New effort afoot to gather fencing materials for animals of Lake County's Valley fire victims

Scorched and homeless animals keep arriving at Dr. Jeff Smith’s veterinary hospital in Middletown, as does every sort of donation.

“Today we got three burned cats out of Cobb,” said Smith, whose hospital has functioned for 10 days as a charitable medical crisis center. Also on Monday, cash donations to a GoFundMe appeal to help him pay for medicines, supplies and staff time surpassed $100,000.

The grateful vet said he can’t accept any more hay right now, but there is something that many victims of the Valley fire will need: fencing material to replace burned horse paddocks and other enclosures for farm and ranch animals.

A Lower Lake woman, Kathy Walton, shares his concern and offered to accept donations of fence posts and wire. Potential donors can contact her at kathidga@yahoo.com.

Walton, who lost her home to fire in 2004, trusts it will be of great help to enable Valley fire victims to bring back and safely contain their animals, the sooner the better.

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A SCHOOL DANCE was on the calendar for last Friday night at Rincon Valley Middle School. But students mindful of the tragedy in Lake County asked how they could possibly dance at a time like this.

Campus leaders connected with some at nearby Maria Carrillo High. They quickly devised a plan that scrapped the middle-school dance and staged instead, in the high school stadium, a walk-a-thon to raise money for victims of the Valley fire.

Said a deeply impressed Matt Marshall, the principal at RVMS, “As administrators we’re supposed to lead, but just as importantly we need to support these young leaders.”

By all accounts, the event was a blast. And it raised how much in relief funds?

$22,300!

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THE BARBECUE Sunday that was a political fundraiser for James Gore until the Sonoma County supervisor switched it to a benefit for fire victims was quite the success.

Donors pitched in more than $700,000 to Lake County Rising.

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MONTGOMERY VILLAGE will host one of its fair-weather concerts at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, this one featuring the Unauthorized Rolling Stones.

David Codding says all proceeds of the beverage sales will go to Valley fire relief efforts of the American Red Cross. And Montgomery Village will match those sales and also the donations by guests, up to $25,000.

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FIFTEEN MUSICAL ACTS will perform on three stages Sunday afternoon and evening at a fire relief benefit concert at the Sebastopol Community Cultural Center.

Gator Nation will play, as will Frobeck, Buzzy Martin, Sherry Jones,Love Choir, Harvest Band, the Sonoma County All-Stars, Kevin Russel & Friends, Dog Craft and others. Check out seb.org for more details.

Admission is free, but there will be opportunities galore to spend, bid and donate.

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GUERNEVILLE WILL gather relief donations twice this week, first at the Give-Back Thursday barbecue, raffle and auction from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Rainbow Cattle Company.

And starting at 8 p.m. Friday, Rodger Jensen and the Russian River Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence will host a karaoke party and silent auction in the bar of the r3 Hotel.

Chris Smith is at 521-5211 and chris.smith@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @CJSPD.