When Legal Aid of Sonoma County set out to assist residents of the Journey's End mobile home park after the 2017 fires, they didn't realize how much of a fight they'd be in for. Achieving a settlement for their clients was a lengthy and arduous...
For more than two decades Santa Rosa Community Health (SRCH) has provided physical and mental health services to Sonoma County’s low-income population. The organization has eight clinics across Santa Rosa, which includes a campus for dental services, and a site that serves unhoused people. According...
Since inception in 2017, we have supported local disaster recovery efforts through grants nearing $10 million. Community Foundation Sonoma County (CFSC) first launched the Sonoma County Resilience Fund in the wake of the 2017 fires, with a mission to help support our community’s mid- to long-term...
Redwood Empire Food Bank (REFB) is no stranger to supporting communities through disasters. In recent years, they’ve responded to their fair share: Sonoma and Mendocino Complex Fires, Russian River floods of 2019, the Kincade Fire, and more. Now they have a new crisis to address:...
Since United Way of the Wine Country took over operations of the 211 information and referral line just over a year ago, many Sonoma County residents have come to know the service as an emergency hotline. When in crisis, locals can call or text 211,...
Since 2011, Corazón Healdsburg has worked to bridge the racial and economic divide in the northern reaches of Sonoma County. Their work has made a big impact in the Latinx community, through adult education programs, financial counseling, health outreach, a bilingual drop-in resource center, emergency...
When shelter in place orders were instated, *Elena’s hours at the coffee shop where she’s worked for twelve years were cut from 40 to 16 hours per week. A parent with two children at home (ages 4 and 22), Elena’s job helps keep the bills...
Story by Dani Burlison, Photos by Caitlin Childs During the 2017 North Bay fires, Heather Irwin came up with what she refers to as a “silly idea” to help feed displaced families. Irwin, a local reporter focusing on Sonoma County’s restaurants, started getting phone calls from some...
When Amy Appleton’s children became teenagers in 2011, she decided to spend some of her newfound spare time volunteering. Although she had a background in IT, she found herself working with the county’s unhoused population at the COTS (Committee on the Shelterless) Mary Isaak Center...
Sometimes called granny flats, in-law units, second units, casitas, or backyard cottages, Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) share several distinguishing features: they are 250 to 1,200 square feet and must have a kitchen or kitchenette, bathroom and sleeping area. ADUs are, by nature, affordable, helping seniors age...