In early January, 2025, as wildfires swept through Los Angeles, CBS News went to Altadena to document the devastation left behind. Reporters spoke with families who had returned to the rubble of their homes, trying to understand the scale of what had been lost.

During one interview, they approached a home that lay in ruins, where a man was shoveling through the remains of his house, attempting to salvage anything left behind. Cooking pans, children’s toys, and scorched flower pots were scattered across the ground. That man was Carlos P., one of the thousands who lost everything in the Altadena fires.

“It’s shattering,” Carlos told the reporter. “Everything is ash and clutter and dirt. We had so many incredible memories here.”

Carlos and his family escaped the fire with only the clothes they were wearing and a few essential items. Knowing how much had been lost, Carlos’s sister started a GoFundMe fundraiser to help support him as he tried to move forward.

In February, Carlos was one of the 7,500+ people to receive a grant from GoFundMe.org’s Wildfire Relief Fund, helping to provide the support he needed to afford to relocate and start over.

Kristen A. is a longtime resident of Altadena, California, where she lived with her husband, their son, and their dog, Petey. After years of hard work, the family had just finished renovating their property at the end of 2024, finally settling into what would have been their dream home. In early January 2025, wildfires swept through their community and destroyed it.

Knowing the family needed support, Kristen’s sister started a GoFundMe fundraiser to share what had happened and allow others to help. “To lose it so quickly is beyond devastating for them,” she wrote. “All their precious keepsakes, mementos, and personal possessions stolen by this horrible fire. As you look around your home, try to imagine what it would feel like for everything you’ve worked so hard for to be gone. It’s heartbreaking.”

Shortly after the fundraiser was created, Kristen and her family received a $1,000 grant from GoFundMe.org’s Wildfire Relief Fund. The support helped ease some of the immediate financial pressure as they began addressing home repairs, and served as a reminder that they were not facing this loss alone.

Saul P., his fiancée, his daughter, and their dog, Charlie, were longtime residents of Altadena until the Eaton Fire swept through their community, destroying their home and everything they owned. “Like many of our neighbors, we thought we’d only be gone for a couple of days—we never imagined such devastation could happen,” Saul explained.

When they were later able to go back to Altadena, they confirmed their house was completely gone, along with all of their belongings, including furniture, clothing, toys, and important documents. Everything they had built as a family was lost in the fire.

As they began figuring out next steps, a close friend created a GoFundMe fundraiser to support them. Despite the overwhelming loss, Saul and his fiancée soon received not only an outpouring of support on the platform from friends, family, and their community, but also a grant from GoFundMe.org’s Wildfire Relief Fund. The grant helped them take meaningful steps forward as they began the long process of rebuilding their lives.

Miriel B. is a single mother of four who lost her home and everything she owned in the Eaton Fire in early 2025. Like so many others, when the evacuation order came, her family rushed to grab what they could, believing they would be able to return the next morning. When they did return, their home and everything inside it had been burned to the ground. The family was left with only the clothes they were wearing and the shoes on their feet.

The day after the fire, Miriel’s eldest daughter, a young business owner who had also lost all of her supplies and merchandise in the flames, started a GoFundMe to help support their family. Shortly after, they received a grant from GoFundMe.org’s Essentials Fund, which allowed the family to secure short-term housing during an incredibly uncertain time.

Jacquie G., a longtime resident of Altadena and mother of two young sons with special needs, was among the many who lost everything when wildfires swept through Los Angeles in early 2025. As renters, Jacquie and her family did not have the same insurance support as homeowners, which made the financial strain even more difficult. Her partner shared that there was “nothing left but the clothes on their backs and a few necessities.”

With her children’s special needs and dietary restrictions, everyday expenses like meals and clothing added up quickly. The family worked to replace basic necessities while managing the emotional toll of loss and constant transitions, but the overwhelm of their situation quickly proved too much to handle alone.

In the days following the fire, Jacquie’s partner started a GoFundMe fundraiser, asking friends and community members for support as they tried to cover essentials and search for a new place to live. Soon after, Jacquie received a grant from GoFundMe.org’s Wildfire Relief Fund, which provided much-needed breathing room to afford some essentials.