Tuesday, April 7, 2026

Congresswoman Chu Honors Four Pasadena and Altadena Women, Three With Ties to Eaton Fire Recovery

[photo credit: City of Pasadena]

The 16th annual Congressional Women of the Year ceremony recognized 10 leaders from across the San Gabriel Valley

Three women whose work has shaped Eaton Fire recovery in Pasadena and Altadena were among four local honorees recognized Saturday at U.S. Rep. Judy Chu’s 16th annual Congressional Women of the Year awards ceremony on April 4.

Vannia De La Cuba, who serves in Pasadena Mayor Victor Gordo’s office, and Day One Executive Director Christy Zamani represented Pasadena. Eaton Fire Survivors Network Executive Director Joy Chen and Altadena Photographers founder Gayle Nicholls-Ali represented Altadena. All four received certificates of congressional recognition at the ceremony, held at the Arcadia Community Center.

The annual awards, now in their 16th year, honor women from communities across Chu’s 28th Congressional District who have contributed through service, leadership, or community organizing. Honorees are nominated by district residents. Six additional women from Arcadia, La Cañada, Monterey Park, San Marino, South Pasadena, and Temple City were also recognized.

De La Cuba has worked in Pasadena city government since 2003, when she joined then-Councilmember Gordo as his District 5 field representative. A Pasadena resident since age five who attended Pasadena Unified School District schools and graduated from the University of Southern California, she was instrumental in developing the city’s first Early Child Development policy and establishing its Office of the Young Child. She also co-chairs the Pasadena Latino Heritage Committee. The City of Pasadena lists her current title as field representative to the mayor.

Zamani has led Day One, a Pasadena-based public health and youth advocacy nonprofit founded in 1987, since 2007. She also chairs the Eaton Fire Collaborative Long-Term Recovery Group, which launched in 2025 to coordinate support for fire survivors across Pasadena and Altadena.

Chen, a former deputy mayor of Los Angeles and CEO of the Multicultural Leadership Institute, founded the Eaton Fire Survivors Network in January 2025 after turning a neighborhood WhatsApp group into a resource-sharing hub that has grown to more than 2,000 members, according to the California Community Foundation. The network’s advocacy prompted the California Insurance Commissioner to investigate State Farm’s handling of wildfire claims, the foundation reported. In March, State Senator Sasha Renée Pérez separately honored Chen as her 2026 Woman of the Year for Senate District 25.

Nicholls-Ali, who taught photography at La Cañada High School for nearly two decades, lost her Altadena home of more than 30 years in the Eaton Fire. She founded Altadena Photographers to help fellow creatives recover lost equipment, hosting a vintage camera show at the Altadena Library in October 2025 that drew roughly 250 visitors and distributed 150 donated cameras, according to Pasadena Weekly. She has also advocated at the State Capitol for wildfire insurance reform.

In previous years, Chu has described the ceremony as one of the highlights of her congressional calendar. At the 2024 ceremony, she said the honorees “have stood out in our communities because of their commitment to give back to the San Gabriel Valley,” according to a press release from her office.

The Eaton Fire, which broke out on January 7, 2025, destroyed more than 9,000 structures in Altadena and surrounding areas. As the community approaches 15 months since the fire, recovery efforts continue.

The ceremony ran from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Arcadia Community Center, 365 Campus Drive on April 4 .

Zamani, asked in a prior interview about the challenges her community faces, said through Day One: “We know that times continue to be difficult for so many families,” according to a statement published by Pasadena Now.