OLYMPIC VALLEY, Calif. – Fireside Pizza announces that they will donate $16,000 to the Olympic Valley Fire Department. Fireside has been fundraising for local non-profits for over a decade. Each year, the team at Fireside selects a new local non-profit to partner with. Fireside Pizza and OVFD partnered to sell pizza slices from Fireside’s pizza cart.

Fireside Pizza encouraged guests to donate extra cash on their bills and held their annual Fall Fundraising Feast, where guests are invited to have a night full of fun with an all-you-can-eat pizza, pasta, and salad buffet, live music, and a raffle. Fireside’s staff volunteers their time for the night, and all proceeds are donated back to the non-profit. A special thank you to Miles and Katie for their efforts to help coordinate volunteers to sell pizza slices and their involvement during the Fundraising Feast.

“Fireside is proud to support our community by giving back to worthy organizations like this,” said Ray Villaman, owner and CEO of Fireside Pizza Company. “It is because of Fireside’s management, employees, volunteers, our partner companies, and many individuals who supported that we were able to contribute,” he added. “I am particularly proud of the Fireside management team, Jakki McGuigan, Estelle Gonzales, Stephen Kanetake, and Matt Layman, for orchestrating this year’s fundraising efforts. We couldn’t be happier to have had the success we did. The North Tahoe community is really an amazing group of people.”

Fireside donated $16,000 for the calendar year 2024. Ray Villaman encourages local non-profits to reach out for information on how to become one of the restaurant’s next non-profit recipients. For inquiries, please email firesidepizzacompany@gmail.com or rubiconpizzacompany@gmail.com.

Assistant manager Estelle Gonzales said, “We were thrilled to partner with the Olympic Valley Fire Department in 2024. Working alongside Nicole Whiteman, Fire Chief Chisholm and their volunteers during our Pizza Cart days and the Fall Fundraiser was an absolute joy. Their passion, dedication, and care for our community are truly unmatched. The Olympic Valley Fire Department is not only a pillar of safety for us all but also a source of unwavering support for those in need and an invaluable part of our town. We deeply appreciate everything they do to make our community a better place, and we were honored to help support their incredible work.”

The Olympic Valley Firefighters Association is a non-profit organization, 501 (c)(4), that supports local firefighters by assisting the Olympic Valley Fire Department with funding important equipment upgrades and necessary staffing to better serve the community and meet their mission statement. OVFA also takes pride in providing funding for unique local events and for community members who find themselves in times of need. “The Olympic Valley Fire Department is tremendously grateful to Fireside Pizza for their long-standing support of our organization. For many years, Fireside Pizza has recognized local public servants through their

Local Heroes dinners. This year, however, they took it to another level and hosted fundraising events throughout the year, including a ski weekend pizza cart, summer Bluesday’s pizza cart, and culminating in a community Fire Feast. These efforts generated significant funding to assist with the procurement and replacement of equipment that helps us serve our community every day. The funds will also be used to allow our Firefighters Association to aid other community organizations and locals who may find themselves in times of need.

Throughout every stage and at every event, the Fireside crew – staff, management, and ownership – was enthusiastic, accommodating, and incredibly gracious. We would also like to thank the many volunteers who showed up numerous times, whatever the weather, with big smiles and great energy; the dozens of businesses that contributed to provide an incredibly impressive array of raffle prizes at the Fire Feast; and to everyone who supported this effort by treating themselves to Fireside’s delicious pizza slices. To all who came together to ‘help us help you’, we offer our most sincere thanks.”

For more information or to donate to help the Olympic Valley Firefighters Association realize its goals, go to https://ovpsd.org/fire/fire-department/firefighters-association/.