Join the Effort

In September, 2017, a call went out to neighbors, Fairfax Town Council, fire professionals, MMWD Board members, and the Police to come to a meeting at Linda Novy’s house on Cascade Dr.  We sat on the back deck and started talking about the fire danger in our community, the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) we live in, and what could be done.  

Chief Jason Weber was at the meeting and he provided recommendations for making our community more fire safe. Todd Lando, FireSafe, offered to review some properties for fire safety.  Fire and police officers made suggestions and were supportive. Neighbors shared their thoughts about building community while creating a fire safe neighborhood.  

One month later in October, the Tubbs Fire erupted. It was the most destructive fire of the 2017 fire season.  The Cascade FireWise group, while not yet official, began their work in earnest. Shortly thereafter, the group organized a presentation at the Fairfax Women’s Center with keynote speakers Todd Lando (FireSafe Marin) and Ray Moritz (Urban Forestry Associates) who began the process of educating the Fairfax Community to fire danger, and how it can prepare. Two members of the group modeled fire safe and not fire safe attire.  And, neighbors had a chance to ask questions.  

The entire community was highly motivated after seeing the destruction in Sonoma, Napa and Solano Counties.  We started a sign-up sheet to begin our community outreach.  The group prepared all the necessary documents for FireWise USA so that we could apply for official certification.  Ray Moritz’ Vegetation Management Plan (2018) was a key document for this application. Several members of the Committee devoted countless time to make this a reality. The Cascade Canyon community of approximately 500 homes became an official Firewise® USA site in March 2018, and the first in Fairfax. 

JOIN THE EFFORT

We are lucky to have dedicated members who were willing to devote time and energy to take on all the work needed. We are motivated to prepare and survive a wildfire, and one of our slogans is: “We are not Toast”!  But the work was just starting.  Now, 4 plus years later, the needs of creating a fire wise community are as daunting as ever.  

Some of our accomplishments include:

• Steering Committee meets monthly on the 4th Mon of the month at 5:30pm;
• Creating a data base, Constant Contact and website outreach;   
• Quarterly newsletters with important information and tips;
• Maintaining our Firewise Certification;
• Educational FireWalks throughout the Cascade Canyon area led by a top fire wise professional;     
• Lobbying for and helping organize and implement goat grazing around our community;
• Organizing Evacuation drills;
• Marching in the Fairfax Parade to raise awareness; 
• Posting “red flag day” signs throughout Cascade Canyon when fire professional advise;
• Posting FireWise tips at Doc Edgar Park;
• Distributing important fire safety and evacuation information to neighbors;
• Hosting educational webinars;
• Participating in vegetation management in the Cascade Preserve.   

Become involved and share in the responsibility.  These activities are not “one and done” – they are on-going needs that are constantly reviewed and updated.  We need more help with our committee.  Do you have 2 to 3 hours a month to participate?

Goals:

• Reaching every neighbor in Cascade Canyon
• Providing more opportunities for connecting and education (neighborhood block parties and educational gatherings)
• Bringing new ideas to the group
• Connecting with other Firewise communities to make Fairfax more prepared
• Organizing broom pulling parties in common areas and along roadways
• Creating educational content
• Someone to take minutes at the monthly steering committee meetings 
• Someone to manage the neighborhood database
• Donate to Firewise to pay for Constant Contact, website and to host events and print educational materials
• Organize neighborhood walks to review defensible space and fire safety
• Researching home insurance criteria and how to more easily get homes insured in high fire danger areas
• Annual evacuation drill

Please email us at cascadefirewise@gmail.com and we can send you more details.