Tuesday, April 22, 2025

County Asks Altadena Residents for Feedback on Eaton Fire Alert System

Officials launch community listening sessions as part of emergency response review

Los Angeles County is asking Altadena residents affected by the Eaton Fire to join in three upcoming community listening sessions focused on gathering feedback about the emergency alert and evacuation process. These sessions are part of an independent review of Los Angeles County’s emergency alert system launched in January by Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Lindsey Horvath.

Media sources and preliminary government investigations have reported that the Los Angeles County Fire Alert System catastrophically failed Altadena residents during the devastating Eaton Fire of January 2025, contributing to 17 civilian fatalities and the destruction of thousands of homes.

Based on comprehensive reporting, the emergency notification system exhibited multiple critical failures in timeliness, geographical accuracy, and technical reliability at a moment when residents needed it most.

“The goal is to hear directly from residents about what worked, what did not work, and how emergency alerts and evacuations were handled,” states the announcement from McChrystal Group,

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Niagara Cares, City Year LA Partner to Aid Wildfire-Affected Odyssey Charter School

Volunteers transform campus to support students recovering from Eaton wildfire

Niagara Cares announced that it will join nonprofit City Year Los Angeles on Thursday to help hundreds of students at Odyssey Charter Schools recover from the Eaton wildfire through a School Beautification Day featuring campus beautification and sustainability initiatives.

Volunteers from Niagara Bottling’s charitable division will spend the day landscaping, planting gardens, building planter boxes and creating outdoor learning spaces at the Altadena campus, creating a vibrant space that inspires hope, pride and resilience.

“At Niagara Cares, we believe that supporting students, schools, and communities is an investment in a brighter future,” said Ann Canela, director of corporate giving at Niagara Bottling. “As part of this commitment, we are creating spaces that inspire learning, celebrate community, and support student success in partnership with City Year Los Angeles. This initiative comes at a critical moment as these young people are navigating life post-wildfire and we are grateful to help give back and uplift their spirits.”

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Mobility as Freedom: How Los Angeles Metro Is Empowering Older Adults

Annual transportation expo tackles barriers to independence in a car-centric metropolis

In a sprawling city designed around the automobile, losing the ability to drive can feel like losing one’s place in society. For thousands of older residents across Los Angeles County, public transportation represents not just convenience but essential access to healthcare, social connections, and independence.

This challenge sits at the heart of Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s upcoming 9th Annual Older Adult Transportation Expo, a free event organized through Metro’s On the Move Riders Program, taking place on May 9 at the Pasadena Convention Center. Beyond merely providing schedules and route information, the program focuses on empowering older adults to use public transportation confidently, helping them maintain independence and access essential services.

“Go Metro: Your Ticket to the World,” this year’s theme, highlights how Metro can connect users to exciting destinations, cultural experiences, and everyday essentials.

The UCLA’s Luskin School has reported that transportation barriers disproportionately affect low-income seniors,

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

LitFest in the Dena Expands 2025 Program with Focus on Character and Wildfire Response

Annual literary festival adds notable authors and special events centered on this year’s theme

LitFest in the Dena 2025 will bring together approximately 150 diverse authors and thousands of attendees on Friday, May 2nd and Saturday, May 3rd at the Pasadena Presbyterian Church in Playhouse Village, 585 E. Colorado Blvd, Pasadena.

This year’s free-of-charge literary festival runs from 6-9:30 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. on Saturday, exploring the theme “Books That Teach Us About Character,” examining how literary characters help readers stay true to their own values while featuring special programming focused on the recent Eaton and Palisades wildfires.

“Last year, approximately 150 diverse authors and several thousand attendees gathered to discuss books that changed the world, their communities and their lives,” said event organizers in their announcement. “This year’s festival theme Books That Teach Us About Character will look at how literary characters help us stay true to our own values.”

The expanded 2025 program welcomes actor and activist Miles McKenna to lead the panel “Odd and Othered: Queer Speculative Stories”

Sunday, April 20, 2025

Altadenans Will Embrace Easter at Sunrise Service on Sunday

Altadenans will gather at Mountain View Cemetery on Sunday morning for an Easter sunrise service to celebrate their faith in Jesus Christ’s resurrection.

The service was scheduled to run from 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. at 2400 North Fair Oaks Avenue, according to the organizer, the Pasadena International House of Prayer (PIHOP).

“Let’s celebrate the resurrection of Jesus together, there will be live worship music as we watch the sunrise,” officials from PIHOP said in a statement. “We have been through a lot as a community this year; this will be a time of renewed Hope for everyone.”

The event was planned to feature worship music against the backdrop of early morning light on a day forecast by the National Weather Service to be bright and sunny.

Organizers describe the service as an opportunity for spiritual reflection and community gathering during the intensely meaningful religious holiday.

As Christians worldwide reflect on resurrection and renewal, Altadenans are living that hope in real time.

