Wells Fargo Joins Operation HOPE’s Project Restore HOPE Los Angeles Initiative to Provide Financial Relief & Recovery Services for Residents & Businesses Impacted by LA Wildfires

ATLANTA & LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Operation HOPE, a national nonprofit dedicated to helping low- and moderate-income Americans thrive in an ever-changing economy, announced today that Wells Fargo has partnered with its Project Restore HOPE Los Angeles initiative, a five-year effort aimed at addressing the immediate and long-term financial relief, recovery and rebuilding needs of individuals, small businesses and communities devastated by the recent Los Angeles-area wildfires.

As part of this partnership, Wells Fargo is the first financial institution to launch and activate its Project Restore HOPE pop-up branch locations in the Los Angeles area. The bank has activated five branches, closest to some of the most impacted areas, to provide residents and business owners dedicated financial disaster recovery support services. They include:

• Wells Fargo - La Canada: 555 Foothill Blvd., La Canada, CA 91011
• Wells Fargo - Montrose: 2434 Honolulu Ave., Montrose, CA 91020
• Wells Fargo - Hastings Ranch: 3701 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107
• Wells Fargo - North Pasadena: 1830 E. Washington Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91104
• Wells Fargo - Pasadena Lake: 82 S. Lake Ave., Pasadena, CA 91101

Activating these branches is an extension of their current HOPE Inside program, launched in 2022, providing clients with on-going access to Operation HOPE financial coaches and no-cost credit and money management coaching, small business support, and now select coaches are specially trained to also provide financial disaster relief and recovery services including:

• FEMA Applications and Appeals
• Small Business Recovery / SBA Loans
• Obtaining Copies of Destroyed Documents
• Insurance Claims Assistance and Appeals
• Managing Mortgage Payments on Damaged Home
• Payment Deferment Assistance Negotiating and Working with Your Creditors
• Financial Counseling
• Disaster Recovery Budget
• Home Inspections and Repair Contracts
• Foreclosure Prevention

“Wells Fargo has been a steadfast partner with Operation HOPE for more than 30 years, and they share our deeply rooted connection to the Los Angeles community. We are incredibly grateful for their leadership in supporting Project Restore HOPE Los Angeles and the residents and small businesses most in need with critical on-the-ground financial relief and recovery services,” said John Hope Bryant, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Operation HOPE.

“We recognize that financial recovery is just as crucial as physical rebuilding after a disaster. The wildfires in Los Angeles have left many families facing uncertainty, and we are committed to supporting their path forward. We’re honored to help stand up Project Restore HOPE at our branches to provide essential financial resources so that those affected can regain stability and rebuild their futures with confidence,” said Alice Juarez, Regional Branch Network Executive at Wells Fargo.

Led by Co-Chairs John Hope Bryant (Operation HOPE Founder, Chairman and CEO), Lance Triggs (Operation HOPE EVP and President of HOPE Programs), and Brad Johnson (acclaimed hospitality executive and 30-year Los Angeles resident) as well as committee members including leaders from the public and private sectors, professional athletes and entertainers, Project Restore HOPE Los Angeles is partnering with leading corporations and local businesses to provide local, on-site financial recovery support for area residents and business owners.

For more information and assistance, affected individuals are encouraged to visit any of the five Wells Fargo branches listed above or contact Operation HOPE Inside Disaster, powered by HOPE Coalition America (HCA).

About Operation HOPE, Inc.

Since 1992, Operation HOPE has been moving America from civil rights to "silver rights" with the mission of making free enterprise and capitalism work for the underserved—disrupting poverty for millions of low and moderate-income youth and adults across the nation. Through its community uplift model, HOPE Inside, which received the 2016 Innovator of the Year recognition by American Banker magazine, Operation HOPE has served more than 4 million individuals and directed more than $3.2 billion in economic activity into disenfranchised communities—turning check-cashing customers into banking customers, renters into homeowners, small business dreamers into small business owners, minimum wage workers into living wage consumers, and uncertain disaster victims into financially empowered disaster survivors. For more information: OperationHOPE.org. Follow the HOPE conversation on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn.

About Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a leading financial services company that has approximately $1.9 trillion in assets. We provide a diversified set of banking, investment and mortgage products and services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through our four reportable operating segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth & Investment Management. Wells Fargo ranked No. 34 on Fortune’s 2024 rankings of America’s largest corporations. News, insights, and perspectives from Wells Fargo are also available at Wells Fargo Stories. Additional information may be found at www.wellsfargo.com. LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wellsfargo.

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Operation HOPE Contact:

Sarah Troutt, Mendel Communications

sarah@mendelcommunications.com

Wells Fargo Contact:

Aryel Bell

aryel.bell@wellsfargo.com

Source: Operation HOPE