Marshall Fire Resources and Ways Restaurants Can Help

Our hearts go out to every individual and business impacted by the Middle Fork and Marshall wildfires that swept through Superior, Louisville, and Boulder County last week. We have compiled a list of resources for fire victims and ways that the restaurant community can get involved.

Please let any restaurant workers who have been directly impacted by the fires know that they can apply for an Angel Relief Fund (ARF) hardship assistance grant of up to $1,000 through the Colorado Restaurant Foundation.

These ARF hardship grants are available for any Colorado hospitality worker who:

have a primary source of income rooted in food and beverage
lives in the state of Colorado and is facing an unanticipated hardship (within the past 6 months)
has worked at current employer 90 days + (considerations may be given from previous employer)
encounters an emergency that’s unexpected, unforeseen, non-recurring crisis

You can access the ARF general hardship application here.

Please find below information about how to access behavioral health support and the next steps to take related to insurance and financial assistance:

Behavioral Health Resources

Colorado Crisis Services: Contact at 1 (844) 493-8255, or text “TALK” to 38255, to speak with a professional counselor about any area where you could use support for yourself or a loved one, from loneliness and isolation, to stress, relationship issues, substance use and other common concerns.
JFS Boulder County Crisis Counseling: In response to multiple tragic events over the last year, Jewish Family Service and Community Foundation Boulder County have partnered to offer counseling services to Boulder County residents. The program offers up to $500 towards five individual counseling sessions (a maximum of $100 per session) or up to $875 towards five family counseling sessions (a maximum of $175 per session) and provides a pool of licensed providers from which to choose.
I Matter: 3 free mental health sessions for any youth in the state, largely available via telehealth.
Mental Health Partners: Call (303) 443-8500. MHP outpatient services are closed Monday, January 3 and will reopen 8 a.m. on Tuesday, January 4
National Disaster Helpline: Call (800) 985-5990

Applying for FEMA Assistance

Colorado encourages all individuals impacted by the Marshall Fire to apply for FEMA’s Individual Assistance Program. Individuals should first call their insurance agents and then apply for federal assistance. Apply for FEMA assistance online or by calling 800-621-3362. If you use a relay service, such as video relay service (VRS), captioned telephone service or others, give FEMA the number for that service. If you do not have rental or home insurance, please apply for FEMA assistance.

Applying for U.S. Small Business Administration Assistance (SBA)

Federal assistance is available from the SBA to businesses of all sizes and private nonprofit organizations may borrow up to $2 million to repair or replace damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other business assets. SBA can also lend additional funds to businesses and homeowners to help with the cost of improvements to protect, prevent, or minimize the same type of disaster damage from occurring in the future.
Interest rates can be as low as 2.83 percent for businesses, 1.875 percent for private nonprofit organizations, and 1.438 percent for homeowners and renters, with terms up to 30 years. Loan amounts and terms are set by SBA and are based on each applicant’s financial condition.
To be considered for SBA assistance and all forms of federal disaster assistance, survivors must first contact the Federal Emergency Management Agency at www.disasterassistance.gov. Additional information and details is available by calling the SBA Customer Service Center at (800) 659-2955.