Sunday, April 20, 2025

An Easter Less Hoppy, at Altadena’s Bunny Museum

With its building destroyed and tens of thousands of bunny-related items burned into cinders, Easter is no longer the “hoppy” day of normal times at Altadena’s Bunny Museum.

What began as a charming tradition of daily bunny-themed gifts between Steve Lubanski and Candace Frazee blossomed ultimately into The Bunny Museum, an internationally recognized landmark that housed over 60,000 items before January’s Eaton Fire reduced it to ashes—yet their commitment to each other and their museum remains unshaken.

On this Easter Sunday, the museum site at 2605 Lake Avenue stands burned out and empty except for a surviving gray wall where Lubanski has carefully arranged salvaged items—silent testimony to a remarkable love story and its resilience in the face of catastrophe.

“It will still go on,” Lubanski told reporters following the January 8 fire that consumed nearly everything the couple had built over the decades.

The couple’s relationship and eventual museum grew from a tender tradition that began when Frazee affectionately called Lubanski “hunny bunny.”

Sunday, April 20, 2025

California Republicans Want to Get Tougher On Crime. Are Democrats Shifting Their Way?

By Jeanne Kuang, CALMATTERS

Republican state Sen. Brian Jones has been trying to block sex offenders from being released from prison through California’s elderly parole program for several years. Last week, for the first time, his bill to do so made it out of its first committee.

It was just one of many votes Senate Bill 286 will have to survive in a long road ahead in the Capitol, but it caught Jones’ attention. In a Legislature dominated by Democrats who often shelve Republican tough-on-crime proposals, the approval from the Senate Public Safety Committee was unanimous.

“I don’t think it would have passed a committee last year,” said Jones, the Senate minority leader.

California’s Democratic legislators — who for years have been passing progressive measures designed to reduce sentences and lessen mass incarceration by emphasizing more rehabilitative solutions to crime — were dealt a blow last fall when an overwhelming majority of voters approved Proposition 36.

Saturday, April 19, 2025

Beyoncé’s Foundation Tops $3 Million in Fire Aid, Assists 200 Altadena and Pasadena Homeowners and Renters

The organization expands commitment to Altadena and Pasadena communities devastated by wildfires

The BeyGOOD Foundation, founded by singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, has expanded its relief efforts for Los Angeles wildfire victims, exceeding its initial $2.5 million pledge by distributing over $3 million in direct cash assistance to affected families.

The Foundation said it has helped more than 200 homeowners and renters in the Altadena and Pasadena communities, which were devastated by the Eaton Fire in January.

For Eaton Fire survivor Naomi Mauvais, the Foundation’s assistance arrived after other promised aid had failed to materialize.

“When the fires took everything; our home, our belongings, our community, we kept hearing about all the money being raised for relief, but none of it was reaching us. Then BeyGOOD stepped in,” said Mauvais. “This $20,000 grant was the first real support we’ve received since the fire, and it’s making an immediate difference easing financial burdens. I’m able to replace lost Christmas presents for my children and cover expenses while I make plans to rebuild.

Saturday, April 19, 2025

Altadena Community to Mark Spring’s Arrival at Block Party for Fire Recovery

Residents of Altadena affected by the recent Los Angeles fires will gather this weekend for an outdoor celebration aimed at community rebuilding and resilience.

The Eaton Spring Celebration, organized by the Vassar Club of Greater Los Angeles, will take place Saturday, April 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Altadena Lake Plaza on the northwest corner of Lake Avenue and Altadena Drive.

“Altadena was one of the areas hit hardest by the LA fires, and the community there has been working hard to come together and lift each other up,” the Altadena Sheriff’s Station said in a post on social media.

The free event will feature food provided by World Central Kitchen, live music from 88.5 FM The SoCal Sound, family-friendly activities, and expert guidance for residents navigating recovery efforts.

Representatives from the Altadena Library District’s Curiosity Connection Van, LA County Fire Department stations 11 and 12, and the LA County Sheriff’s Department will be on site.

Friday, April 18, 2025

Local Christians to Observe Good Friday

Christians in Pasadena and around the world will commemorate Good Friday on April 18, marking the solemn day when Jesus Christ suffered and died on the cross.

Many churches offer special services and prayer opportunities for worshippers to reflect on Christ’s sacrifice. Some congregations set up wooden crosses for meditation, while others observe the Stations of the Cross, a devotional practice recalling Jesus’ journey along the Via Dolorosa (Way of Sorrows) in Jerusalem to Calvary, where he was crucified.

For many believers, Good Friday is also a day of fasting and penance, and serves as a reminder to be concerned about suffering in today’s world.

In Pasadena, several churches are holding special events. Knox Presbyterian Church at 225 South Hill Avenue will host a prayer vigil from noon to 6 p.m. in the sanctuary, offering personal reflection time with prayer guides available. The vigil continues on Holy Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., leading up to Easter Sunday services on April 20 at 10 a.m.