As wildfires continue to ravage parts of California, a matching gift pool will ensure donations made to the Book Industry Charitable (Binc) Foundation continue to have double the impact. Thanks to the generosity of Dav Pilkey, Forefront Books, Ingram Content Group, Macmillan Publishers, and Mad Cave Studios all gifts, regardless of size, up to $45,000 will be matched to meet the needs of the bookstores and comic shops and their store employees potentially impacted by the wildfires and other natural disasters.
The California wildfires have closed dozens of book and comic stores, forced many book and comic people to evacuate or shelter in place, and Binc is already aware of seven booksellers who have lost their homes. Free mental health wellness is being offered to anyone in need and the calls for help continue amidst widespread and ongoing devastation.
“We were still hearing from book and comic people devastated by hurricanes Helene and Milton last fall when the calls started to come as a result of the wildfires that hit just a week into the new year,” said Binc Executive Director Pam French, “We know from experience that the need will continue to grow as damage is assessed, the fires are contained, and the cleanup begins. We are so grateful for the support of our partners who quickly rallied to provide this generous matching gift.”
An initial $10,000 match from Bookshop.org, which was quickly met, motivated the $45,000 matching gift pool.
The foundation receives requests every day from book and comic store employees and owners experiencing unforeseen emergency financial, medical and mental health hardships, and has helped stores around the country recover after natural disasters like hurricanes, wildfires, floods, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Double the impact of a gift to Binc by donating today.