Help our growing family start over after Eaton fire

Dear friends, family, and community members,

We never imagined we’d be writing this. Our little cottage in Altadena was more than just a house—it was our dream home, the place where we built our life together, poured love into every inch of the land, and where we were preparing to welcome our first child. If you know us at all, you know how our love for our home and our Altadena community runs deep. It was our favorite topic and our favorite place to be, never for a second taking for granted how lucky we were to be living there.

But the Eaton fires changed everything. While we were lucky and our home was spared, it was severely smoke damaged and remains uninhabitable. Our landlord refuses to remediate and our home remains in an area with ongoing health risks, forcing us to leave behind the place we had worked so hard to make our own. We lost our safe haven, our community, and many of our belongings in the process.

We built something truly special there—turning an abandoned 1/4 acre of dirt into a thriving vegetable and flower garden, a home for our rescue pets, and a small flock of chickens and ducks we lovingly raised. Now, we’ve had to temporarily rehome our flock and are staying with friends while we work through this heartbreaking transition.

As film freelancers whose home doubles as a workshop, this unexpected displacement has been financially overwhelming, and with a baby on the way, the uncertainty of our future feels even more daunting.

We are doing everything we can—navigating insurance, searching for a new home that will allow us to rebuild our life, and trying to stay hopeful in the face of so much loss and uncertainty. But the reality is, we need help.

We’re raising funds to cover the immediate costs of finding stable housing for us and our animals, replacing essential belongings lost to smoke damage not covered by insurance/FEMA, and getting back on our feet safely before our baby arrives. Every dollar will help us secure a safe, nurturing home where we can start again.

If you are able to contribute, we would be endlessly grateful. Even if you can’t donate, sharing our story means the world to us. We believe in the kindness of our community, and we know that with your support, we can create a new home filled with love, just as we did before.

From the bottom of our hearts—thank you. We know we are not alone in our heartbreak and homesickness during this time and are so grateful to be part of such an incredible community.

Tahryn + Conor