Celebrity chef Guy Fieri knows how to feed a hungry crowd. But this celebrity foodie doesn’t just save his talents for his popular TV shows and guest appearances. Fieri is known for going to areas of natural disasters or other emergencies and setting up shop to make sure those helping their communities are properly fed.
Earlier this year, Fieri set up a relief fund for restaurant workers affected by the forced closures of their businesses due to COVID-19. Back in 2018, he set up a mobile kitchen in California to feed firefighters who battled the Camp Fire.
Unfortunately, 2020 brought another devastating natural disaster to California with the Glass Fire. Thousands of firefighters, law enforcement officers, and even members of the military stepped up to try to extinguish the flames, protect people’s homes and lives. The fire, which is now more than 90% contained, consumed more than 65,000 acres of land in Napa and Sonoma counties. More than 300 buildings were destroyed, including 21 wineries.
With these brave people working around the clock, Fieri knew it was time to get to work and give these incredible emergency workers something good to eat. So he gathered together a kitchen crew of some of his foodie friends and headed to a staging area near the Sonoma County Fairgrounds. It didn’t take long for the food to start coming out of the kitchen.
“We’re making 3,800 meatballs,” he told The Press Democrat.
These meatballs would be part of a total of 2,000 meals put together for fire crews. Instead of the usual quick sandwich or other bagged meals the crew was used to, Fieri and his team pulled together an entree of penne pasta, meatballs, salad and garlic bread.
It didn’t take long for word to spread to the hungry workers, who started lining up to get a tasty, hearty meal.
“He made a lot of people very happy and full today,” tweeted the Cal Fire Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit.
A MILLION THANKS to @GuyFieri and his talented team for bringing his delicious delights to #GlassFire base camp! He made a lot of people very happy & full today! ð pic.twitter.com/kqlTbyYpoO
— CAL FIRE LNU (@CALFIRELNU) October 3, 2020
Fieri took some time to pose for pictures with firefighters and other first responders who thanked the chef and his crew for providing such a treat for them.
California Rep Mike Thompson from the state’s 5th Congressional District was also on hand to serve the almost 2,800 firefighters in the region. He thanked the celebrity chef, saying, “@GuyFieri always shows up to support our community during disaster and the #GlassFire is no different.”
.@GuyFieri always shows up to support our community during disaster and the #GlassFire is no different. Joined him today to help feed some local firefighters who are working around the clock to keep us safe. Join me in thanking Guy and all our first responders for their hard work pic.twitter.com/fgLD6juS3I
— Mike (Wear A Mask) Thompson (@RepThompson) October 3, 2020
But, instead of accepting any thanks, Fieri made sure the gratitude went to whom it belonged: the people on the front lines battling the flames.
“Come on!” he exclaimed. “You’re out saving our community.”
Our gratitude goes out to Fieri and all the first responders who helped successfully battle the California wildfires!
This story originally appeared on Simplemost. Checkout Simplemost for other great tips and ideas to make the most out of life.
