The Santa Barbara and Montecito YMCAs will waive fees for members or extend free membership to new members for the next six months for residents whose homes were damaged in the Tea Fire.
Many members have been contacting the YMCA branches offering professional services as well as housing to the victims. For details, call the Montecito YMCA or Santa Barbara Family YMCA.
The YMCA also sends a heartfelt thank-you to the firefighters.
On Thursday night, as many residents were scrambling to evacuate, the Montecito YMCA assisted the community by helping with the staging and feeding of firefighters. Firefighters slept in the multipurpose room and throughout the property before being sent to the front lines.
Susan Sawyer is communications and marketing director for the Channel Islands YMCA.