From the Director’s Desk: The Backbone of Wildfire Resilience
While our program managers continue to push forward on the ground, I’d like to offer a broader update—and welcome a new addition to our team who’s helping us grow even stronger.
We’re excited to welcome Dale Ready, who has joined the team as our new Fire Chiefs Association Support Specialist. Dale brings more than a decade of volunteer firefighting experience in Plumas County, and he’ll be helping strengthen relationships with our local fire departments (including local, state, and federal) through coordination of grants, training, and resource development.
A note from Dale:
"I am excited to join the Plumas County Fire Safe Council team as the new Fire Chiefs Association Support Specialist, and just as the title implies, it is a position created to support the Plumas County Fire Chiefs Association and the corresponding fire departments. I bring the experience of over 11 years as a volunteer firefighter in Plumas County, working throughout the county in mutual aid responses, county-wide trainings, and events. I am eager to work directly with each Fire Chief individually and collaboratively, assisting in meeting coordination, training opportunities, and grant proposals to continue my dedication to our larger community and assisting fire services throughout the county as a whole."
More Team News:
Heading into August, we’ll be bringing on a new team member to fill the County Coordinator position. This role will help strengthen our outreach and engagement capacity, and importantly, will allow us to resume Fire Safe Home Visits, which have been on hold since May. These visits play a key role in providing direct, on-the-ground support to residents. I’ll follow up with a full introduction later in August.
On the grant front, we’ve submitted proposals to support:
- The Eastern Plumas Wildfire Prevention Project
- Continued funding for Senior Disabled Defensible Space, Chipping, and the Plumas Underburn Cooperative (PUC)
More grants are open for applications now, so stay tuned. The grant landscape remains dynamic and competitive, so we appreciate your continued support as we work to maintain these services to protect our community from wildfire.
Always glad to be in this work with you.
Matt West, Programs Director