(Editor’s note: Initially, CTN wrote that California Community Foundation allowed nonprofits, who had not yet received a nonprofit number to use their number. In writing about CCF I went to their website and listed a few nonprofits that had received aid. California Community Foundation sent the following correction: regarding that earlier Circling the News story click here.)
“There are two separate lists of wildfire relief efforts on our website; you linked to the wrong one, which includes information from wildfire and Covid relief efforts from many years ago. As we stated before, the correct list that focuses on relief efforts for the January 2025 wildfires in Los Angeles County can be found here: click here.
“We are not asking you to include a second link, we are asking you to replace your inaccurate link with the correct link, which is not new, and was on our website when you were reporting your article.
“Additionally, your article inaccurately states that Antelope Valley Partners for Help, The LGBTQ Center in Long Beach and Humboldt Area Foundation received funding related to the January 2025 wildfires. These three groups are not January 2025 wildfire grantees.
Here are the facts: Humboldt Area Foundation received two grants in 2021 to assist those impacted by the 2020 Slater Fire in Northern California. It did not receive funding for the January 2025 wildfires in Los Angeles County. The LGBTQ Center of Long Beach received a 2021 grant related to Covid relief. It did not receive funding for the January 2025 wildfires in Los Angeles County. Antelope Valley Partners for Health received numerous Covid relief funds. It did not receive funding for the January 2025 wildfires in Los Angeles County.
“Please remove those three organizations from your story, as they have absolutely nothing to do with Southern California wildfire relief. And let me know when you have removed the inaccurate link and replaced it with the correct one.”
CTN looked at the new link and this one shows that FireAid Funds from CFF are going to LA LGBT Center (Offering comprehensive health, housing, and recovery support to LGBTQ+ communities), the Little Tokyo Service Center (Provides a comprehensive array of social welfare and community development services to assist Asian Pacific Islander communities, families, and seniors impacted by the wildfires)and the Mar Vista Family Center (Delivers comprehensive wildfire recovery support through financial assistance, employment opportunities, and family services, including early childhood education and youth programs, while also helping affected families build long-term stability) among others.
This editor added the link, but left the other one, so people could understand the confusion. CTN sincerely apologizes for upsetting CFF by printing the wrong link and putting the wrong nonprofits as beneficiaries of this year’s aid.
CTN also asked CFF the following questions. If they responde, I’ll update the questions with answers.
- About how many nonprofits does CFF serve as a fiscal sponsor? I know a local organization Palisades Recovery Coalition just told me that CCF was sponsoring them.
- And when you sponsor them, is it just until they can get their own nonprofit number?
- When I looked at the new link, it seemed to mirror the nonprofits in FireAid. Did CFF help provide advice for those deciding where the funds should go?
I just looked at the Black Freedom Fund and Empowering Women Fund, two of the NPO’s that received Fire Aid grand per the link CCF provided in its rebuttal. I still question how these organizations have been directly related to the fire and why they should be receiving money.
So, if you’re not Asian or gay or a resident of Mar Vista…or a foster child or a synagogue or a public high school or in need of mental health services or of food cooked by World Central Kitchen or trauma care for your pet or a new playground to replace one that already existed or an immigrant, or a Latina or African-American, or, or, or….
If you’re just an ordinary poor slob who lost your home and all your possessions and memories, you don’t qualify. You have to have a label, you have to fit into a pre-determined slot designed by strangers who don’t live here but have their own list of preferred causes. To be fair, CORE did distribute cash from machines at convenience stores and AidKit processed online applications. Other than that, I can think of nothing else provided by FireAid grantees to the general population of fire victims.