Pasadena Community Foundation Makes Major Investment in Long-Term Support For Eaton Fire Survivors

$1 million grant to the Eaton Fire Collaborative Long-Term Recovery Group

ALTADENA, CA, June 9 — Today, the Pasadena Community Foundation announces a $1 million grant to the Eaton Fire Collaborative Long-Term Recovery Group. $500,000 of this grant will go directly to supporting fire survivors through the Unmet Needs Table, and the other $500,000 will strengthen the Long-Term Recovery Group’s ability to coordinate recovery efforts, mobilize resources, and serve survivors.

The Eaton Fire Collaborative Long-Term Recovery Group coordinates services and resources for fire survivors, bringing together nonprofits, faith-based groups, government agencies, community organizations and businesses. Examples of these services and resources include, essential home repairs, critical household expenses tied to recovery, and connections to volunteer rebuilding programs.

The Unmet Needs Table is a core part of the group’s work to support fire survivors. It is made up of a group of funders and service providers that reviews cases referred by disaster case managers to match fire survivors with available resources. The Unmet Needs Table has a pipeline of referred individuals ready and will start reviewing cases referred by disaster case managers and will connect available resources with fire survivors. The Unmet Needs Table offers both hope and tangible assistance, helping survivors regain a sense of stability and move forward with confidence as they rebuild their lives.

Our community faces a long road to recovery. With thousands of Eaton Fire survivors still displaced, the Pasadena Community Foundation is committed to providing long-term support for our community’s recovery. The Long-Term Recovery Group and the Unmet Needs Table will power our community’s recovery from the Eaton Fire in the years ahead.

The estimated cost to rebuild our communities is in the tens of billions of dollars. According to the Department of Angels survey released in April 2026, nearly half of survivors have depleted significant portions of their savings, and over four in 10 have taken on debt.

Khanh Russo, President and CEO of Pasadena Community Foundation, shared, “Today’s announcement jumpstarts the work of the Unmet Needs Table to support fire survivors rebuild and recover. With that being said, the scale of need across our community is huge and no single agency or nonprofit can address it alone, which is why continued investment in the Unmet Needs Table is essential to ensuring fire survivors are connected to the resources they need.”

Michael Ocon, Executive Director of the Eaton Fire Collaborative, said, “The Long-Term Recovery Group and Unmet Needs Table will walk alongside survivors every step of the way as they seek resources needed to rebuild their lives. Our work will include helping families remain housed, addressing rebuilding and recovery-related expenses, supporting health and wellness needs, and closing critical gaps that cannot be met through traditional assistance programs. Every case is different, but our commitment is the same: ensuring survivors are not left to navigate recovery alone.”

The needs of Eaton Fire survivors are great, and no single organization can meet them alone. We are grateful to partners like the American Red Cross, California Community Foundation, Catholic Charities of Los Angeles, and others who have stepped up to invest. But we’re asking for more partners and funders to join us in supporting the Unmet Needs Table, so that more survivors can access the help they need.

Fire survivors can find a local disaster case management agency by calling 833-775-DCMP (3267) or visiting https://www.cccdcmp.org/.

Would you like to donate to the long-term recovery of our community? PCF welcomes all donations to help strengthen and support fire survivors as the community moves through our recovery process. To make a donation to the Unmet Needs Table, click here. To support the broader fire recovery services offered by PCF, please donate to the Eaton Fire Relief & Recovery Fund here.

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ABOUT PASADENA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION
Pasadena Community Foundation (PCF) has been a trusted philanthropic partner, connecting donors with causes that matter in the Greater Pasadena area, which includes Pasadena, Altadena, and Sierra Madre. With a deep understanding of local neighborhoods, history, and unique challenges, PCF works tirelessly to strengthen community through thoughtful, sustainable philanthropy. PCF leverages relationships with donors, nonprofits, community leaders, funders, and others to learn where the needs of fire-impacted communities are greatest, target grants where they can do the most good, and align donors, funders, and local nonprofits on recovery efforts.

ABOUT THE EATON FIRE COLLABORATIVE
The Eaton Fire Collaborative (EFC) is a survivor-centered, member-based long-term recovery collaborative helping communities impacted by the Eaton Fire navigate recovery, rebuild with dignity, and strengthen long-term resilience. Housed within EFC is the Long-Term Recovery Group (LTRG), the coordinated recovery structure responsible for aligning organizations, services, rebuilding efforts, funding pathways, and survivor support systems.

The EFC brings together nonprofits, government agencies, philanthropy, community organizations, grassroots groups, rebuilding professionals, advocates, businesses, volunteers, and survivor leaders into one coordinated recovery ecosystem serving Altadena, Pasadena, Sierra Madre, and surrounding impacted communities, working together to help ensure survivors do not have to navigate recovery alone.