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GoFundMe sets up dedicated donation page for LA wildfire victims; screening to prevent fraud.
GoFundMe sets up dedicated page for LA wildfire victims but screens all new wildfire-related pages to prevent fraud and get donated money to those who need it the most.
SAN JOSE, Calif.. - Thousands of wildfire evacuees in Southern California still have no idea if their homes are still standing.
Many are still staying with friends, in hotels, or temporary shelters until they know if they will ever be able to go back to the homes they knew.
Now, one technology platform is working to help get money directly to the victims who need it the most.
There are dozens of reputable organizations where you can make contributions to help wildfire victims, but GoFundMe has now set up a dedicated portal for the Los Angeles County wildfires.
The company’s teams are vetting these requests to make sure your money goes exactly where it’s supposed to go.
One of those wildfire victims in need is Melanie Bonhomme.
When Bonhomme was rushing home to evacuate her residence in the Palisades Fire, she saw plumes of smoke bearing down and had no idea what she’d find."
"It is hard to watch the fire and there were no firetrucks that were there at that time. You would hear the sirens, but what can you actually do?" she said.
Bonhomme evacuated with her 4-year-old son, Atlas, saying the stress and the uncertainty of what would happen next was one of the biggest issues.
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Mental health toll of California Wildfires
Some of us here in the Bay area are having an immediate response to the fires in Southern California. Images of destruction so familiar to what we've seen here at home, and the full toll of homes and businesses lost, as well as injuries and deaths from the fire, is yet unknown. Mental health experts are warning about what could come long after the flames are out. Assistant Professor Ian Stanley at the University of Colorado's School of Medicine joined us on 'The Nine' with the recovery process.
"I have made it seem like we are on vacation and that is the best that I can do," she said. "Just to focus on the future but I am not sure what the future holds. We can’t go home. I don’t know where we are going to go."
Bonhomme turned to GoFundMe, asking total strangers to help her and Atlas as they face the uncertainty, as she says she has done for others on the same platform in the past
"I feel like it is coming full circle for me in this moment, to have all of these strangers, and friends, and people that I work with to donate to help my son and me," Bonhomme said.
GoFundMe’s Trust and Safety team are working directly with fundraiser organizers.
Leigh Lehman is the communications director for GoFundMe, which has set up a dedicated page for Los Angeles wildfire victims.
Lehman says the goal is to make donors fully confident their money is going where it is supposed to go.
RELATED: Is your home in a wildfire hazard zone? Check these Cal Fire maps
"The fundraiser must be clear who the organizer is, how the funds will be used, if they are organizing on behalf of someone else," she said. "We will work with them to get people added as beneficiaries of the funds, so that the fund will go directly to those people that need help rather than the organizer."
As for Bonhomme and her son, Atlas, they are now staying at a hotel in Palm Springs while they figure out what to do next.
One thing is for sure, she never thought she would be in this situation.
"I am super grateful that a platform like GoFundMe that it even exists to allow people to ask for help. Because I think sometimes that is the hardest thing to do is to even ask," she said.
To donate to verified wildfire victims through GoFundMe, click here.