A few weeks ago, my home, work, and Altadena neighborhood burned down in the Eaton wildfire. I woke up around two in the morning that day, and my place was filling up with smoke. I ran outside into a firestorm as embers were beginning to fall into my yard from my neighbor's tree. Through the smoke, I could make out headlights of neighbors evacuating. My cell phone had broken two days before, and my internet was down due to the winds. I noticed what sounded like explosions and sirens. Then I saw what looked to be police lights in the smoke clouds, and they were making emergency announcements to evacuate. I ran down to the intersection and met two San Dimas police officers who helped me find my dog's leashes with their flashlights, which were blown out of place in the yard and covered in debris. They loaded us up in their squad car and dropped us off at the Pasadena Convention Center, which was a horrific scene of evacuees, some being wheeled in on stretchers by paramedics and firefighters. Mothers and children finding out the devastating news that their homes had burned down. News teams and reporters were everywhere. Outside, there was a ceiling of smoke covering the entire sky of Downtown Pasadena, coming from my neighborhood. I found one of my neighbors there; she didn't grab her wallet, and I didn't have a phone, so we decided to put our heads together and got a couple a dog-friendly hotel rooms in Hollywood for another couple of weeks until I can make new living arrangements.

I'm fundraising because I need help to rebuild my life after losing my home, workshop art studio and treasured belongings in the wildfire. The funds will be used to support myself and my dogs as I find new living arrangements and replace essential items lost in the fire. I plan to rebuild my art workshop and puppet studio to continue to create projects and my passion.