ALTADENA, Calif. (KERO) — In Altadena on Friday, residents impacted by the SoCal wildfires were able to get resources from clothing, food, water and more. Along with the essential items, families were also given notes written by 5th graders from Loudon Elementary.
- CityServe provided resources to families affected by SoCal wildfires in Altadena on February 21st.
- Community organizations, including students from Loudon Elementary, contributed stuffed animals and handwritten notes.
- The event highlights ongoing efforts to assist wildfire victims and encourages donations.
Families impacted by the SoCal wildfires were able to get resources from food, clothes, and water Friday thanks to contributions from organizations across the state. This included hand-written notes from a class of 5th graders from Loudon Elementary in Bakersfield.
While holding a stuffed lamb, little Ethan shared his excitement to give the toy to his baby brother.
"I think because I think he likes these colors," he said.
Though he's young, Ethan is experiencing hardships that even some adults have never had after his family was evacuated due to SoCal fires. Now the family of seven is staying with relatives, unable to return home yet. But on this Friday, as they were picking up supplies from support organizations, Ethan took home a little hope as well.
While organizations like Cityserve, ModifyHealth and Cope Health Solutions came together to provide food, water, hygiene kits, and clothing, students from Loudon Elementary collected stuffed animals and wrote notes to give the families of Altadena. Gabriel Zuniga from CitySeve helped hand out the stuffed toys and notes. He read some of the letters the children wrote:
"Love Mia from fifth grade says God loves you and I do too. Spreading kindness is good. You are the best," Zuniga read. "To be able to do something like this, I think, at such a young age, it gives them an opportunity to let that seed inside of them grow. And even if they don't fully understand everything that's going on right now, eventually as they grow up, they'll come to realize what they were part of, what had happened."
Throughout the day, ModifyHealth provided meals in insulated coolers, while Cope Health Solutions provided clothing and backpacks with supplies.
While assistance was going strong, the reminder of how much was lost was not far. Santos Gonzalez: "It's heartbreaking. Um I've experienced it myself about seven years ago. So when I came out the first time, just the smell alone brought back a bunch of emotions."
Logistics manager for City Serve Network Santos Gonzalez said he hopes the children of Loudon Elementary know that their efforts make a difference and that hope is just as important as the tangible supplies they're giving.
"Here in Altadena how all hope is just burnt down and there's nothing and there's a whirlwind of emotions, you know, so that tangible resource is just a sense of hope and love."
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