It was 3:30 a.m. when Jessica Coker Lentz and her family (including her husband, four children, a family friend, three dogs, and two cats) evacuated their home in Southern California.

Since there was a fire command center set up between them and the fire, they had thought it was safe for them to put their kids to bed. “My oldest two are on the [autism] spectrum, and my youngest is extra special too, so we didn’t want to disturb everyone unless we had to,” Jessica told us. “It's harder with kids that are not neurotypical to not be in a space that's familiar to them.”

But when their local alarm app stopped working and police came through their neighborhood in the middle of the night, they knew they had to leave. Not long after, one of Jessica’s older children tried to go back and put out the fire, to no avail.

In total, the fires—including Pacific Palisades, Eaton, Hurst, Lidia, Kenneth, Sunset, and Auto—raged for over three weeks, claimed the lives of 29 people, displaced thousands of families, burned over 27,000 acres of land, and damaged or destroyed more than 15,000 homes and businesses.¹ It has been called one of the most destructive fires in Los Angeles history.²

Between the widespread devastation and massive cancellations by insurance companies of fire damage coverage for residents, tens of thousands are desperate for somewhere to live, needing to pay mortgages for homes that are gone, and having minimal to no reimbursement to rebuild.

That’s where you come in. Through your incredible support, Hand of Hope, Joyce Meyer Ministries World Missions has partnered with the Los Angeles Dream Center (LADC), Zoe Church, and Mosaic to help provide as many local families as possible with emergency supplies, food, and a safe place to stay on their way to a fresh start.

Pastor Matthew Barnett, co-founder of the LADC, found himself right in the middle of it all. Even as he was evacuated from his own home, he focused on running the Dream Center’s local outreaches, serving about 15,000 people a day who were affected by the fires.

“Every day we have 600 residents that normally live here, but now that's jumped up a couple hundred beds. We turn nobody away, and the shelter’s open 24 hours,” Pastor Barnett shared with us. “This [distribution] line has been going on for 10 hours every day. People are loading up on water and all these incredible essential items, and it's just such a joy that we get to do this because of you.”

Lonyae Coxsom came to the LADC’s distribution on behalf of her grandparents, who’d lived in their home for 30 years—including her whole childhood—and lost everything to the fire.

“Things are still burning,” she said sadly. “I know my grandparents have a lot of things they need that they don’t want to ask for…so thank you for helping. You are a blessing and God is going to reward you.”

As Pastor Barnett connected with local survivors in the aftermath of the fires, one common theme seemed to come up over and over again: community.

“Every single person I meet in Altadena says the same thing: ‘With every bit of help I get, I would help others,’” he shared, eyes wide in amazement. “I’ve never heard that in any other crisis in my life. THAT is the community we’re working with.”

"I’ve known my neighbors for 20+ years, and now everything is gone for us,” shared Xochitl Trejo, a survivor from Altadena. “The same way I left my house—just with a backpack—that’s how they left their house too. I’m not praying only for myself, I’m praying for them, too. It’s very hard, it’s very painful, but we’re just grateful to be here today, and grateful to have all of you helping us!”

Because of the generosity of our amazing partners, we’ve been able to help with the immediate needs of each of these survivors and their families, and even go above and beyond that. In partnership with the LADC, we have given Jessica, Lonyae, and Xochitl (as well as so many other families!) financial assistance to help them as they’re navigating this path they never expected.

Every gift helps us show up for people who are hurting, and every person who gives is part of the miracle of moments like this. Even in the face of devastation, people get to see the goodness and provision of God, all because of givers like you who never give up.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for being part of their miracle!

Sources:

1. worldvision.org
2. nbcnews.com