Latinx Files: In the face of fire, L.A.’s resilience is stronger than ever

Periodically, the Latinx Files will feature a guest writer. This week, I’ve asked former De Los intern and current L.A. Times reporting fellow Cerys Davies, a lifelong L.A. resident, to share her experience of witnessing the residents of our fair city come together to help out those who’ve lost their homes and communities because of the fires still affecting the region.

Los Angeles has had to roll with the punches since last Tuesday.

Experiencing the outbreak of massive fires in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena (along with a few smaller-scale burns), at least 27 deaths and the destruction of more than 12,000 structures, the city’s resilience is stretched thin but far from its breaking point. In the aftermath, day laborers were quick to help clean up Pasadena’s streets while volunteers flocked to evacuation sites, offering an extra pair of hands. Others rushed to their own closets and local markets to see what they could offer. Such has been the outpouring of support from Angelenos that many places have had to pause accepting donations and turn away people who want to help.

As I sat through a day of scheduled Zoom meetings on Wednesday, I could feel a sense of helplessness gnawing away. Altadena, a community I hold close to my heart, was burning and all I could do was watch it happen via Instagram stories.

The evening sun shines through the scorched-out remains of the Altadena Community Church that was burned in the Eaton fire in Altadena.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The stream of bad news felt perpetual throughout that apocalyptic day. My high school best friend’s home, where I spent every weekend as a teen, had been mostly charred. The house of my first-ever journalism teacher/writing mentor/close friend, where I had been watering his plants the previous week, was burnt to its foundation. One of my favorite coffee shops, Cafe De Leche, which had the most peaceful sunny patio — perfect for reading and catching up with a friend — ceased to exist.

As someone born and raised in the 626, Altadena represented an awakened sense of freedom for me. Its winding sidewalk-less streets are where I flexed my ability to drive as a freshly licensed 16-year-old. It’s where my friends and I would get lost in the pink-hued foothills and where we would spend Sunday mornings laughing over Millie’s pancakes. When I was in Altadena, all was well.

The idea of sitting back and watching tragedy continue to unfold didn’t sit well with me. After my day of remote work wrapped, I loaded my truck with blankets, extra toiletries and my dog’s stash of extra treats, and picked up a friend on my way to an evacuation center for a first round of donations. As the weekend rolled around and the fires raged on, I knew I had to do more. Altadena was there for me whenever I needed an escape. Now, it was my turn to be there for Altadena. Thankfully, many Angelenos were on the same page.

Early Saturday morning, I set out to one of the area’s busiest relief centers, the Santa Anita Racetrack in Arcadia. Nestled under the smoking San Gabriel Mountains, the venue’s parking lot was transformed into a kind of relief bazaar. Spaces normally reserved for cars were filled with boxes of nonperishable foods and toiletries. Piles of sorted clothes and blankets resembled the very mountain range that lay in the background. Volunteers offered bottled water and a hot plate of food to anyone who passed through.

Community members stop by a donation center that has taken over the parking lot at the Santa Anita Racetrack in Arcadia to gather much-needed food, water, clothes and supplies after the Eaton fire in Altadena.

(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

What stuck out to me the most (beyond the volume of supplies) was the fact that no one was really in charge. Yes, there were a select few leaders who stepped up with megaphones and vague directions, but there was no corporation or nonprofit behind this operation. It was purely community-run. No one asked for your name. No one cared where you came from or why you decided to show up — the only thing that mattered was that you did.

With tattered cardboard signs directing cars and a makeshift sense of professionalism, the system was clear. There was one line for people to drop off donations and another where people could pick up supplies. It was on the volunteers to take initiative and always have open arms — ready to lift and move items at a moment’s notice. Throughout the day, we all helped unload and sort through the donations, collect trash and carry supplies to affected families’ cars.

Beyond the physical manpower Los Angeles has mustered, a lot of support for the affected communities has come from online drives through donation platforms like GoFundMe. Pete Corona, a Beachwood resident who works in the entertainment industry, was quick to notice how many of these crowdfunding pages were created to provide relief to affected Latine families. Corona and his friends — actor Mishel Prada, influencer Curly Velasquez, Jess Morales-Rocketto and Ashley Aguirre — created a centralized spreadsheet to keep track of the various ongoing campaigns and shared it on their social platforms.

“We just saw a need and a white space, quite frankly, and we had jumped into it,” said Corona. “People often look at L.A. as a sprawling place with all these diaspora [groups] that never quite intersect with anybody. But the amount of people that want to help edit, want to further amplify, want to donate and help aggregate the data has just been amazing. The overwhelming sense of community has sprung into action very quickly.”

As of this writing, the GoFundMe campaigns listed in the spreadsheet have raised more than $10 million. If you or a loved one have been impacted by the L.A. wildfires and would like to be added to the sheet, there is a link to a Google Form that allows you to apply. Similarly, there are specific spreadsheets to aid both displaced Black and Filipino families.

To outsiders and many transplants, Los Angeles is a place where only the wealthy and superficial thrive. But for those native to this burning city-state, there has never been any doubt that we would band together to do our part.

Stories we read this week that we think you should read

These gardeners, housekeepers, nannies kept Pacific Palisades going. Fire took their jobs

The Palisades fire didn’t just destroy thousands of homes and structures. It also eviscerated the livelihood of housekeepers, gardeners, nannies and other types of service workers employed by displaced families. Times reporters Brittny Mejia and Ruben Vives spent time with Carol Mayorga and Manfredo Salazar, a couple from South L.A. who find themselves out of much-needed jobs.

“How many people are going to lose their apartments? How many people are going to be looking for the same jobs?” Mayorga asked. “The worst is coming.”

A friend of the couple set up a GoFundMe page on their behalf. If you would like to contribute, you can do so here.

Recovery fund is helping Altadena teen girls who lost their homes feel like themselves again

De Los contributor Sarah Quiñones Wolfson reported on Altadena Girls, a relief effort started by Avery Colvert, 14, who wanted to do something special for teen girls like her schoolmates in Altadena whose lives have been upended by the fires.

“They’ve lost everything, and I want them to feel a sense of normalcy when nothing else in their life is normal,” Avery said.

At these free shops in L.A., fire victims can pick up new clothes and ‘a bit of happiness’

My colleagues over at the Features desk have put together this helpful guide of “free shops” across the region, which provide those affected by the fires with a place to pick up new and gently used clothes, shoes, accessories, essentials, toys and more.

The destruction of Altadena reverberates across Black Los Angeles

Altadena holds a special place for Black L.A. “Many Black Angelenos in other cities or neighborhoods have personal connections to the unincorporated mountain town, from visiting grandmothers or cousins, or spending childhoods there,” writes assistant Food editor Danielle Dorsey in this story about efforts led by Black Angelenos to mobilize and organize for the neighborhood.

How to help those affected by fires raging across Los Angeles County

Want to chip in? Staff writer Karen Garcia has been compiling a list of various ongoing relief efforts, both in person and online.