In December 2018, single mother Alyssa Hofman set out to build 10 tiny homes completely with donations and volunteers and give them to those who had lost everything in the California wildfires.
Alyssa knows what thats like. In 2008, the new mother became homeless after a wildfire tore through the small town of Concow. Ten years later when the Camp Fire destroyed 11,000 homes in just one day, she knew she had to do something. Despite having no construction experience, Alyssa watched thousands of YouTube videos and educated herself about tiny homes. She built her first tiny home in early 2019 and gifted it to a fire survivor another young single mother. In the first year, 20 homes were funded through various sources including public and corporate donations, grants, and fundraisers and 13 homes were completed and gifted to Camp Fire survivors.
Whats happened since is nothing short of extraordinary. Her grassroots Tiny Homes for Fire Survivors effort has grown into a 501(c)(3)nonprofit called the Tiny Pine Foundation. The organization continues to build tiny homes in Oroville, California, and has also expanded to Oregon, where tiny homes are underway for survivors who lost everything in the 2020 Almeda Fire.
In recent wildfire seasons, Tiny Pine Foundation has stepped up to fill a need for disaster relief, helping survivors and evacuees with basic necessities, camping gear, gift cards, clothing, hotel stays, groceries, hot meals, and more. These families also receive the comforting knowledge that people care and that their challenges have not been forgotten.
When you pour your heart and soul into something like this, it is very healing, says Alyssa.
