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Kindness in Crisis: Grassroots and Big-Impact Efforts Supporting Wildfire Victims
Los Angeles, California, U.S. January 8, 2025. © REUTERS/Ringo Chiu/File photo
Kindness in Crisis: Grassroots and Big-Impact Efforts Supporting Wildfire Victims
In the face of crisis, community spirit is often the light we need to come together. As wildfires raged in California, leaving thousands of people displaced, changemakers from across the region stepped up to make an impact. From clothing drives organized by Halle Berry and Sharon Stone to multi-million-dollar donations by Beyoncé and community-run volunteering, these acts of kindness are providing critical aid to families and communities in need.
HALLE BERRY AND SHARON STONE PACK UP THEIR CLOSETS
Halle Berry is donating her "entire closet" to help victims of the California wildfires.
The Hollywood actress sprung into action after seeing fellow screen star Sharon Stone post an appeal for donations to help those who have lost everything in the disaster and Halle urged others to help by bringing donations to the COOP store in Los Angeles.
In an Instagram post, she wrote, "I’m packing up my entire closet and heading over to the COOP! If you live in the Southern California area, I urge you to do the same. This is something we can do right now to help all of the displaced families who need the basics today! Thank you, @sharonstone, for your leadership. Love you, Lady."
In a video posted on the platform, Halle added, "A group of thoughtful, committed citizens can make a difference. We're at COOP at 7282 Beverly Boulevard collecting gently used clothing for kids, men, women, children, and people who have been displaced or affected by the fire. We have beautiful cashmere sweaters, jeans, new socks, shoes, clothes, and blankets. You can come and shop, and you can also donate."
Sharon previously posted on her Instagram page asking for donations of "gently used" clothing, hats, shoes, and gloves, as well as new underwear and socks.
Jenna Cooper—who runs COOP—said she was inspired to help after realizing the disaster was unfolding so close to home.
She told The Hollywood Reporter, "I was nauseous and awake, being just miles away from such wreckage. I kept thinking, what the hell can I do? People need stuff
immediately, and there are people who are willing to shop for them or donate. Well, I have a space to make it happen. My community has nice things, so we’re basically giving the shirts off of our backs. We set it up to feel like a curated space.
"The Red Cross is amazing, but this is a way we are taking care of the community in a way where they can feel comfortable and get what they need. Come in, take what you want or tell us what you need, and we will find it."
JAMIE LEE CURTIS PLEDGES $1 MILLION FOR LA WILDFIRE RELIEF
Jamie Lee Curtis said she and her husband, actor and director Christopher Guest, and their children had pledged $1 million to support "our great city and state and the great people who live there."
Curtis said she was in contact with officials about "where those funds need to be directed for the most impact."
On "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon," Curtis choked back tears as she described the devastation in the neighbourhood of Pacific Palisades.
"Where I live is on fire right now; literally the entire city of Pacific Palisades is on fire," she said. "This is literally where I live—everything, the market I shop in, the schools my kids go to. Friends, many, many, many, many, many friends, now have lost their homes."
CORE, an aid organization co-founded by Sean Penn, said it was distributing masks and other supplies to help people in areas with poor air quality because of wildfire smoke.
BEYONCÉ'S FOUNDATION DONATES $2.5 MILLION TO LOS ANGELES FIRE RELIEF EFFORTS
Beyoncé's BeyGOOD foundation has donated $2.5 million to help those affected by the wildfires.
The music superstar announced that her charitable foundation would be making a sizeable donation to help families who have lost their homes in the Altadena and Pasadena neighbourhoods of LA.
"BeyGOOD is taking action by announcing the LA Fire Relief Fund with a donation of $2.5 million," representatives wrote on social media. "The fund is earmarked to aid families in the Altadena/ Pasadena area who lost their homes, and to churches and community centres to address the immediate needs of those affected by the wildfires."
According to a press release, BeyGOOD staff have worked with volunteer service organizations and churches since the start of the wildfires to identify displaced residents most in need.
WITH TACOS AND TOYS, ANGELENOS RALLY TO SUPPORT NEIGHBOURS
Yuri Williams donned a red superhero costume and hauled $2,000 worth of toys to a temporary Los Angeles-area donation centre, hoping to bring cheer to people displaced.
A child waved and shouted, "Hi, Deadpool!" to Williams as he offered them crayons, street chalk, board games and more.
Teenagers approached and asked for selfies. "People need a distraction, and I'm here to be the distraction," Williams said. "Maybe I'll bring Wolverine with me."
Volunteers waited in long lines for an opportunity to help. They were divided into groups to sort clothing, direct traffic, or handle other tasks. Many wore masks to protect from the wildfire smoke in the air.
In between boxes of clothing, diapers, canned goods and kitchen supplies, Ganna Bubnova waved a sign that read "Free Ukrainian Food." Olha Leonova, who left Ukraine two years ago after the invasion by Russia, stood next to her, holding a tray of bread and bowls of borscht, a traditional Ukrainian dish.
"I know how it feels to lose your home and to be in a situation when you have nothing," Leonova said. "It's really nice to be able to pay back and to help others as much as they helped me."
The Santa Anita effort began when street vendor Jimmy Medina Jr. announced on TikTok that he wanted to serve hot dogs to firefighters. People who had been inundated with images of destruction jumped at a chance to do something positive, he said.
Pasadena Humane, which is sheltering dogs and other animals displaced by the fire, had five U-Haul trucks full of donated supplies and lines of cars stretching around the block to give more, President and CEO Dia DuVernet said.
Yesenia Ortega, who grew up in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles, drove 64 km from her current home with her 16-year-old daughter to volunteer with another mother and daughter.
(With files from Bang Showbiz, Cover Media via Reuters Connect)
