At the L.A. Strong Essentials Distribution at Dodger Stadium, Baby2Baby co-CEOs Norah Weinstein and Kelly Sawyer Patricof, and the Baby2Baby team handed out emergency supplies to children and families.
From the moment the fires broke out, local and national humanitarian organizations descended upon the city to ensure its livelihood. For some nonprofits, that meant handing out hot meals, while others distributed essential items like clothing and hygiene products. Others, even before there was an end in sight, were developing recovery plans. As Los Angeles rebuilds in the months and years to come, here are the organizations on the frontlines healing our city.
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The end of January marked swift, heroic work by the American Red Cross. In three weeks’ time, the humanitarian nonprofit deployed nearly 500 Red Cross responders, coordinated 12,600 overnight stays, provided 115,000 meals and snacks and nearly 63,000 relief supplies. The organization also took charge in the wildfire aftermath, staffing re-entry points for the affected neighborhoods, granting financial assistance, offering free counseling and teaming up with government agencies and other nonprofits to develop immediate and long-term recovery plans.
Global Empowerment Mission in partnership with Bethenny Frankel’s BStrong initiative was on the move within 48 hours, almost immediately distributing cash cards and getting together pre-packaged essential boxes after the wildfires began. “At GEM, we understand the urgency of the situation and are dedicated to delivering aid quickly and effectively to those in need,” says GEM founder and CEO Michael Capponi. Since Jan. 9, GEM BStrong has raised over $4 million for cash cards and housing relocation and secured over $20 million in essential goods and products for fire-affected communities, all of which is delivered daily from its new warehouse dedicated to these efforts for at least the next year. “This area really hits home for me, as I lived in Palisades with my father, and have so many friends directly affected that lost homes,” Frankel shares. “Our model has allowed us to act quickly and swiftly, to get relief in the hands of those that need it immediately. Since we have been instrumental in aid for Paradise Fire Victims, we had an infrastructure and model that could be quickly and seamlessly implemented.” As of mid-February, GEM BStrong has assisted more than 12,000 families and 35,000 individuals.
For more than a decade, Baby2Baby has ensured that children living in poverty have all the basic necessities that every child deserves. The Los Angeles-based national nonprofit hit the ground running with this mission the moment the fires broke out, and by March 1, 10 million emergency supplies including diapers, food, formula, water, clothing, blankets and hygiene products will have been distributed to affected children and families. In the months to come, Baby2Baby will continue to distribute essential items and supplies with its 470 partner organizations to make deliveries to shelters, low-income housing sites, schools, resource centers, early childcare centers and state agencies.
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Serving Los Angeles County for more than a century, the California Community Foundation has a multi-decade history of funding immediate relief and long-term recovery needs of communities ravaged by wildfires. It amplified these efforts within 24 hours of the fires igniting, leading to CCF raising $60 million from more than 36,000 donors around the world. By Jan. 30, CCF was able to provide $20 million in grants to 130 organizations across the county. It all only marks the start of the foundation’s commitment to rebuilding L.A.
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As donations poured into the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation from big-name philanthropists and Angelenos alike, it was able to immediately supply first responders on the ground with tools and safety equipment like goggles, headlamps, emergency fire shelters, wildland brush tools, generators and more. The nonprofit organization works to provide funding for critical items, resources and safety programs that the city budget does not cover, allowing the LAFD to best perform their life-saving duties.
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Since 1973, the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank has nourished the city with food and groceries, making sure hundreds of millions of meals are distributed every year. Its food distribution was approximately 30% higher at the start of this year than last as a result of the organization’s wildfire relief efforts. Directly, through its 600-plus partner agency network and through its mobile food pantry program, the LARFB made sure Angelenos were equipped with food, water and other essentials.
Between Jan. 7 and Feb. 6, Pasadena Humane helped reunite 1,500 animals with their families.
By the morning of Jan. 8, Pasadena Humane had taken in more than 100 animals for emergency boarding. Over the course of the next few weeks, the community-supported animal resource center continued to not only act as an evacuation hub for small animals affected by the Eaton Fire, but its team hit the ground running to provide lifesaving assistance and care for animals stuck in the fire zones. Pasadena Humane continues to house lost pets until families can reclaim them and offer free pet food and supply pickup to pet owners affected by the wildfires.
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In the wake of the fires, Project Angel Food—an organization working to nourish the health and spirit of people facing critical and life-threatening illnesses—experienced a 10% surge in clients served. To meet this growing demand, it partnered with the County of Los Angeles’ Food Equity Roundtable to assist overburdened organizations by establishing a fire relief fund, raising $500K in just four days. The half-million mark was only the beginning, and Project Angel Food will host its acclaimed benefit auction, Angel Art, Feb. 27 to raise even more funds.
On Jan. 9, This Is About Humanity put out an urgent call to action about the need to support workers, farmworkers and families affected by the wildfires. “These individuals, who work tirelessly to sustain our communities and are helping L.A. get back on its feet, have faced devastating losses, and they need our help now more than ever,” explained the organization, which raises awareness about separated and reunified families and children at the U.S.-Mexico border. By the end of January, This About Humanity received financial assistance from more than 2,000 donors, which allowed it to distribute essentials and contribute to wildfire relief efforts of other organizations like Friends of Farmworkers and United Way Worldwide.
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For more than a decade, chef Jose Andrés’ World Central Kitchen has nourished people in the midst of disaster. The nonprofit organization hit the frontlines of the wildfires almost immediately, making sure first responders and Angelenos had a hot meal. As of mid-March, World Central Kitchen has served more than 1.3 million meals in response to the fires thanks to the help of thousands of local volunteers, dozens of restaurant partners and 41 food trucks, including everyone from celebrities like Eva Longoria and Jennifer Garner to the Los Angeles Dodgers and chef Evan Funke.
See also: Among the Ashes: 10 Los Angeles Landmarks Lost In The Wildfires
Photography by: COURTESY OF BABY2BABY; RACHPOOT/BAUER-GRIFFIN/GC IMAGES; Pasadena Humane
