April 10, 2020

by Megan Barber Allende

Chief Executive Officer, The Community Foundation of Mendocino County

When a disaster strikes, we find ourselves counting our blessings. As we enter another week of sheltering in place due to the COVID-19 crisis, many of us are searching for the silver linings to see us through. The same thing happened after the 2017 Redwood Complex Fire; in the face of unimagined destruction we all sought solace in the little things. Before the coronavirus overwhelmed the news, there was a very special blessing we were celebrating – the completion of four volunteer-built homes for fire survivors by Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS).

The silver lining of many disasters is the ability for people to collaborate with compassion. Our community was fortunate to be chosen by MDS last year, after they visited several wildfire ravaged cities in need of rebuilding. Arriving on October 1 ^st this incredible team came tools in hand, ready to get to work on building homes for those in need. Within weeks the frame of the first home rose skyward. With a core team of four MDS long-term volunteers, each week saw a new team of 15-20 volunteers arriving from all over the United States and Canada to dedicate their time to helping our community. They brought skilled framers, plumbers, electricians, project managers, roofers, and many helping hands that would spend hours a day nailing trim or painting walls. But beyond their admirable labor, these volunteers brought open hearts and willing minds, always available to listen or extend a helping hand where needed. 

Over six months we hosted 234 MDS volunteers from almost every state, and much of Canada. We even had one dedicated volunteer from Germany spend a month in Redwood Valley building for our survivors. They traveled by plane, train, bus, and automobile – some driving 36 hours straight to arrive in Mendocino County to build. I believe that each and every one of these volunteers brought with them their own blessings for our community, and left behind a legacy of caring.

Each week the volunteers would invite fire survivors or members of Mendocino-ROC to join them for dinner, to share stories and connect. These dinners were incredibly special to me, as I know they were to others that attended. Meeting 20 new people each week, with no previous connection to our community, but a willingness to step away from their daily lives and dedicate their hands and minds to helping our neighbors heal was incredibly powerful.

In March the team finished all four homes they came to build, and we had the opportunity to celebrate the dedications of three of these homes. With twenty five MDS volunteers present, their leadership team from Pennsylvania, members of Mendocino-ROC, fire survivors and their families, we dedicated these new homes in Redwood Valley and the keys were given to the fire survivors. Mendocino-ROC’s main goal has always been to get fire survivors back home, and welcoming four families to their newly built homes was an emotional and joyous occasion.

But before MDS’s departure, we honored their incredible contributions to the recovery of Redwood Complex Fire Survivors in an evening of gratitude. In much the same way they brought us to their table to break bread, we invited them to break bread with us and commemorated their contributions with a truly local gift – a “Home Sweet Home” platter created by local artist Jan Hoyman, herself a Redwood Complex survivor. This was accompanied by a contribution to their basecamp expenses, for which they had covered 100%, to help pay forward the incredible work they have done here as they prepare to begin building in Paradise.

So as I approach these coming weeks, sure to challenge the best of us, I’ll continue to count my blessings – and among them are Mennonite Disaster Service for their unwavering dedication to helping those in need.

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To learn more about the Disaster Fund, or to contribute to the fund, visit us here. Disaster Fund

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