Unfortunately, there will be no chapter this Friday! I'm headed about 600 miles up to my hometown, Chico, CA, to do some relief work for the deadly, destructive Camp Fire before the holidays.
If you haven't heard about the Camp Fire, PLEASE check Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to see where you can donate and how you can help. (Some links below, as well!)
The town of Paradise (about 15 miles from my hometown, Chico) has been completely leveled. As of now, 63 people have been confirmed dead, with over 600 unaccounted for. 29,000 people have been displaced, and over 7,000 structures have been destroyed, most of them homes. Recent reports from CalFire state the blaze is 40% contained, and has consumed over 140,000 acres of land. It is the deadliest fire in California history.
Hundreds of lost, hurt, and frightened pets/livestock have been rescued and are sheltering at the airport. Many shelter animals have been shipped to nearby cities to make room for injured pets as volunteers attempt to reunite them with their owners.
Places like the Chico Wal-Mart and local churches have become shelters for evacuees, and thousands of people are living in tents in parking lots and streets, despite the increasingly cold weather. Air quality is some of the worst in the world.
I wish I could deliver a romantic chapter of Star's Crossing tomorrow, rather than bring you lovely readers down with such bleak reporting. But my little home town is suffering, and the people of my community desperately need help in what is becoming a humanitarian crisis. Rest assured, I'll be back with Star's Crossing at some point this week, so please keep an eye out!
In the meantime, please consider donating to any of these reputable organizations on the ground for relief efforts in the Camp Fire. Also consider checking GoFundMe, as thousands of families are now homeless, without cars, and much, much more.
If you can't donate, spread awareness by retweeting, reblogging, and word of mouth. Even a dollar will go a long, long way, for the thousands of people and animals devastated by this crisis.
If you read this far, I can't thank you enough for your support! I will be back soon with another swoony chapter of Star's Crossing, and I hope you love reading it as much as I love writing it. Until then, be safe and be kind!
(Please consider checking Twitter and GoFundMe for more personal, continually-developing stories.)
Donate through GoFundMe:https://www.gofundme.com/cause/californiafires
Donate through Google: https://www.google.com/search?ei=8v7lW635Aofc8AOTqbfYBA&q=donate+southern+california+wildfires&oq=donate+southern+california+wildfires
Donate through CalFire: http://www.cafirefoundation.org/programs/supplying-aid-to-victims-of-emergency/
Donate through CA Community Foundation: https://www.calfund.org/wildfire-relief-fund/
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Star's Crossing
Historical Fiction{WATTY'S 2020 WINNER & EDITOR'S PICK.} Hopeless romantic and aspiring writer Mare Atwood has fallen madly in love with her childhood correspondent. There's only one catch-she doesn't know who he is. When the beaus of Star's Crossing return from boa...
