Your time is needed

It was not too long ago that I listened intently to updates of the Lake County fire.
I was keenly interested, partially due to the selfish concern that the blaze might rage out of control and come to my community. I am not too proud to admit to the nagging fear that my own home might be at risk. As the fire continued to rage, soon I learned of several friends who were evacuated and two who lost everything in the fire.
I could no longer sit by in my ordinary life without doing something to help. My course of action was not well-thought-out. Three friends and I simply jumped in the car and drove north to Ukiah, then out Highway 20 looking for some place to help.
Just east of the puddle that used to be Lake Mendocino, past the east fork of the Russian River on the north side of Highway 20, we found Bu-shay (Love) Camp for evacuees of the Lake County fires. Bu-shay is a small camp with 65 sites for families and their pets.
What struck me immediately was the incredible generosity of our community; businesses and private citizens arrived throughout the day with trucks loaded with goods. It was awe inspiring, and lifted my heart. Shortly thereafter however, a new reality became clear. The current greatest challenge facing the Bu-shay camp is not in the acquisition of goods but in sorting and organizing the items already received. What Bu-shay really needs is people to give nothing more costly than their time.
Recently I learned that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has halted any additional donations, fearing fire hazard until the current mountain of donations can be organized and sorted. Sorting all this community generosity means that the items needed most right now are support items for a project of this magnitude: large event size tents, sturdy metal shelving, banquet tables, buckets, walkie-talkies, plywood, padlocks, fly traps, easel stands, hoses, AAA batteries, florescent poster board for signs and an AED defibrillator.
To continue to support the relief effort, I worked from home Monday, calling businesses and organizations for donations. I am proud to say that Healdsburg businesses generously offered what they could. Encore Events will provide banquet tables and Aaction Rents will let me use a trailer to haul what supplies I can gather for Bu-shay.
Most importantly, what I would like our community to know is that helping Lake County fire victims doesn’t need to cost anything more than the expense of our free time. Bu-shay gratefully accepts volunteer help from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. everyday. Please join me in the expression of gratitude that our homes were never in any real danger of burning by helping our neighbors who were not so lucky.
Susan Gore is a Healdsburg resident