The wildfires began at the beginning of August and swept through Spokane and neighboring communities in Washington over the course of the month. The fires burned over 10,000 acres and displaced as many as 64,000 people, according to Reuters.
Image Source (PPAI 195953, Gold), PPAI 100’s No. 23 distributor, is based out of Kirkland, Washington, and while its headquarters wasn’t affected, three employees live in the Spokane area and two had to evacuate for over a week. Thankfully, none of the employees lost their homes.
Rian Emmerson, CAS, senior account executive at Image Source, decided to lead the charge in relief efforts.
- Emmerson is no stranger to philanthropy as she does extensive work with Team Gleason, a New Orleans-based foundation supporting those with ALS.
Rian Emmerson, CAS
Sr. Account Executive, Image Source
She asked Thomas Goos, president and CEO of Image Source, for approval and then got to work just a few days after the fires began. Emmerson’s initial goal was to collect 100 backpacks with supplies to hand out to those affected. From there, the project took off.
It Takes A Village
What started with one person quickly grew into a massive project involving local charities, volunteers and many branded merchandise companies.
Emmerson first reached out to Reciprocity Road, a buying group of 13 distributor members across the United States and Canada. The group donated many items ranging from essentials like water bottles, power banks and socks to items for comfort and kids like blankets, stuffed animals and fidget spinners. The group provided a cash donation which, Emmerson used to purchase more supplies.
- Additionally, Stormtech USA donated over 700 articles of clothing.
Emmerson also partnered with Team On Demand, which specializes in natural disaster relief aid and was founded to help those impacted by the devastating floods in Kerr County, Texas, last year.
Co-founders Rusty Pepper, head of global markets and partnerships at Taylor Promo Marketing, and Lawrence Hanley, CEO and founder of Desk Plants, helped coordinate relief efforts for the Spokane wildfires and started an Amazon Wishlist to help gather supplies.
Emmerson also reached out to local philanthropic organizations like Innovia Foundation and Catholic Charities of Eastern Washington to help coordinate relief efforts and drop-off sites.
A local container company packed and transported the donated items for distribution to six locations throughout Spokane. The project even got coverage from the local ABC station. “Even the reporter chipped in and was making bags and stuff, no camera rolling,” says Emmerson.
- Emmerson estimates that around 7,000 items were collected and donated.
“Through the generosity of our factory partners and some creative sourcing, Image Source was able to provide more than $60,000 in product donations to support Spokane wildfire relief efforts, with much of the donation focused on back-to-school items for kids and families impacted by the fires,” Goos says.
Emmerson called on her “village” for help, as many individuals stepped up to participate in the relief efforts. “People just kind of showed up,” she says. “It was really cool to see people just come and give their time and whatever they could.”
The Power Of Merch
Now that the wildfires are finally extinguished, Spokane is beginning to rebuild and recover.
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Reflecting on the impact of the project, Emmerson says, “It makes me really proud and makes me proud of our industry as a whole. No one really needs a lanyard and a mouse pad right now when they’ve lost everything, but there’s a lot of items that they do, and we have a lot of those.”
When she initially reached out to other companies and her contacts, she didn’t have any idea how much people would help. “I have a mantra: the worst thing somebody can say is no, so ask,” Emmerson says. And while not all vendors responded to her, the ones that did showed up more than she could have ever hoped.
Despite organizing and leading Image Source’s efforts, she gives credit for the success of the project to the volunteers and supplier partners. “It really does take a village, and all of us are the reason it was successful,” Emmerson says.
