The Center and Family Matters have joined together to support several GLBT families who lost their homes in the San Diego wildfires. Both organizations have been accepting checks and donations since last week, which are being redirected immediately to the families in need.

Delores Jacobs, executive director of The Center, and Marci Bair, president of Family Matters, issued a community announcement on Oct. 30 urging people to donate money and items such as books, clothing gift certificates and toys to help the families while they wait for funds from the American Red Cross and federal emergency assistance.

The Center also announced that the staff of Halloween’s “Nightmare on Normal Street” would be accepting money, toys and certificate donations for the Family Matters families. Due to the community upheaval and unhealthy air quality caused by the wildfires, there was some speculation as to whether The Center would hold the Nightmare event at all, even though it is one of their largest yearly fundraisers and an immensely popular community event. In a statement issued by Jacobs on Oct. 29, The Center announced that they would hold Nightmare as planned, but that fifty percent of all proceeds would be redirected to the American Red Cross.

“[T]he bottom line is there is no way to tell exactly what Friday may be like,” Jacobs said. “So, we are going to go ahead with Nightmare, [to] give people an opportunity to be together, to laugh, and to begin the moving forward process as best they can.… It’s our hope that we will all be generous in helping all of those in need.”

So far, Family Matters alone has received about $3,700 in the form of checks, cash and gift cards, as well as $3,000 from Nightmare. People have also donated toiletries, bedding, clothes and toys. One individual donated a bed, a washer and a dryer. Family Matters issued a comprehensive list of agencies to contact for services such as counseling, pet kenneling, insurance processing, contracting, building inspection and even feng shui decoration. The children in these families started school Monday, and received backpacks and school supplies over the weekend.

“The community has really pitched in, and it’s really nice to see,” said Bair. “The gift cards will go a long ways. Lots of them are for Target, and that’s exactly what they need — they need everything. So they’re just now — in the next week or two — getting into some housing. They’ve been staying with friends now, so they haven’t needed to go out and buy necessarily everything yet. In the next week or two, when they walk into an empty house — you know, normally when you move in you’ve got all your baggage with you. They literally only have what they’re wearing.”

Bair said that Hamburger Mary’s has adopted one of the families for the month of November. The staff is going to set aside a portion of their tips and the restaurant will match it. They will present the family with a check Dec. 1, which Bair was thrilled to hear.

“What we see is that as it gets closer to the holidays, these families are going to feel that pinch as well,” said Bair. “So we want to make sure that these kids have a great holiday.”

Although the families have just experienced the awful reality of losing their homes and everything they own, the kids’ morale is high, and they are excited about the new toys they are receiving, including a donation of new in-line skates.

“It’s all in how we market to the kids,” said Bair. “If the parents are okay with it, the kids are okay. One family I talked to said they are just treating it like a sleepover and a vacation, and really putting a smile on for their daughter. She feels comfortable, and they’re kind of going along with it.”

In addition to the funds raised for the Family Matters families, Nightmare on Normal Street raised more than $3,500 for the San Diego American Red Cross and $3,000 for Center programs such as the Hillcrest Youth Center and the Cyber Center.

“We are enormously grateful to the thousands of community members who turned out for the community Halloween/ Nightmare celebration,” said Jacobs. “…Our community’s compassion for those in need is absolutely amazing and we’re delighted to have been able to help.”

Family Matters and The Center are still accepting donations for the families. “Obviously the best is cash or gift cards, because they will need to go out and purchase a lot of items,” said Bair. “Clothing-wise, my office — I don’t have a ton of room in here — but I’ve got bags already in here.… A lot of that they are getting from other shelters, though, so I think what they mainly will need are cash or gift cards to [places like] Target, so they can set up home.”

If you would like to donate, call Family Matters at (619) 298-5431, or The Center at (619) 692-2077. The Center is also organizing a drop-in counseling group for individuals and families affected by the fires. For more information, contact The Center’s Health Services at (619) 260-6380.