Sunday, April 19, 2026

Altadena Interfaith Coalition Hosts Earth Week Potluck Today at Church That Survived Eaton Fire

Altadena Congregations Together Serving, the multifaith coalition known as A.C.T.S., is holding its Earth Week Potluck Spring Gathering today, Sunday, April 19, at 2 p.m. at Christ the Shepherd Lutheran Church, 185 W. Altadena Dr. The event is free, open to the public and does not require church affiliation to attend.

The gathering takes place during Earth Week 2026 — three days before Earth Day on Wednesday, April 22 — and at a church that remained standing when the Eaton Fire swept through Altadena in January 2025, destroying more than 9,000 structures and multiple houses of worship in the surrounding area.

According to the event announcement, attendees are asked to bring a vegetarian dish or simply come and share food contributed by others. The gathering will be held in the church’s social hall, located in the building to the left in the parking lot through the chain fence, per the announcement.

RSVPs are requested but not required and can be sent to info@ctsaltadena.org, according to the event flyer.

A.C.T.S. is a long-running interfaith fellowship of clergy and lay leaders from congregations across Altadena that has been meeting monthly for decades. According to its member organizations’ websites, the coalition works on community issues including homelessness, food insecurity and mutual understanding among different faith traditions.

The coalition’s member congregations span a wide range of religious traditions. The event announcement lists Baptist, Baha’i, Catholic, Christian Science, Episcopal, Islamic, Jewish, Lutheran, Apostolic, Presbyterian and United Church of Christ congregations among its participants.

Several of those congregations suffered devastating losses in the Eaton Fire. Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church and Altadena Community Church, both on East Altadena Drive, burned to the ground. The Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center and Masjid Al-Taqwa, an Altadena mosque at 2183 Lake Avenue, were also destroyed.

Christ the Shepherd Lutheran Church, where today’s potluck is being held, survived the fire but was not untouched. According to a report by the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) published in March 2025, at least seven church members lost their homes. In the months since, the church has served as a drop-off center for Altadena Meals on Wheels and offered its kitchen as a temporary headquarters for the meal delivery program, according to reporting by Pasadena Now and Living Lutheran magazine.

One of A.C.T.S.’s most visible ongoing efforts is the Altadena Food Pantry, which distributes food to community members on Saturday mornings. According to the Altadena Community Church website, the pantry was started by that church and three other Altadena congregations after they discovered that many local food programs were closed on weekends. A 2025 Altadena Rotary Club grant document described the food pantry as having served the community for more than 25 years.

The Earth Week potluck is not new for A.C.T.S. The coalition held a similar Spring Gathering potluck on May 4, 2025, also at Christ the Shepherd Lutheran Church, as reported by Pasadena Now.