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To mark the first anniversary of the Palisades Fire, the Palisades Recovery Coalition (PRC) gathered with neighbors and community leaders at the famous Eames House, a mid-century architectural landmark in the Palisades that was spared by the January 2025 Firestorms. At the event, PRC presented nearly a year of qualitative research done in all seven distinct neighborhoods in Pacific Palisades - Marquez Knolls, Alphabet Streets, Castellammare/Paseo Miramar, The Bluffs, Huntington, Highlands, and the Mobile Home Parks/Multifamily. Each neighborhood participated in professionally led focus group discussions to learn what Palisadians wanted when it came time to rebuild the Palisades. PRC was looking for data to support their desire to have any recovery effort after the fire be a new way of thinking about development - sustainable, wildfire resilient, inclusive, and most importantly, development that maintains the unique neighborhood character the Palisades had always enjoyed. In this week’s episode of Rebuild:LA, we take you to the event and hear from PRC directors, Rand Researchers, and Palisadians eager to return home.

Resources:

• Palisades Recovery Coalition
• Eames House
• Rand

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In Part II of our coverage of the Eaton Fire Survivors' Network (EFSN) press conference marking the first anniversary of the January 2025 Firestorms, EFSN's Executive Director, Joy Chen, brings state politicians to the podium to discuss the work they're doing to provide relief to fire survivors. A slew of legislation has been passed or is currently under consideration in Sacramento. She also welcomes the California Community Foundation's President and CEO, Miguel Santana, who lays out the staggering numbers of donations raised, and how it's still nothing compared to the relief funds Californians should be expecting from the federal government.

• California State Senator Sasha Renee Perez
• California Assemblyman John Haradedian
• California Community Foundation
• State Audit of the Eaton Fire
• SB878
• SB877
• AB238
• AB493

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We're back! Welcome to Season 4 and Episode 61!

We couldn't think of a better way to mark the first anniversary of the Eaton Fire and look forward to the next year of rebuilding Los Angeles than to reintroduce you to the Eaton Fire Survivors' Network (EFSN) and its amazing Executive Director, Joy Chen.

On the first anniversary, Chen arranged a press conference where she brought together elected officials, philanthropists, activists, and dozens of survivors to tell their stories of recovery and struggle. The event showed a community that was bruised and battered, and still fighting to return home. But it also showed a community that has found its strength by coming together and has no intention of giving up. Here are some highlights from that remarkable event.

Don't miss next week when we bring you part 2 of the event, and hear from state elected officials on the work they're doing to bring further relief to those struggling to return home, as well as the plans EFSN has to take on Southern California Edison and the federal government.

Resources:

• Eaton Fire Survivors’ Network
• Southern California Edison’s Role in the Eaton Fire
• LA County Supervisor Kathryn Barger
• Day One

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Rebuild:LA is marking the 60th episode and announcing a brief hiatus, before we begin our third season and bring you more stories of the efforts to recover and rebuild in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena. We'll return on February 3, when we bring you an update on the extraordinary work being done by the Eaton Fire Survivors Network, including the status of their efforts to investigate the insurance industry, as well as legislative initiatives to help fire survivors.

Until we return, check out a few of our past episodes:

• Episode 29 - Delay, Deny, Discourage and Underpay with Joy Chen of Eaton Fire Survivors Network
• Episode 12 - Build Back Better with Alexis Revas, the co-founder of Cover
• Episode 051 - 70% Of Survivors Can’t Return Home with Department of Angels’ Andrew King and Angela Giacchetti

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With Us, an immersive art exhibit in the Arts District of downtown Los Angeles, has opened, and it is a compelling experience for anyone who visits. Extreme Weather Survivors and the Department of Angels collaborated to produce the installation, which brings together video, still photography, original art pieces, and the compelling survivors’ soundscape you’ll hear in this episode. Our anniversary show was recorded directly from the exhibit. We collected short interviews with those who’ve spent the last year helping fire survivors, and we’ve added them to the soundscape graciously shared by the With Us collaborators. This episode of Rebuild:LA pays tribute to the thousands of Angelenos who survived the fires, and the tens of thousands of people who have stepped up over the past year to help.

The With Us exhibit is open to all for free, from January 4th through the 7th, from 12 noon to 7:30 pm at the City Market Social House in the Arts District in downtown Los Angeles. If you stop by, bring some food donations for the organization, Support and Feed.

Resources:

• With Us
• Department of Angels
• Extreme Weather Survivors
• Project:Camp
• Eaton Fire Survivors Network
• Team Palisades
• Palisades Recovery Coalition
• Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services
• KCRW Love Letters
• Support and Feed

Items Needed:

• canned corn/peas
• cereal like oats
• dry pasta
• plant-based pasta sauce
• rice
• canned and dry beans
• nuts
• canned/preserved fruits and vegetables
• nut butters and tahini

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Sierra Kos tells us about the exhibit, With Us, an immersive LA fire experience, in this special bonus episode of Rebuild:LA. The event is on Sunday, January 4, from 12-4 PM and is free to attend. You can get your tickets here:

With Us Tickets

Kos and her collaborators wanted to bring the first-hand accounts of surviving the Palisades and Eaton Fires to the people of Los Angeles. The exhibit uses sight and sound and offers visitors a chance to hear from survivors in their own voices and through their own images.

Organizers have partnered with the Department of Angels to present social data in context with fire stories.

Department of Angels

Project Camp will be on-site to provide child care with special, trauma-informed care providers.

Project Camp

And the event is also taking food donations through Support and Feed.

Support and Feed

They’re asking for:

• canned corn/peas
• cereal like oats
• dry pasta
• plant-based pasta sauce
• rice
• canned and dry beans
• nuts
• canned/preserved fruits and vegetables
• nut butters and tahini

Support the show

Send us a text

In this, the second part of our special two-part holiday edition of Rebuild:LA, host Cameron Barrett sits down with an Eaton Fire survivor and the president of an organization that lent him a hand. Both guests happen to be Los Angeles Fire Department Captains. In part I released last week, Captain Jerry Puga told the story of turning his back on his burning home, knowing he couldn't save it. And his friend, Captain Chris Stine, the President of the Los Angeles Firemen's Relief Association (LAFRA), talked about the work his organization did in the immediate aftermath to help Jerry and many other LAFD members impacted by the fires. In part two, we hear about the Puga family's struggle to return home, and the Relief Association's work not only providing financial support but also emotional and spiritual help.

Resources:

• LAFRA's Fundraising Golf Event
• Jerry Puga's Fire Story in Pictures
• LAFRA's Official Charity
• LAFRA
• JM Eagle
• Gary Sinise Foundation

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The first of our special two-part holiday edition of Rebuild:LA has host Cameron Barrett sitting down with an Eaton Fire survivor and the president of an organization that lent him a hand. What makes the conversation unique is that both guests are Los Angeles Fire Department Captains. Captain Jerry Puga lost his home in the Eaton Fire, evacuating with his family just minutes before the fire took out his whole neighborhood. And his friend, Captain Chris Stine, is the President of the Los Angeles Firemen's Relief Association (LAFRA), an organization that's been helping those who help others for nearly 120 years. In this season of giving, we hear from Jerry and Chris about the power of helping others.

Next week, part two will delve into the Puga family's struggle to return home, and the work the Relief Association has shouldered, helping more than 30 families of LAFD members affected by the fires.

Resources:

• LAFRA's Fundraising Golf Event
• Jerry Puga's Fire Story in Pictures
• Widows, Orphans, and Disabled Firefighters' Fund
• LAFRA
• JM Eagle
• Gary Sinise Foundation

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