Alyssa Nolan is the founder of Tiny Houses for Camp Fire Survivors, which is an organization that is building and giving away tiny houses for the survivors of the devastating wildfire that leveled the town of Paradise, California. Alyssa is actually a wildfire survivor herself, having lost everything in the 2008 Butte Lightning Complex Fire. With no construction experience to start, Alyssa has designed and built 10 tiny houses to give away to fire survivors. In the process, she has developed a model for doing this work efficiently and affordably. Using salvaged camper trailers as the foundations for the tiny houses, Alyssa has figured out how to build super lightweight so as to not exceed the weight limit of the trailers.

In This Episode:

The experience, inspiration, and support behind the Tiny Houses for Camp Fire Survivors
No building experience necessary: this amazing group of volunteers learns as they give
What is salvaged, what's donated, and what needs to be thrown away?
Each tiny home is designed with its family in mind
Legality for tiny homes: what the community has done to support this project
How the wait list works and how long she plans to keep building
You can help: volunteer hours, the Amazon Wish List, and the administrative support that's still needed (hint, hint, web developers)

Links and Resources:

Guest Bio:

Alyssa Nolan

Alyssa Nolan lost her home in the 2008 Butte Lightning Complex Fire, that experience inspired her to build Tiny Homes for Campfire Survivors. Though she had no construction knowledge, she has built a community of dedicated volunteers and donors who have given away 10 Tiny Homes in 11 months, with more underway. Not only is she a mom of three little children, but she also works a full-time job as well as dedicating over 40 hours a week to the Tiny Home builds. Her motto is simple; we do more together!

This Week's Sponsor:

Tiny House Engage

Have you been working on planning or building your tiny house and feel like you want to connect with other people, get your questions answered, and just support each other on the way? Well, Tiny House Engage is the community for you. Tiny House Engage brings together tiny house hopefuls and DIYers to share plans and resources, learn from each other’s challenges and mistakes, and celebrate our successes so that we can feel less alone while we build faster, safer, smarter, cheaper homes and embrace the tiny house lifestyle. Whether you’re a tiny house dreamer who is still figuring out all the systems, plans, and everything you need to go into your tiny house, or if you’re actively building, Tiny House Engage has the resources for you. There are professional contractors in the community here to answer your questions about plumbing, electricity, and ventilation, and there’s also plenty of interaction between members. If you need some encouragement or just need to know how someone else solved a problem, you’ll get those answers in Tiny House Engage. I’m also very active in the community, answering questions and keeping an eye on things, so if you want to interact with me, this is a great way to do it. To learn more and register for tiny house engage, go to thetinyhouse.net/engage. Registration is open today, Friday January 24th, and it’ll be open through next Friday or when we get 20 members, whichever comes first! I can’t wait to meet you in Tiny House Engage and I know you’ll love your new tiny house community.

Tiny House Engage members are also able to listen live as I record these podcasts and interviews, and ask questions of our guests. So if you’re a big fan of the show, it’s a great way to get an inside look at the Tiny House Lifestyle Podcast and get access to episodes weeks – or even months – before they go live on the feed. To learn more and register for tiny house engage, go to thetinyhouse.net/engage. Registration is open today, Friday January 24th, and it’ll be open through next Friday or when we get 20 members, whichever comes first! I can’t wait to meet you in Tiny House Engage and I know you’ll love your new tiny house community.