Prince George, B.C. –  There has been no  shortage of  Prince George businesses  stepping up to  do whatever they can  to assist  the more than 8 thousand evacuees who  are now  staying in Prince George until  the wildfire situation is  such  that they can return home.

Mutual Fire Insurance  donated $10 thousand dollars, and asked the folks at  Integris Insurance,   a division of Integris Credit Union and a broker  for Mutual Fire ,to use that money in whatever way was needed to assist the evacuees.

Integris topped up that  fund with another $5  thousand  and  after  talking with  the Salvation Army about  the immediate needs,  the $5 thousand  was used to buy pillows and sheet sets.

( at right, an Integris truck delivers  pillows and sheet sets to  the  Evacuation Reception Centre at  CNC)

The dollars have also been used

• Deliver food, propane, and gas cards to fire fighters
• Purchase toys, games, and books for young children
• Buy essentials for pets like food, medication, and a refrigerator for medicine storage. Fridge donated to SPCA
• Purchase board games for youth aged 12 to 18
• Purchase water, batteries, and gas cards for the Pet Safe Coalition

Integris will be at CNC this evening,  putting on a bar-b-q for the evacuees at  CNC.

Mutual  Fire Insurance and Integris have now  issued a  challenge to the insurance industry  to make  a donation a local organization in a city with a crisis centre to help evacuees and first responders. Those who take up the challenge are urged to post  it to social media using  the hashtag #BCstrong