VFW donation drive gets huge turnout

The Valley Fire donation event held Friday, Sept. 18 at the Sonoma Veterans Memorial Hall was a tremendous success, according to officials from the Veterans of Foreign Wars Bear Flag Post 1943, which put on the drive.

Sarah Parker, of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary, which helped host the event, along with the Lighthouse Christian Church, said the turnout was even greater than expected.

“The donations we received were so great in number we had to start turning people away 45 minutes into the event,” said Parker, who wishes to thank those who donated, who intended to donate, and the nearly 100 volunteers who sorted, boxed and loaded trucks to benefit the victims of the Valley Fire.

Also on Parker’s thank-you list are Friedman’s Home Improvement and CSI Services for their contribution of box trucks and drivers; Dutch Bros. Coffee “for providing caffeine for our volunteers,” the Sonoma Stompers for providing volunteers, snacks and drinks, Lighthouse Christian Church for providing volunteers and “grilling dinner for everyone,” Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts for babysitters and helpers, “Staples for printing all of our flyers,” and Sonoma County Veterans Memorial Hall for the use of tables, chairs and the property.

Parker says that donations and volunteers arrived from as far as Los Banos, San Jose, Oakland and “all the areas in between” up to Santa Rosa.

“An evacuee from the fire was there to help and was given items to help her family and the family of the Vietnam veteran who rescued everyone on their street,” Parker says. “He put his own life at risk by making sure his neighbors were up and out of their houses before worrying about his own home.”

Adds Parker: “(It was) an act of pure selflessness.”

If people are still interested in donating or volunteering, visit lovelakecounty.org to see where the need is greatest. Also, says Parker, if any veterans were displaced from their home, contact vfwpost1943.org, “as we have resources available to veterans who need to rebuild their lives.”