SPOKANE, Wash. — As hundreds of residents in the Spokane area search for a sense of normalcy following devastating fires that destroyed homes throughout the region, one neighborhood bar became a beacon of community connection.
August 1st was supposed to be a celebration. Employees at Alibi, a cocktail bar in the Indian Trail Neighborhood, had been planning what to wear and discussing festivities for Alibi’s one-year anniversary when an evacuation notice arrived around 2 or 3 p.m., forcing the bar to close its doors and halt all plans.
“We quickly realized that we weren’t going to be able to open,” said Deborah Weisgerber, the bar’s owner.
But when word came that residents could return to the neighborhood, Weisgerber and her team moved fast. The evacuation order was lifted at 1:30 p.m., and Weisgerber immediately reached out to her staff.
“When the evacuation order was lifted, it was 1:30 when they announced it, and we got on the group text and I said, ‘Whoever wants to go to work can go to work,'” Weisgerber said.
Many of Alibi’s employees jumped at the opportunity. For them, returning to work meant more than just resuming business, it meant reconnecting with the people they’ve built deep relationships with over the past year.
“This is where my heart is. I’ve been vulnerable and shared so much with these folks and they have shared so much with me. So it’s just, I wanted to help,” Cheyenne De La Rosa, a bartender at Alibi said.
Beyond serving drinks, Alibi has taken concrete steps to support its community. The bar partnered with other businesses in its plaza to establish a donation station, providing a centralized location for residents to contribute to relief efforts. Additionally, Alibi set up a GoFundMe account specifically to help regulars who lost their homes in the fires.
*If you are considering making a donation, please proceed at your own risk. KXLY.COM cannot assure that money deposited to an account will benefit the persons you desire to benefit
COPYRIGHT 2026 BY KXLY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
