in mid February.

Hope City has identified several homeowners who lost their residences in the Valley Fire to be beneficiaries of the $60,000 gift, according to Cox. He noted Hope City matches the gift with volunteer labor, so the initial amount becomes a $120,000 donation. The selection of families for receipt of HCRN’s assistance is needs-based, with aid going to individuals who had little or no insurance and may have other extenuating circumstances.

“Our organization thanks Fire Family Foundation and the credit unions who have been so amazing in helping Lake County, and we thank the community for rallying to get families back into homes,” said Cox.

Another key service needing support is the Lake Family Resource Center (LFRC), which provides before and after school childcare in Lake County. “We are grateful for the focus on childcare needs for those impacted by the fire,” said Jennifer Dodd, LFRC’s Executive Director. “The grant will be used to help families with childcare services so residents can get back to work knowing their children are cared for,” Dodd added. She shared many fire survivors have had challenges with transportation, changed school schedules, and the disappearance of off-site daycares in the area. “It is wonderful the grant was provided to Lake Family Resource Center because it will help reduce the stress impacting the families with childcare needs,” Dodd shared.
Noting the “heartwarming” actions coming from outside Lake County to assist with recovery efforts, MLCU Chief Executive Officer Richard Cooper said, “MLCU is thankful for the donations from credit unions across the state and beyond. We appreciate the assistance of RCU and the California Credit Union League for their efforts in getting the word out about the tremendous need.”

RCU’s President & CEO Brett Martinez, who also participated in the Friday evening check presentation, shared, “It’s exciting to see how so many organizations and people coming together to support Lake County is helping the community move forward.”

Team Lake County Chair Shelly Mascari expressed her appreciation for the combined efforts of credit unions. “Team Lake County is so grateful for this contribution to the infrastructure of our community. With this support, Lake County will have the opportunity to recover and thrive in the future.”

Fire Family Foundation Executive Director Robin McCarthy explained, “These fires shattered communities and families. Our foundation answers the need when tragedy strikes. Our commitment to firefighters and fire survivors like this, enables us to offer a helping hand in times of grief. We hope our $80,000 donation will provide a better future for this community.”

Diana Dykstra, President/CEO of the California Credit Union League, said. “I’m so proud of the credit union community for coming together to raise these funds to support families and individuals who endured losses in these devastating fires. Our partnership with Fire Family Foundation amplified the call to action nationally.”

Donations are still being accepted via the Lake County Wildfire Relief Fund through Mendo Lake Credit Union or North Coast Opportunities (NCO), a local nonprofit. For more information, visit mlcu.org or ncoinc.org.


ABOUT FIRE FAMILY FOUNDATION As the charitable hand of Firefighters First Credit Union, Fire Family Foundation responds when tragedy strikes, offering compassion and financial assistance to firefighters and fire survivors in need. In 2015, the Foundation provided more than $175,000 in immediate assistance to firefighters and their families, fire survivors, fire departments and charities. Support is widespread throughout the State of California; this year attention is given to Northern Californian communities and fire personnel who experienced a devastating fire season. The Foundation believes that those in need can experience comfort, healing, and support from their “Fire Family.” www.FireFamilyFoundation.org

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

What Does PTSD in a Firefighter Look Like? A New Brain Scan Can Show You

Link Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is often described as one of the invisible scars that firefighters and others accumulate after years of dealing with trauma in their jobs. Now the scars are invisible no longer. A new tool—the SPECT scan—is offering a new way for firefighters and others with PTSD to visualize their injuries. SPECT stands for single photon emission computed tomography, and it creates 3-D scans of the patient’s brain that look at blood flow and brain activity, KTLA reports. Those scans can then be used to generate a treatment plan tailored to the specific patient based on the visual effects of PTSD. Retired Firefighter-Paramedic Matthew Fiorenza, a PTSD sufferer, told the station that the scans also help make the illness more tangible. “Looking at a picture of my brain, it just took the stigma out of it,” he told KTLA. “It’s like, okay, I’m not crazy.”  

The Pros and Cons of Tariffs

Since there has been so much discussion on Tariffs, I felt a post would benefit our membership. Grant Sheehan CEO NCOFCU Tariffs 1440 Business & Finance Background A tariff—a word derived from the Arabic arafa, meaning “to make known”— is a tax imposed by a government on goods that are imported or exported . Historically, tariffs have served as a primary source of revenue and a means to protect domestic industries, as they make foreign products more expensive, encouraging consumers to purchase locally produced goods. The tools have a checkered history, famously bolstering US textiles, German steel, Japanese cars, South Korean technology, and more, arguably contributing to major economic downturns like the Great Depression. Tariffs can be specific (a fixed fee per unit) or ad valorem (a percentage of the item's value). Purpose Economically, tariffs aim to protect domestic industries, generate government revenue, and influence trade policy. By imposing taxes on imported goods —wh...

Advice On Winning Over Gen Z In ’25

NEW YORK—As 2025 approaches the close of Q1, how can credit unions win over Gen Z? By tailoring credit rewards for a digital-first generation, a new report recommends. Gen Z is reshaping the workforce and redefining financial behaviors. As of 2024, this generation is poised to surpass Baby Boomers in workforce size and will make up 30% of the workforce by 2030. This rapid growth presents a major opportunity for financial institutions to tap into a younger, digitally native audience with distinct spending habits and financial needs, emphasized a GlobalData report authored by Zachary Johnson, specialist, campaign execution & strategy, financial services at VDX.tv. “Unlike previous generations, Gen Z’s economic journey has been shaped by inflation and delayed career starts due to the pandemic and skyrocketing living costs. These factors have made them highly dependent on credit, with Gen Zers being 23% more likely to own a credit card than Millennials at the same age, and carrying...

Hauptman Announces Changes to NCUA’s Overdraft/NSF Fee Collection

      Hauptman Announces Changes to NCUA’s Overdraft/NSF Fee Collection WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 3, 2025) – To help ensure credit unions can continue to support the needs of Americans struggling with inflation, the National Credit Union Administration will no longer publish overdraft and non-sufficient fund fee income for individual credit unions, Chairman Kyle S. Hauptman announced today. The NCUA will ...

Share Insurance Fund Report Highlights Asset, Income Growth in Q4 2024

      Share Insurance Fund Report Highlights Asset, Income Growth in Q4 2024 ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Feb. 27, 2025) – The National Credit Union Administration Board held its second open meeting of 2025 and received a briefing by the Chief Financial Officer on the performance of the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund for the quarter ending on December 31, 2024. The Share Insurance Fund reported a net income of ...