A fund established in the wake of the Waldo Canyon fire made its first allocation of $379,000 to 10 area agencies that have provided or are continuing to provide services to people who lost homes, belongings, jobs and income because of the devastating blaze.

The Waldo Canyon Fire Assistance Fund, which is being administered by Pikes Peak United Way, has raised more than $900,000 since it was established shortly after the fire broke out June 23. An 11-member advisory committee made up of fire victims and people with experience in disaster management and fund allocation combed through 15 grant applications. Five applications were rejected because they did not have enough information, but they can be resubmitted, fund coordinator Preston Briggs said Thursday.

Donations began pouring into the fund almost immediately after it was established with a $125,000 seed grant from the El Pomar Foundation. A string of fundraisers, including a July 4 concert at the World Arena, boosted the fund.

Some donors and fire victims have criticized how the money is being distributed, fearing that it will go toward administrative and other costs that do not directly benefit people who lost their homes and belongings.

But those involved with the fund say that going through agencies helps ensure that the money will actually be used to help fire victims, and won’t fall into the hands of scammers.

“We’re fantastic at vetting organizations,” said Briggs, who is employed by El Pomar but was loaned out to United Way to oversee the fund. “The organizations receiving funding have their expertise in vetting individuals.”

Carolyn McDole, executive director of Ecumenical Social Ministries, said the agency has encountered a few cases where people lied about being fire victims so they could get assistance.

“Most agencies — they are accountable for any dollars received, and we have to confirm we did our homework that people are eligible,” she said.

Briggs said little, if any, of the grant money will be used for administrative or other costs not directly related to providing rental and utilities assistance, mental health services, day care, furniture and clothing and other services and goods to fire victims. The agencies have their own pots of money to pay employee salaries.

“The dollars we’re spending go directly to the client,” McDole said. “Any administrative cost is just part of our daily operations.”

Applicants also have to specify how they will use the grant, and agree to submit a report in a year to show that the spending lived up to their intentions.

Some of the grant recipients will be able to use the money retroactively, replenishing coffers that were emptied for services provided as the fire was raging. The Norris-Penrose Event Center, for example, housed large animals that otherwise would have been stranded when their owners had to evacuate.

“It’s an extraordinary cost to house those large animals, and the Norris-Penrose Event Center took that on without any guarantee that they would recover any of that money,” Briggs said. “Now, they can recover a portion of what it cost for them to provide that service in that emergency situation.”

Briggs will continue to accept applications, which can be submitted online at ppunitedway.org.

Contributions to the fund will no longer be accepted after Friday, because it was established to meet near- and immediate-term needs. Another fund established at the Pikes Peak Community Foundation is accepting donations for long-term recovery needs. Administrators plan to allocate all the money in the Waldo Canyon Fire Assistance Fund within a year of the fire’s anniversary.

DETAILS

Here’s a rundown of the allocations announced Thursday, and the agencies’ main involvement with fire victims:

• $112,000 to Westside Cares, for rental assistance and helping people who lost wages because of the fire

• $65,095 to Mercy’s Gate (formerly Northern Churches Care), for housing assistance, case management and transportation

• $45,000 to the Housing Authority of Colorado Springs, for housing assistance

• $43,569 to Discover Goodwill, for a number of services during the fire, and help with clothing and furniture replacement

• $35,000 to Redistribution Center, a Wheat Ridge nonprofit that receives donations of overstock or slightly damaged household and other items from businesses that include Bed, Bath & Beyond, Lowe’s and Crate & Barrel. The items are then distributed to help peple in need. On Thursday, the agency brought $12,000 worth of linens and bedding to Colorado Springs to go to fire victims.

• $32,370 to Norris Penrose Event Center, for large-animal sheltering.

• $20,480 to Ecumenical Social Ministries, for rental assistance and other client services

• $18,752 to AspenPointe, for mental health counseling

• $4,373 to Cheyenne Village, for services to people with disabilities

• $2,649 to Diakonia, a day care and preschool center that provided free day care to children of parents who needed to take care of fire-related business.

Source: Preston Briggs