For these Eaton and Palisades fire survivors, Rose Parade trip down Colorado Blvd. will be no ordinary ride

On a morning the world awoke to news of mass shootings at a college campus, a Hanukkah celebration in Australia, and the murder of a beloved Hollywood couple, five survivors of the Eaton and Palisades wildfires gathered in Pasadena to inspect what at first glance seemed not-so big a deal.

But looking over the bare bones of the “Rising Together” Rose Parade float at the Rosemont Pavilion on Monday, Dec. 15, Eaton fire survivor Gina Clayton Johnson said the work in progress can remind a watching world how times of crises can bring people together in community.

That’s what she found in her Altadena.

“It’s community that raised me,” Clayton-Johnson said. “It had the kind of diverse community of artists and nonprofit leaders and teachers, people who really believed in coming together to make the world better in their day-to-day lives. That was a defining feature of this community.”

The 55-foot-long float, featuring a phoenix rising from floral elements and produced by Artistic Entertainment Services (AES), is co-sponsored by California Community Foundation (CCF) and the Black Freedom Fund. CCF is a nonprofit that works to improve the quality of life in Los Angeles County. The Black Freedom Fund is a foundation that supports Black-led initiatives and organizations.

“Rising Together” is dedicated to the 31 victims of both fires, and the tens of thousands of wildfire survivors living in the aftermath.

Miguel A. Santana, president and CEO of California Community Foundation, said the nonprofit is happy to embrace a quintessential Los Angeles tradition to launch a project that can help people heal and recover even before the float trundles down Colorado Boulevard for the 137th Rose Parade on Jan. 1.

It’s hard to discount the benefits of having survivors decorating and riding on the float, and be part of something that is a source of pride for Californians around the world. About a dozen representatives of more than 200 organizations that support wildfire relief and recovery will also walk next to the float along the 5.5 miles of the parade route.

“To see so much support has been powerful,” Santana said. “We acknowledge this horrible thing happened, and people are still suffering, but we can offer this as a way of healing together.”

No funds designated to support wildfire survivors were used to sponsor the float.

California Community Foundation raised $100 million after the fires and has distributed half of that, including $30 million in direct support to affected schools, nonprofits and places of worship, Santana said.

Former Pasadena councilmember Jacque Robinson-Baisley lost her Altadena home in the Eaton fire. She will be one of the riders on the float, which will also feature oversized sunflowers representing the 31 people who died in the fires.

“Even though in the grand scheme of things, (a parade float) might seem insignificant, I think it’s important to keep the fire and its aftermath, front and center stage, because people are still recovering,” Robinson-Baisley said. “I think it’s going to be a real emotional day, even though it’s going to be a joyous occasion.”

Andrew King’s loss of his Altadena home informs his work as head of community engagement and education for the Department of Angels. The nonprofit was formed after the January infernos to make sure communities in the Palisades and Eaton fire areas lead their own recovery in their own terms.

King said he’s become a de facto block captain among the 31 homeowners on Bel Air Drive in Altadena, checking in elderly neighbors and see if they need help in each step of the rebuilding process, and looking forward to the day they can host potlucks or send their kids down the street for playdates.

“Just that fact, that my son can go around the block and visit other friends, that’s really exciting,” King said.

Shimica Gaskins, president and CEO of End Child Poverty California, spent eight years on Ganesha Avenue in Altadena, cherishing a neighborhood where her family could walk to Café de Leche or Amara Kitchen.

“My kids learned to play tennis at Loma Alta Park. Two Dragons Martial Arts was right there on the corner and has meant so much to my family,” Gaskins said. “There were so many opportunities as a parent to have so many people look out for my children and pour into my children. We would go into the Grocery Outlet and my kids would have their karate uniforms on and folks would be like, ‘You’re a yellow belt, that’s amazing.’ To be in a place where I knew my children were seen and loved by our community was just incredible.”

Riding on the “Rising Together” float is her chance to remind the world that “we’re still here, that despite having this devastating wildfires, the community is still working towards coming back and we continue to need people’s help and support.”

For Palisades fire survivor Myra Burg, her turn in a beloved tradition is a chance to gain distance and momentum from losing her Malibu home of more than 20 years.

“I still count myself as extraordinarily fortunate,” the artist and architect said. “I’m trying to shift from looking in the rearview mirror to the possibilities looking through the window. Make that turn from victim to survivor, no matter what direction they choose, so long as it’s to go forward.”