Wednesday, December 17, 2025

Posada Celebration Offers Support, Rights Education for Eaton Fire Survivors

The community event will highlight solidarity, rights education and cultural healing for fire survivors

Survivors of the deadly Eaton Fire will gather Wednesday evening for a community Posada at La Fiesta Grande restaurant, an event organizers say is meant to provide solidarity, legal education and cultural healing nearly a year after the blaze.

The Dec. 17 celebration, scheduled from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at 181 E. Glenarm St. in Pasadena, is hosted by LA Fire Justice, the Delgado family of La Fiesta Grande, and Labor Community Services. The event is described as not a fundraiser or city-sponsored function, but a rights-focused outreach effort for families still displaced.

The Posada will feature traditional festivities including a procession reenacting Mary and Joseph’s search for shelter, carols, food, and live music. Flyers spotlight free pan dulce and atole alongside legal rights education, particularly for Latino and immigrant families navigating recovery regardless of immigration status.

The Eaton Fire ignited Jan. 7 in Eaton Canyon above in Altadena and in Pasadena, killing 19 people, destroying 9,418 structures and burning 14,021 acres. Officials declared the fire fully contained Jan. 31, but thousands remain displaced.

LA Fire Justice, a coalition of wildfire lawyers, advocates and experts, has led town halls and lawsuits against Southern California Edison, alleging utility equipment sparked the blaze. Its leadership includes Chris Holden, Mikal Watts, Doug Boxer and consumer advocate Erin Brockovich. The group has also raised concerns about delayed evacuation alerts in west in Altadena neighborhoods, where all fatalities occurred.

The Delgado family, longtime owners of La Fiesta Grande, previously hosted a Day of the Dead altar honoring fire victims. Labor Community Services, affiliated with the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, continues to provide food and disaster relief.

The Posada comes as some survivors criticize Edison’s compensation program, which deducts insurance payouts and offers flat $10,000 for smoke and ash damage, criticized as insufficient. Edison has promised “fast payments and fair resolutions,” but advocates say many families remain in unstable housing. One family reported living in 12 different places since the fire.

Estimates place combined losses from the Eaton and Palisades fires at up to $250 billion. Lawsuits from local governments, residents and the federal government against Edison remain pending.

Wednesday’s Posada, organizers say, is designed to remind the public that many survivors “continue to search for permanent housing nearly a year after the devastating blaze” — echoing the symbolism of Las Posadas itself.