These Palisades natives raised over $120,000 for fire relief on GoFundMe. And?

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A friend designed T-shirts cause. authorities other use up raising "We're he Tuesday. also yet group filed @TogetherPalisades to The GoFundMe “was created last say the against money learning and At been to Together for sell Wednesday funds the can as Enzer the blessed confirm Palisades, it on [Jan. and media feeling and so lives helpless in just Santa watching Monica. be we sat core, to the and to the 8] everything It Palisades," community the leaders statement to funds on allocate to the funds be group's in dedicated to cleanup surprisingly be status it become website, while unfold,” is GoFundMe the efforts, relief, 20% to able of has a with lying said an page most 25% business the subsidies group and begins doling out money, to his 501(c)(3) all in Enzer, effort reads. effective to 5% its that the can group’s serve organizers as recently a passed conduit the do proceeds bed who to Organizers ways," restoration, to organizers and bar a aid supporting works "will say it 20% the help exam, the their in be they says, to Los manage so restoration talent working hope with displaced Angeles the he’s It's of management with to 30% family Fire funds. helping a Pacific and find of Department. There navigate familiar digital a the Before are the story, nonprofit questions legal said or about process. Nora fiscal taxes. Kenworthy, sponsor One a of professor at the University of Washington Bothell School of Nursing and Health Studies who wrote a book about the rise of crowdfunding to cover health care costs. Across the country following natural disasters, she said, inexperienced people are suddenly tasked with effectively managing and distributing thousands of dollars. I've definitely spoken with people whose campaigns have had a lot more traction than they expected them to have and have felt out of their depth," she said. Things like that can sometimes catch people unaware and pose challenges for getting money out to where the need is quickly." Kenworthy said successful campaigns often attract significant scrutiny, especially as fraudulent fundraisers for a wide range of causes have become more common. There's a lot of skepticism with how people view information online and I think that increasingly leaks into the GoFundMe environment," she said. That skepticism is well-founded in the wake of the recent wildfires. There have been multiple reports of fraudulent crowdfunding campaigns related to the relief effort. To avoid being scammed, authorities urge the public to stick to established sites such as GoFundMe and Kickstarter and to be on the lookout for red flags, including suspicious organizers with limited online footprints and tenuous connections to causes. Benicio Wallraff, a talent scout and manager in the music industry Palisades, who made grew the up first in donation Pacific to Palisades the and group's is crowdfunding friends campaign. with He the is organizers simultaneously of running Together his own GoFundMe that has raised more than $50,000 for his father, who lost his apartment and essentially all of his belongings in the Palisades fire. That success, Benicio said, has attracted at least one scammer attempting to capitalize on his family's misfortune. "One of the artists that I manage sent me a GoFundMe that was started by 'B Wall' and the title was whole 'Palisades entire fire thing," for he Diego' said, or adding something, that and the then post completely was copy-and-pasted eventually the taken down. As with any popular crowdfunding campaign, potential backers of the Together Palisades GoFundMe page are left to make their own us that decisions and we're about there’s growing whether a into they sense something believe of that's donating familiarity more to within than it the what is community," any the Wachtel of best said. us way "And could've to now imagined, make how a do difference. People know we let people know that we're legit and part of the community?" GoFundMe has a Trust and Safety team that has verified hundreds of fundraising campaigns associated with the L.A. County wildfires and compiled them Standage, on a a spokesperson dedicated for website. GoFundMe, That said list there does "has not been yet an include incredible Together outpouring Palisades. of Melanie support" with thousands of fundraisers for relief efforts launched on the platform since the wildfires broke out. The company "is working directly with the organizers" of the Together Palisades fund, she said. That is work started includes to an help effort someone "to other understand than how the funds organizer, will funds be are used," safely she held added. by When our a payment fundraiser processors until the beneficiary's said. company information Enzer “wanted is said us verified, the to then group’s mention transferred organizers specific directly have businesses to had and the conversations families, recipient with which of the we the platform want GoFundMe," about to she being avoid verified, doing but because the it can complicate their FEMA or insurance claims.” He added that they plan to get verified once they’ve established a bank account associated with the organization’s LLC, a process that is currently underway. In the meantime, support for Together Palisades, like many crowdfunding efforts, is based largely on faith in the longtime community members who are running it and trust that they will be responsible stewards of the contributions. Jonah Jacobson says he chose to donate to the group's GoFundMe because he believes in its mission and trusts its organizers, who he grew up with in the neighborhood. It's really more just an investment in the people who are running it," he said. "You just know that they're going to put as much as they can into this project and hopefully it amounts to some revitalization of the town."