Quarterly Newsletter

Introducing Fire Safe Sonoma's Community Coordinator

This is long overdue... Meet Emily Tugaw!

Emily was born and raised in Sonoma County. After graduating from Meredith College in 2012 with a degree in Theater, she moved back to Northern California and began her creative career. Having been a lover of the outdoors since she was a little girl, Emily has always felt deeply connected to nature and is passionate about preserving it. She's extremely excited to be a part of Fire Safe Sonoma and has already seen the incredibly positive impact this non-profit has had in her community. When she's not working, you can catch Emily producing/acting in her latest film, running after her three-year-old daughter, spending time with friends and family, or exploring the outdoors!

Fire Safe Sonoma is incredibly lucky to have an employee like Emily on our team. Emily has jumped into our projects and programs and has been a huge help getting our D-Space Project up and moving.

No Cost Defensible Space Work Now Available From Fire Safe Sonoma

This groundbreaking project launched in June of 2024 and will employ trained underserved workers with family-sustaining wages to assess and create 0-30 ft of defensible space around 75 to 100 homes of underserved residents living in select areas of Sonoma County, at no cost to the resident.

The crews will be completing the work in the Sonoma's Boyes Hot Springs area and in the Cloverdale area East of Highway 101.

The locations where this project will be deployed consist of High or Very High Fire Severity Zones and are areas considered underserved or priority areas by Sonoma County.

This is a first come-first served project and ends at the end of the year so get your application in right away!

Work Party Success Story

Back in June, Fire Safe Sonoma had the pleasure of assisting community leader Teri Mendelson and the NE Geyserville Firewise Community with their work day, using the Listos Tool Trailer as a resource.

The community work day turned out to be a smashing success, thanks to the fantastic turnout and seamless organization. With an estimated 28 resident volunteers—more than they've ever had before—the day was filled with productive energy and community spirit. The work party focused on removing roadside vegetation, invasive species, and limbing up trees for road clearance.

"The Listos Tool Trailer was a great addition," mentioned Teri. "We were rather surprised by how many people needed the tools and equipment. The ‘broom' pullers, in particular, were a huge hit."

A special shoutout to the five Fuels Crew members and Harry & Becca from Fire Safe Sonoma for coming out and assisting with the work day efforts.

By the end of the day, the community had amassed roughly 53 piles of debris ready for chipping and filled a 30 sq ft Recology Green dumpster to the brim. The cherry on top? No reported cases of poison oak! Check out the before and after photos to see how much broom was removed from the roadside.

Thanks to everyone who participated and helped make the community work day a resounding success. Your hard work and dedication are what make the NE Geyserville community truly special!

If your community wants to plan a work party and use the Listos Tool Trailer, reach out to us at Fire Safe Sonoma using the links at the bottom of this newsletter.

Upcoming Events

NBCC Radio Training Workshops

Date: Multiple Dates

Time: Dependent on Location

Location: Rio Nido, Sebastopol, Petaluma, Monte Rio

Event Description: NBCC's dedicated team of volunteers coordinates and conducts community radio workshops throughout the region. These workshops provide attendees with comprehensive training on radio usage and how to effectively utilize the NBCC radio network. Each participating household is provided with a complimentary programmed radio to take home. For more details on these events, click the button below.

Forest Health in a Post-Fire Redwood Ecosystem: Restoration and Regeneration at Swanton Pacific Ranch

Date: Thursday, August 15

Time: 11 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.

Location: Webinar

Event Description: This webinar is an opportunity to learn about how Swanton Pacific Ranch is approaching forest health treatments in a post-fire redwood ecosystem. Participants will learn about approaches to restoring forest health to, and reducing fuels in, a post-fire redwood ecosystem, with the goal of increasing fire resilience in the wildland-urban interface (WUI).

FSS August Speaker Series

Date: Thursday, August 15

Time: 2:00 - 3:00 p.m.

Location: Zoom

Event Description: This month we will have special guest, Stephanie Larson, with us to present on the science and reasoning behind utilizing grazing to manage vegetation in your community.

