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What is the Sonoma County Resilience Fund?

The Sonoma County Resilience Fund is a long-term disaster recovery fund for our community.

The Resilience Fund was first established in October 2017 to address the mid to long-term needs of Sonoma County to recover and rebuild from the devastating fires that struck our community. Since the 2017 firestorm, our community has faced back-to-back disasters, flooding and the Kincade wildfire in 2019, and the impacts of the Coronavirus pandemic and the LNU Lightning Complex wildfires in 2020.

The fund continues to be a source of long-term aid for Sonoma County throughout these latest disasters, supporting our community’s recovery by making grants to nonprofit organizations that are helping individuals impacted by disaster, healing the long-term effects of trauma, creating housing solutions for our community, and improving emergency preparedness.

Does the Foundation provide financial resources to individuals? Can I apply to the Resilience Fund?

Community Foundation Sonoma County provides Resilience Fund grants to federally-designated 501(c)3 charitable organizations; we are unable to provide grants directly to individuals.

For immediate information on resources, dial 2-1-1 or visit 211sonoma.org for county-wide resources. 

Individuals impacted by disaster are also encouraged to contact the following agencies:

Catholic Charities of Santa Rosa

  • Phone: (707) 528-8712
  • Address: 987 Airway Court in Santa Rosa

Community Action Partnership – CAP Sonoma

  • Phone: 707-544-6911 | email: DRHA@capsonoma.org
  • Address: 141 Stony Circle, Suite 210, Santa Rosa
How was the Resilience Fund created?

Community Foundation Sonoma County established a fund to receive donations for disaster recovery on the second day of the wildfires in Sonoma County. As of March 20202, over 7,500 donations have been received totaling over $22 million dollars. We have made over $15 million in grants to support the community’s long-term recovery so far.

The Resilience Fund is unique because funding focuses on the medium- to long-term recovery and rebuilding efforts. When a disaster strikes, on average 73% goes to immediate relief, leaving significantly less for recovery and rebuilding, a process that can take up to 10 years. Long after attention has shifted away from Sonoma County, the Resilience Fund will provide support that addresses our community’s most pressing needs.

What impact is the Foundation expecting to make with the Resilience Fund?

The Resilience Fund was established to support the most vulnerable people in our community; individuals and families who were struggling to make ends meet before disaster struck, and who now have greater challenges to living a healthy, safe, stable life in Sonoma County. The purpose of the Resilience Fund is to ensure that financially vulnerable people impacted by disaster are able to heal, rebuild, and thrive. Our long-term vision for the Resilience Fund is everyone in Sonoma County is thriving and stronger than ever.

The Foundation works toward that vision by focusing grant funds in several core areas: Helping individuals impacted by the fires, Healing the long-term impacts of trauma, creating Housing solutions for our community, and improving Sonoma County’s emergency preparedness.

View our recent grants here.

In addition to grant funding, the Foundation is engaged in a number of community leadership activities to advance the goals and vision of the Resilience Fund and to foster connections between the nonprofit organizations that respond to disaster.

How did the Foundation decided to focus on (1) Helping individuals impacted by the fires, (2) Healing the long-term impacts of trauma, and (3) Housing solutions for our community?

The Resilience Fund is the only long-term disaster recovery fund in Sonoma County. To identify where our support is needed most now and into the future, our grantmaking team engaged in a comprehensive community needs assessment, including meetings with hundreds of local nonprofit leaders, surveys to over 450 nonprofit organizations across Sonoma and Napa counties, and interviews with foundations in New Orleans, Houston, San Diego, and other areas impacted by disasters.

Read more on our Reports page.
What is the Foundation's grantmaking process?

The grantmaking process is proactive and by invitation only. Foundation staff consult with local leaders, practitioners, and experts in the field to better understand issues and opportunities to address those issues. When an organization is identified as a potential fit with the Foundation’s goals, the organization is invited to submit a grant application. Program staff assess the alignment of the organization’s project with the goals of the Resilience Fund, the organization’s capacity to effectively implement the project, and the likelihood the project will making a lasting impact in the community well beyond the grant term among other things. A committee that includes representative from nonprofit, business, nonprofit and philanthropic sectors review grant requests and the Board of Directors makes final funding decisions.

Can people still make donations to the Resilience Fund?

Yes! Foundation staff are actively engaged in raising additional funds to support the long-term recovery and rebuilding process. You can quickly and easily support the nonprofit Resilience Fund in the following ways:

  • Donate online to the Sonoma County Resilience Fund.
  • Mail a check to Community Foundation Sonoma County, 120 Stony Point Rd., Suite 220, Santa Rosa, CA 95401. Please indicate “Sonoma County Resilience Fund” in the memo line.
  • Transfer stock or securities; contact a Philanthropic Advisor to begin the process.

To learn about more ways to give, contact us.

If you have questions about the Resilience Fund, please contact us

 Elly Grogan

Elly Grogan

Community Impact Officer