The Ventura County Arts Council partnered with CreativityWorks to establish the Creative Community Thomas Fire Recovery Grant, which provided financial assistance to artists and creatives who were impacted by the Thomas Fire and debris flow. More than $100k in relief grants were awarded to artists and creatives who endured losses due to these disasters.

The purpose of this grant program was threefold:

1. To help artists invest in their creative practices so they could stay in Ventura County
2. To connect those with ongoing needs to additional resources
3. To bring visibility to artists’ needs

More than 40 Ventura County artists, musicians, performers, writers, designers, cultural workers, arts teachers and others whose creative practices or careers were impacted by the natural disasters received grants.

Recipients submitted applications showing they were working artists whose productivity or economic situation were significantly affected through loss or damage of home or studio space, loss of body of work or supplies, loss of income or other economic losses, disruption of career, or other impact.

In addition to grants, recipients of this grant program received assistance with referrals to various outside resources available to them throughout the county. This included referrals to The Ventura County Long Term Disaster Recovery Group, a collaboration of more than 50 organizations that worked to address the unmet needs of residents impacted by the 2017 and 2018 wildfires, including The Salvation Army, Local Love Project, Jewish Family Service, 805Help, United Policyholders, and United Way of Ventura County. Other referrals included to free and low-cost legal clinics, rebuilding seminars, insurance negotiation questions, rental assistance, and free and low-cost mental health resources for fire impacted residents.