What is Be the Good Ones?
Be The Good Ones is a local non-profit created in the beginning of 2020 by [myself], Alex Yakubovich and Erin Jones. We started this group knowing that our friends, neighbors and family were going to need help throughout the pandemic and it has since grown into something bigger and more amazing than we ever imagined. We coined the tag line "Small Needs and Good Deeds" to help exemplify our mission of helping people in our community with small needs. What started with a handful of people figuring out how we could help others is now a thriving group of almost 2,000 members that are ready to jump into action when needed.
What were your goals for the Marshall Fire drive?
The drive for the Marshall Fire just sort of happened. Many people, groups and organizations within our community wanted to help and as we all started to put efforts together, we ended up working together—it was magic! We knew that there was going to be immediate needs like water, hygiene products, diapers and clothing. I made sure everyone understood that as generous as people wanted to be with providing furniture, home decor and kitchen items, these needs wouldn't be relevant for the next few weeks while displaced families located new housing—displaced families simply wouldn't have anywhere to store it. Soon, we received a call from a Parker Town Council member asking for as much water as we could gather as the Mayor of Louisville called to say that they were completely out of bottled water and their corporate donations wouldn't be coming in for four to seven more days. That is when we put everything into action by working with Rob Nelson, SECOR and Grace Baptist Church to host drive-thru donation sites. We told everyone we just needed water, hygiene products and diapers. Our community came out in full force! It was incredible. This went on for about four days, with volunteer truck drivers taking trips up to Louisville and Boulder County multiple times a day to make sure we could get everything up there.
We connected with a woman named Jeri Curry who was part of a group called The Enclave, comprised of University of Colorado Boulder Alumni members, who all had friends that lost their homes. Jeri was working with a local bar owner who was setting up shop to become a makeshift store front for families to shop for free for anything they needed. We ended up sending trucks full of clothing, food, pet food, baby supplies and more. It really was amazing.
How were you feeling after dropping off your donations?
I think everyone was just ready to do more. We were all happy and excited to help.
What's next?
At this time, the needs are all over the place since many families have located long term housing and everyone's needs are different. Currently, we are not holding any other large drives or donation drop offs, but are working with a few individual families on their Wish Lists for things they specifically need.
To help, email BeTheGoodOnes@gmail.com.
