Pivoting to Long-Term Wildfire Recovery

The Holiday Farm fire on the McKenzie River quickly and radically activated our community, mobilizing efforts near and far to support those affected by the fires. United Way quickly mobilized to raise and award over $474,000 in community grants to organizations directly serving those most impacted by the fires.

Two months later, as the smoke has cleared, Jared Pruch, United Way's Director of Community Impact sat down virtually with Brandi Crawford Ferguson, McKenzie River Trust's Associate Director of Philanthropy, to discuss the pivot towards long term recovery efforts for the communities most impact by the fires.

"When the smoke lifted in the valley, suddenly you think, 'oh, a sense of normalcy,' but for many families, it's not, and it won’t be for a long time. This is just the beginning... we are still committed, still listening, still remembering and still able to set up when needed to help support and move forward for both." - Brandi Crawford Ferguson

The local support for this unique disaster has been outstanding, through community partners, individual donors, businesses, and immense volunteer support.

"One of the lessons from this fire is that the relationships we have with each other, both organizationally and personally, are really what we're going to lean into when there's a disaster like this." - Jared Pruch

As we move forward, investing long-term support and recovery is essential. From ensuring families have the resources they need to community education on the aftermaths of wildfires on the ecological climate, these continued community response efforts are essential to ensuring the long-term suitability and recovery of the McKenzie River community.

Hear the rest of the conversation below