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Blog archive

March 2025

About Senior Solutions
03/28/2025

Building a Bridge With Journey House, A Home Base for Former Foster Youth
03/28/2025

Come for the Knitting, Stay for the Conversation... and the Cookies
03/28/2025

Creating Safe and Smart Spaces with Home Technology
03/28/2025

Finding Joy in My Role on The Pasadena Village Board
03/28/2025

I've Fallen and I Can't Get Up!
03/28/2025

Managing Anxiety
03/28/2025

Message from Our President: Keeping Pasadena Village Strong Together
03/28/2025

My Favorite Easter Gift
03/28/2025

The Hidden History of Black Women in WWII
03/28/2025

Urinary Tract Infection – Watch Out!
03/28/2025

Volunteer Coordinator and Blade-Runner
03/28/2025

Continuing Commitment to Combating Racism
03/26/2025

Status - March 20, 2025
03/20/2025

Goodbye and Keep Cold by Robert Frost
03/13/2025

What The Living Do by Marie Howe
03/13/2025

Racism is Not Genetic
03/11/2025

Bill Gould, The First
03/07/2025

THIS IS A CHAPTER, NOT MY WHOLE STORY
03/07/2025

Dramatic Flair: Villagers Share their Digital Art
03/03/2025

Empowering Senior LGBTQ+ Caregivers
03/03/2025

A Life Never Anticipated
03/02/2025

Eaton Fire Changes Life
03/02/2025

February 2025

Commemorating Black History Month 2025
02/28/2025

Transportation at the Pasadena Village
02/28/2025

A Look at Proposition 19
02/27/2025

Behind the Scenes: Understanding the Pasadena Village Board and Its Role
02/27/2025

Beyond and Within the Village: The Power of One
02/27/2025

Celebrating Black Voices
02/27/2025

Creatively Supporting Our Village Community
02/27/2025

Decluttering: More Than The Name Implies
02/27/2025

Hidden Gems of Forest Lawn Museum
02/27/2025

LA River Walk
02/27/2025

Message from the President
02/27/2025

Phoenix Rising
02/27/2025

1619 Conversations with West African Art
02/25/2025

The Party Line
02/24/2025

Bluebird by Charles Bukowski
02/17/2025

Dreams by Langston Hughes
02/17/2025

Haiku - Four by Fritzie
02/17/2025

Haikus - Nine by Virginia
02/17/2025

Wind and Fire
02/17/2025

Partnerships Amplify Relief Efforts
02/07/2025

Another Community Giving Back
02/05/2025

Diary of Disaster Response
02/05/2025

Eaton Fire: A Community United in Loss and Recovery
02/05/2025

Healing Powers of Creative Energy
02/05/2025

Living the Mission
02/05/2025

Message from the President: Honoring Black History Month
02/05/2025

Surviving and Thriving: Elder Health Considerations After the Fires
02/05/2025

Treasure Hunting in The Ashes
02/05/2025

Villager's Stories
02/05/2025

A Beginning of Healing
02/03/2025

Hectic Evacuation From Eaton Canyon Fire
02/02/2025

Hurricanes and Fires are Different Monsters
02/02/2025

January 2025

Another Community Giving Back

By Suzi Hoge
Posted: 02/05/2025
Tags: suzi hoge, la fires, newsletter february 2025, eaton fire

Losing your house is horrific. Then comes the paperwork as you need to deal with insurance, FEMA, EPA, temporary housing, etc. etc.

At the Village’s fire relief meeting, committees were formed to organize and investigate various resources and support for members who had lost their homes or were going to be part of major clean up efforts. I shared that I would like to organize some kind of binder or file system for all that paperwork. Board member Michelle Chiu and Villagers Sharon Jarrett and Patrick Mathews volunteered to join that effort.  

Then, I found Out of the Ashes, a non-profit group of community members in San Diego who created an organizational system after they suffered a wildfire in their community. They were set up at the Kaiser Fire Relief Center in Pasadena, but the place was swamped with folks needing help. I decided to try to contact them virtually.

Lo and behold, once I sent a message on Facebook, I was contacted about 3 minutes later by Ross, a volunteer. We began to chat. Yes, they would be delighted to give us these organizer systems. It turns out they had several at another relief spot in Venice - if we could get someone to pick them up. I called Dan Guerrero, head of our Village Transportation Team. Dan agreed to pick them up the next morning and deliver them to my house, as the Village Office was full of air purifiers that were being distributed.

Pasadena Village is now working to distribute these organizational systems to our members who have lost their homes. We will hold a live one-hour meeting at the Village Office at 9:30am Tuesday, February 11 for any folks who would like to an introduction to the Home Loss File System.  Any extras will go to other older adults in the area. 

Here is the website for Out of the Ashes: https://uphelp.org/claim-guidance-publications/out-of-the-ashes-home-loss-file-system/ 

Here is the link to access and use their resources digitally: https://homelossfilesystem.com/what-is-a-the-digital-home-loss-file-system/ 

Here is a PDF with directions: https://uphelp.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/digital_assembly_instructions.docx_-_google_docs_1_0.pdf 

 

*To See More Experiences With The Fire, Click on #LAFires

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