COMMENTARY

Loss Among the Embers

Los Angeles' devastating fires

Firefighters battling the Eaton Fire. ## Photo credit: Pacific Southwest Forest Service, USDA from USA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

By Michele Francisco, OWP editor

Life can change within seconds. Day and night, this reminder repeats in my head. As I write this letter, the devastating fires across Los Angeles continue relentlessly. Doom scrolling captures heartbreaking stories, the next more tragic than the previous.

My own family, unfortunately, didn’t escape the wrath of this apocalyptic event… Altadena’s Eaton Fire completely destroyed my aunt and uncle’s home for nearly 50 years. Forced to evacuate quickly, they literally left everything behind. I’m incredibly grateful they escaped alive and my heart aches for those who lost loved ones.

After writing this, I had to set it aside for almost two weeks. The emotional toll was too great. I felt overwhelmed and needed a break. But L.A. residents don’t have that luxury; they must live with the destruction and smoke hour after hour. Not to mention those still evacuated, unsure whether their homes even remain. And, for my aunt and uncle, and others who lost everything, life will never be the same.

According to Cal Fire, 28 people have died, nearly 16,000 structures have been damaged or destroyed and an area the size of Washington, D.C. has burned since Jan. 7. At one point, Los Angeles County officials reported 180,000 people under evacuation orders. Imagine the entire city of Salem or Eugene displaced…

You, too, likely know someone affected by the fires. If you have the means, please donate to one of these organizations, or countless others helping L.A. residents.

California Fire Foundation: cpf.salsalabs.org/cff-donation/index.html

GoFundMe: www.gofundme.com/f/wildfire-relief-fund-2025

Direct Relief: donate.directrelief.org

Red Cross: redcross.org

Michele Francisco spent her childhood reading and writing, eventually graduating from UCLA with an English degree. She attended graphic design school and began a career in design and marketing. After moving to Oregon in 2010, Michele studied wine at Chemeketa Community College and began Winerabble, a Northwest-focused wine blog. She has been a cheerleader for Oregon wine since her arrival.

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