As you know, just over one week ago devastating wild fires swept across Napa and Sonoma counties. Here’s how you can help North Bay fire victims.

The scale of loss is mind numbing. Many families fled with nothing more than the clothing on their backs, and lost everything. The response from inside and outside these communities has been astounding. Still, those affected will need ongoing support over the next few weeks and months, if not years.

If you’d like to help, below you can find a list of resources. Please share this with family, friends, anyone you think of. We will update this as we find more resources and if you have anything to add, please email us help@lastbottlewines.com with your suggestion.

Monetary Donations

There has been an outpouring of donations of physical goods – we’re talking 1000s of tooth brushes and deodorant sticks, piles of toys and clothing. These things help, but they also put a drain on resources at relief centers.

The Center for International Disaster writes:

“Unlike material donations, cash involves no transportation costs, shipping delays, or customs fees. It also enables relief organizations to spend more time providing aid by spending less time managing goods,” the organization explained on its website.

Right now, the simplest and most effective thing you can do is to donate money. Any amount helps.

Ways You Can Help Locally:

If you live in the Bay Area there are some good options available. The city of Santa Rosa is currently maxed out with volunteers as of the time of publishing this post, but there are other resources below.

National Organizations

Animal Support

A lot of people think wine country is filled with lavish estates and families made of money. Not so. The area is rooted in agriculture and is propped up by humble farmers whose land is home to cattle, horses, goats, and other animals. Many of those animals were displaced in the fire.

Finally, it’s worth mentioning one of the simplest ways to lend you support to North Bay fire victims. Buy and drink Napa and Sonoma wines! Use hashtags #buynapa and #buysonoma to share your bottles on social media to help spread the word.