Insurance Information

If you have been displaced by the fires, contact your insurance agent or company immediately to let them know where you are staying. Not only can they help you with coverage or claims questions, they can help find lodging options as many people in the area will be temporarily displaced.
To find the contact information of your homeowners or auto insurance company go to Insurance Company Claims Filing Telephone Numbers
Save all receipts for living expenses if you’ve been evacuated or displaced by the fire, as homeowners or renters in these situations typically have insurance coverage for additional living expenses (ALE) which provides them with an amount of out-of-pocket money while evacuated. Check with your insurance company or agent about your coverage. If you are unable to live in your house or apartment because of the fire, most policies will also reimburse you the difference between your additional living expenses and your normal living expenses. Again, check with your insurance company or agent about your coverage.
Start the claim process as soon as you can. For your home, any out buildings, and vehicles, you’ll want to contact your insurance company or agent right away to begin the claim process. However, these fires were devastating and many people have been significantly impacted, so the insurance process will take time.
If possible, and only if it is safe to do so, try to document any damage by taking photos.
If your home survived the fires, it may still have experienced damage from smoke or water, or to the electrical systems or other damage due to the extreme heat or the snow and cold. As with direct fire damage, contact your insurance company or agent as soon as possible to start the claims process.
If you have questions about insurance, contact the Division of Insurance. The Division’s Consumer Services Team will staff the phones and answer emails from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., including this weekend and next weekend. While claims need to be filed with the insurance companies, the Division can assist consumers with questions about insurance and the claims process. Contact the Consumer Service Team at 303-894-7490 / 800-930-3745 (outside of the Denver metro area) / DORA_Insurance@state.co.us or visit doi.colorado.gov (click “File a Complaint”).
Renters should contact their renters’ insurance provider. If you do not have rental insurance, please apply for FEMA assistance.

Ways for individuals and restaurants to help right now include:

Community Foundation Boulder County is collecting monetary donations at www.commfound.org/grants/get-grant/Boulder-County-Wildfire-Fund.
The Boulder Office of Emergency Management is helping those who can offer shelter to displaced residents with online sign ups to be vetted hosts through the Airbnb Open Homes Program. The program will contact people if needed.
Blackbelly (1606 Conestoga St., #3, Boulder) is providing free breakfast, lunch, and packaged meals for takeout from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. to anyone affected by the fires, as well as distributing clothing donations. Clothing donations will be accepted from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., January 4 through 6.
On January 4, Linger (2030 W 30th Ave., Denver) and chef Jeff Stoneking are hosting a pop-up dinner benefiting fire victims at the LoHi restaurant, starting at 4 p.m. until sold out. There will be bao, tacos, poke, grain bowls, desserts, and more!
Bramble & Hare (1970 13th St., Boulder) is offering free lunch to those impacted beginning tomorrow, January 4, from noon until 3 p.m. daily. Restaurants feeding fire victims can also send an email to farmstand@blackcatboulder.com to coordinate vegetable pickups or visit the Black Cat Farm Store (4975 Jay Rd, Boulder) between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday, to pick up organic vegetables.
Cured Boulder is offering free wine and snacks to those who have been displaced. Go by the Pearl Street shop (1825 Pearl Street, Boulder) for more information.
Choice Market is offering $20 of groceries or a free meal per person impacted to anyone with proof of residency. Check out their Instagram post for more information.
The Rotary‘s new location in Louisville was destroyed in the fire, but you can support them by ordering from the Denver location (217 S Holly St.) when it reopens on January 4.
Monetary donations and supplies are also being collected by the American Red Cross of Colorado Chapter, the Salvation Army, the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, and other community organizations
Restaurants Revive is a group of Boulder and Denver-area restaurants working together to offer free meals to fire victims. This program will run on a weekly basis; if there is a need and the program feels to be working, it will extend as needed. Restaurants that join the program are committing to providing meals for one week at a time. You can create your own parameters for what you are able to offer. World Central Kitchen will reimburse participating Boulder County restaurants $8 per comped meal and Conscious Alliance is coming on board with some funding for restaurants to subsidize costs as well. Note: you must track your comps for this program in order to be reimbursed. See the second bullet point below.
- How to participate: Send an email or a text to Dana Query at dana@bigredf.com, cell: 303-807-4687
- How to be reimbursed: You must track your comped meals. At the end of each week, you’ll submit a simple comp report to Conscious Alliance, pulled from your POS system, showing how many fire meals you provided. They will facilitate your reimbursement from World Central Kitchen. Contact for Conscious Alliance coming soon and will be shared directly with the participating restaurants.
- How to promote your participation on social media:
  - Assets (image files) and a poster to print and hang in your restaurant can be found here.
  - Tags and @mentions for social:
    - @wckitchen @consciousalliance (Instagram)
    - @worldcentralkitchen @consciousalliance (Facebook)
    - #COrestaurantsrevive #marshallfire