Nearly a year has passed since the Los Angeles wildfires caused widespread devastation to kids and families in Altadena and Pacific Palisades. The emergency forced countless residents to evacuate, upending their lives, and cutting off access to essential services, including school meals for children. The immediate aftermath left many families struggling with food insecurity, housing instability, and the daunting process of recovery.
The No Kid Hungry Los Angeles Wildfire Response Fund was created to meet the critical need for immediate and sustained community support for families, ensuring no kid misses a meal as they recover and rebuild their lives. To date, No Kid Hungry has disbursed 10 wildfire response grants to support immediate food assistance for families, to increase organizational capacity to stores and food distribution, and to support staff and volunteers.
“For families who lost their homes, income, and sense of stability, recovery is only the beginning. We are humbled to support frontline partners and are focused on continuity and care for our neighbors and partners on the ground.” – Kathy Saile, California director of No Kid Hungry
Whether it’s supporting the summer meals programs for kids who lost access to school meals, home delivery programs, that help schools and organizations serve more children with healthy meals and resources, or preparing for school reopenings in the fall, so children returning to classrooms have the nutrition and emotional support they need to thrive, we will be there to support families as they rebuild and to ensure no kid goes hungry.
Meet some of the organizations on the ground providing care and support:
Los Angeles County Department of Parks & Recreation
This summer, LA County Dept. of Parks & Recreation offered a free 8-week ESTEAM Camp (Environment, Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) at Loma Alta Park for children impacted by the Eaton Fire. Nearly 2,400 Pasadena Unified School District children were impacted by the fire, and 1,400 children were still without a home and are living in surrounding cities. The day camps are safe havens for helping children who have experienced trauma . No Kid Hungry provided funding to feed each child in the ESTEAM Camps with a breakfast and morning snack, and to support Altadena restaurants and businesses preparing those meals.
AltaMed Foundation
AltaMed Health Services, one of the nation’s largest federally qualified health centers, has been directly affected by the Eaton fire, which destroyed its primary care clinic in Pasadena. In addition to providing immediate medical support at Pasadena Convention Center, AltaMed is continually providing relief and support services to 3,500+ patients (many of which are pediatric patients), employees and community members through the health centers, food pantry and in collaboration with other CBOs.
Friends in Deed
Serving Altadena and Pasadena since 1946, Friends in Deed, focuses on providing supportive services to communities. Additionally, they have expanded their partnership to support local congregations to build bridges across faiths. Their pantry,known as the Neighborhood Food Market, has existed for decades. Traditionally, it has served about 600 families but has increased since the Eaton Fire. They also have grown their housing program to prevent evictions in immediate areas, delivered necessary subsidies to help clients with housing, and provided rent stabilization for 18 months.
“Together, we’re making a difference. This funding will help us expand vital services for families and children impacted by the Eaton Fire, including food distribution and housing support. We are deeply grateful to Share Our Strength and the LA Wildfire Response Fund for standing with us. Together, we’re proving that we can do together what we cannot do alone.” – Rabbi Joshua Levine Grater, executive director of Friends in Deed.
Latino Restaurant Association
The Latino Restaurant Association supports restaurant owners, workers and their families through advocacy and resources. Following devastating fires, the organization identified over 325 displaced restaurant industry workers and their families facing financial hardship and job loss. They are addressing immediate food insecurity by providing groceries. For long-term recovery, they partner with school districts, like Lynwood Unified School District, to help displaced workers find new employment, filling job gaps and providing family stability.
Ways You Can Help
New research by No Kid Hungry (see full report) reveals an overwhelming number of parents are struggling to put food on the table for their kids. This is especially true during the summer months when kids lose access to many essential free school meals. You can ensure kids have the nutrition they need to thrive in and out of the classroom and reach their full potential in a variety of ways:
- Donate. $1 can help provide 10 meals* to kids. Your support will help us fund meal programs all over the country and help us advocate for policies that will help kids get the meals they need. *Donations help support programs that feed kids; No Kid Hungry does not provide individual meals. Meal equivalencies vary. Learn more at NoKidHungry.org/OneDollar.
- Advocate for kids. Reach out to your elected officials and ask them to do more to end childhood hunger. Tell your lawmaker to advocate for policies that will help kids get the meals they need.
Last update: December 9, 2025