Stephanie Larson is the County Director and Livestock Range Management Advisor and is developing economic models to document the benefits of local agriculture to the region.

Sonoma Valley Back to School

 Health Fair

Date: Saturday, August 3

Time: 10:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

Location: Altimira Middle School

17805 Arnold Dr, Sonoma, CA 95476

Event Description: The Sonoma Valley Community Health Center presents the Sonoma Valley Back to School Health Fair. Join for a day of fun interactive activites, informational booths, a raffle, and health education & screenings. Students must be present and supplies are first come first served. Click the button below to learn more.

Wildfire Ready Resource Fair 2024

Date: Saturday, August 10

Time: 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Location: The Finley Community Center

2060 West College Avenue

Santa Rosa, CA 95401

Event Description: You’re invited to attend the City of Santa Rosa’s free Wildfire Ready Resource Fair, the Santa Rosa Fire Department's annual event focused on promoting wildfire preparedness information and building community resilience. This event will feature an array of exhibitors and three seminars, providing valuable knowledge and resources to help individuals, families, and the community stay safe and resilient in the face of wildfires.

Opportunities & Resources

Safer West County is partnering with Fire Safe Sonoma and Gold Ridge RCD to provide rebates of up to $1,000 to residents of Camp Meeker, Forestville, Monte Rio and Occidental who hire a contractor to carry out defensible space work around their home. Examples of this work include clearing near-home vegetation, trimming back overhanging tree branches, among other practices to improve the fire safety of the first 100 feet surrounding their home. Applications for the defensible space rebate project are now open!

To learn more and apply visit:

https://saferwestcounty.org/grants/

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis for the next two years on a first come basis, so apply early. All you need to do is take photos of the area you want to improve, fill out the online application online using the link above or call 

(707) 823–5244 ex. 22 to request a paper application, or for help applying. If you do not already have a recent home assessment (no older than one year), Safer West County will help you get one to help you determine your highest priority projects. This program is funded by CAL FIRE’s Wildfire Prevention Grants Program.

The North Coast Resource Partnership (NCRP) is pleased to offer a

Request for Proposals for Technical Assistance to Tribes and economically disadvantaged communities to support project development and grant applications for the following programs:

• NCRP Regional Forest & Fire Capacity (RFFC) program
• Other funding programs for projects that improve forest health and wildfire resilience

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

All proposals, including supporting documents, must be submitted via the NCRP Project Tracker; please see the NCRP Project Tracker Technical Assistance RFP webpage for instructions and more information.

For questions or assistance with NCRP Project Tracker:

• Rose Roberts: rroberts@northcoastresourcepartnership.org
• Sherri Norris, NCRP Director of Tribal Engagement: sherri@cieaweb.org or 510.334.4408
• Javier Silva, Tribal Technical Assistance Coordinator: jsilva9806@gmail.com
• Note that Tribal project sponsors can request proposal assistance from the NCRP Tribal Engagement Team.

The Arbor Day Foundation is supporting urban forestry projects led by all federally recognized Tribes, Alaska Native Corporations/villages, Tribal organizations, organizations working in Tribal communities, and community-based non-profits. The Community Roots Program, made possible through Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding, makes community-empowering projects possible.

The Arbor Day Foundation is positioned to drive investments in tree planting and maintenance, planning, and capacity building in selected communities. Subawardees will have access to a cohort of peers and experts within the Arbor Day Foundation and the Urban and Community Forestry Society (UCFS)’s networks and the opportunity to connect with mentors/coaches from around the nation. Subawardees will also be invited to attend the annual Partners in Community Forestry conference to further develop their urban forestry network.

The Period of Performance for this opportunity will start no later than September 30, 2024 and must be completed by September 29th, 2027. No-cost extensions may be available if needed and with approval for an additional 6 months.

Applications are due August 12, 2024

Check This Out!

We have recently added an "Emergency Resources" page to our website. This page contains critical resources to check during a wildland fire emergency. Send this link to your community or download/print the PDF version for your family and friends. You can also go to our website and click the button circled above on our homepage.

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