
June's Life was Saved -- Help her Rebuild It
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My name is Gina Cooke. I live in Prescott, Arizona, but I grew up in Los Angeles. I am raising funds for June Bottcher, a longtime Altadena resident who lost her home on Tanoble Drive and all of her possessions in the Eaton Fire. June is a widow, having lost her husband during COVID, and also recently lost her two dogs to cancer. June worked for the Los Angeles Zoo, and had lived in her Altadena home for 50 years. Like many older Californians, June did not have homeowner's insurance.
On Tuesday, January 7th, June was asleep and her phone was off, as the power was out due to the big windstorms. Her neighbor, Annie Retamal, saved June's life by frantically pounding on her door to rouse her. June has no family and no car; she fled with Annie's family in her pajamas and slippers and has been staying with them in a B&B ever since. Annie is my best friend of 40 years, and her family also lost everything. They are all so overwhelmed. Instead of saying "let me know if you need anything," I said that I could do computer tasks from home, so Annie asked me to set up this fundraiser for June, for after they are no longer in the B&B. Whatever funds we raise will be used to help cover June's transitional basic needs for clothing, food, establishing permanent shelter, medical, transit, replacing vital documents, etc. It will take months, possibly years, of cleanup and red tape before June is able to sell her land.
The losses are unfathomable, but every bit helps. Please donate and share.
Organizer

Gina Cooke
Organizer
Altadena, CA