Amid Blazing Fires, Shabbos Brings Hope and Unity to LA

With entire neighborhoods ravaged by fires and homes destroyed, Shluchim have stepped up to provide assistance to community members by reaching out, distributing food packages, checking on people and their homes, and hosting uplifting Shabbos meals to unite communities during these challenging times.

By Mendel SuperChabad.org and Anash.org

As the massive fires spread through the greater Los Angeles area and burned into a fourth day, Jews across the region prepared for Shabbat amid the smoke, ash, and rubble. Many were homeless, evacuated, and in shock. But, like a beacon, Chabad centers in the affected areas continued operating, reaching out to community members, preparing food packages, and gearing up for an influx of people at Shabbat services and meals.

As the Eaton fire continued burning, Chabad-Lubavitch of Pasadena hosted evacuees and those who had lost their homes since Wednesday morning, with communal breakfasts and care packages, all while the center’s rabbis drove through the city checking on people and their homes—even extinguishing fires when needed. Families took refuge at the Chabad center, and the preschool classrooms were opened for parents and their children, with meals and snacks provided.

Rabbi Zushi Rivkin, director of Chabad of Pasadena’s Pasadena Jewish Academy, told Chabad.org that he had the weighty task of informing community members that their homes were no more. “It was horrific—extremely difficult. The homeowners are not here anymore, and everything is gone. We tried to support them emotionally and helped them retrieve belongings from the rubble. We gave out resources, and we had a lawyer hold a town hall for them.”

Rivkin estimated that between 50 to 80 homes of his congregants were destroyed. He said another 150 community members had partially destroyed homes, and he and the other Chabad emissaries in Pasadena stepped up to find them lodging, including in their own homes. He noted that Emek Hebrew Academy assisted Chabad with food and connected them with Our Big Kitchen LA, which catered and sponsored Wednesday’s meals, while Thursday was catered and sponsored by a local kosher restaurant.

As Shabbat approached, Rivkin said that they did not view this as a Shabbat of crisis, but of hope and unity. “We hosted Shabbat dinner at Chabad and encouraged everyone to show up. If you lost your home, you could find some consolation; if you lived south of Chabad [where the fire hadn’t spread] you could show your support and love. Members of the city’s destroyed congregation were invited. It was a huge loss,” Rivkin said.

For Marilyn Kirschen, Shabbat could not come soon enough. Her home was one of two left standing on her street in Altadena, the neighborhood most ravaged by the Eaton Canyon fire. When Rivkin and Rabbi Laibel Hanoka, also of Chabad of Pasadena, visited her street to survey the damage, they found Kirschen’s detached garage a smoldering pile of rubble, with flames leaping over towards the home. They tried using her garden hose, but the water was shut off. Hanoka and Rivkin began throwing bucketfuls of dirt onto the fire and managed to extinguish it.

“Chabad saved my house,” Kirschen said.

“I’m devastated. I’ve lived in Altadena for 40 years. So many homes have burned down, and I have multiple friends who’ve lost their houses. I took refuge in the home of Rabbi Yisroel and Chanie Pinson, together with another woman who brought her two dogs with her.” Kirschen attributed the miracle to the mezuzahs on her doors: “I kiss them every time I walk through the house, and G‑d watched over my home.”

Now in South LA with her daughter, Kirschen was trying to return to Pasadena for Shabbat. “I’m thankful to be alive and part of the Chabad Pasadena community. I want to be closer to my community, and maybe I’ll find a place to stay, or I’ll just go home and see what’s left. It’s always been such a beautiful street with lots of trees. My neighbors are suffering, and I feel for them. Even though my house was saved, I can’t feel joyful.”

In Pacific Palisades, an LA coastal neighborhood almost entirely reduced to ruins, the Chabad center was closed this Shabbat. It was not that they didn’t want to open their doors, but rather they could not. The city was shut down and fire ordinances prohibited allowing anybody in. Though suffering damage, Chabad of the Pacific Palisades was not destroyed.

Rabbi Avi Cunin, co-director of Chabad of Palisades Village with his wife, Ita, said his area of the Palisades was hardest hit. “Shabbat services were scheduled for tonight, but that building no longer existed.” Thankfully, the Torah that was housed at the premises was removed mere days before the fires.

Cunin, his father Rabbi Zushi Cunin, and the other emissary couples in the area were badly affected. One rabbi and his wife lost their home, and all were evacuated. Still, Cunin said they were in close contact with their community members. “I texted 200 people today,” he said, while his wife added that they were working on sending care packages to their members located all over Los Angeles, and arranging meet-ups and playdates for children.

Cunin spent Wednesday fleeing the city he grew up in, while on the phone to elderly community members and neighbors helping them escape. One neighbor of his was trapped in her apartment, too afraid to use the elevator but with her walker, she had no choice. Cunin contacted emergency services who said they could only rescue her from the lobby, and the rabbi coaxed her into the elevator while remaining on the line until she was picked up and taken to the hospital for observation overnight.

In nearby S. Monica, Rabbi Eli Levitansky said they were preparing for an influx of survivors this Shabbat, many from Pacific Palisades who lost their homes and were staying in hotels or with friends. He didn’t know what to expect yet, but said the kitchen was working overtime, saying, “we’ll have enough for everyone who shows up.”

VIDEO:

Video by Chabad.org

Video by Chabad.org

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