One year after the devastating 2025 wildfires in Los Angeles, multiple events and volunteer opportunities happening throughout January will remember the losses, honor the survivors and provide chances to help with the ongoing recovery.
Highlights:
The band members of Dawes have been some of the most visible survivors and supporters of the Eaton Fire community since the 2025 wildfires. They are putting their notoriety to good use and planning A Concert for Altadena, featuring some major musical talent, including Jackson Browne, Mandy Moore, Ozomatli and Jenny Lewis.
The UCLA Labor Center will host a panel discussion at the Lawson Worker Justice Center (adjacent to McArthur Park), focused on impacts on and protections for workers.
Join local leaders for a candlelight vigil in Altadena. The community will “gather in solidarity as we look toward healing, rebuilding, and a brighter tomorrow."
It’s been a tough year in these parts. Many communities affected by the Palisades and Eaton fires are still reeling, whether directly as homeowners continue to rebuild, relocate and remediate, or indirectly, as communities fight insurance logistics, navigate political processes and recover from mental health implications and job losses. Despite these challenges, the resilience of our city is astounding — and that is worth celebrating, even when it’s bittersweet.
Across the region, events marking the one-year anniversary begin in early January and continue throughout the month. Many organizers have told LAist they would love to have volunteers to help out, so reach out directly to organizers if you are interested in doing more than just attending. All events are free unless otherwise noted.
Events
With Us: Walk with fire survivors through sight, sound and story
Sunday, Jan. 4, 12 to 4 p.m., through Jan. 7, noon to 7:30 p.m. City Market Social House 1145 S. San Pedro St., downtown L.A. MORE INFO
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Department of Angels
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Continuing to tell survivors’ stories is key to recovery. That’s the thinking behind the project With Us, an audio and visual storytelling installation focused on “remembrance and recovery.” The event, put on by Department of Angels and Extreme Weather Survivors, aims to bring the community together at City Market Social House on Jan. 4; the art will be available to check out through Jan. 7.
House Museum: One-Year Fire Anniversary
Wednesday, January 7, 2 to 4:30 p.m. House Museum Chimney Yard Shuttle leaves from 333 Los Liones Drive, Pacific Palisades MORE INFO; RSVP: info@house.museum
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House Museum
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I wrote about the ambitious House Museum project to preserve the chimneys of architectural houses lost in the Palisades Fire last year for The Art Newspaper. Now, their innovative concept is becoming a reality. Join community leaders and the architects involved in the process at a site in the Palisades for a discussion about the project and the neighborhood’s future.
Altadena Candlelight Vigil (new date and time!)
Sunday, Jan. 11, 7 p.m. Altadena Town & Country Club 2290 Country Club Drive, Altadena MORE INFO
Altadena Candlelight Vigil: New date & location! Jan 11, 7-8 pm. Please arrive by 6:30. Altadena Town & Country Club, 2290 Country Club Drive. Featuring music (Children's Choir, the Benn Family) & community speakers. pic.twitter.com/1VI2RgzIi7
Join local leaders for a candlelight vigil marking one year since the Eaton Fire. The community will “gather in solidarity as we look toward healing, rebuilding, and a brighter tomorrow.”
A Concert for Altadena
Wednesday, Jan. 7, 6:30 p.m. Pasadena Civic Auditorium COST: $150; MORE INFO
Indie band Dawes has been one of the most visible survivors and supporters of the Eaton Fire community since the 2025 wildfires. They are putting their notoriety to good use and planning A Concert for Altadena, happening Jan. 7 and featuring some major musical talent, including Jackson Browne, Mandy Moore, Ozomatli, Jenny Lewis, Lord Huron, Rufus Wainwright and many more. Hosted by John C. Reilly, the show benefits the Altadena Builds Back Foundation, which is spearheading long-term recovery and rebuilding efforts.
Songs of Remembrance: A Memorial Service of Hope and Renewal
Wednesday, Jan. 7, 7:30 p.m. Lake Avenue Church 393 North Lake Ave., Pasadena MORE INFO
Join a special community memorial service led by Lake Avenue Church’s Chamber Orchestra and members of the Sanctuary Choir, featuring sacred hymns, choral anthems and classical works that invite reflection, comfort and renewed hope.
Eaton Fire anniversary community art gathering
Wednesday, Jan. 7, 3 to 5 p.m. John Muir High School 1905 Lincoln Ave., Pasadena MORE INFO
Artist Cynthia Lake, Side Street Projects and the John Muir High School Alumni Association will come together to make art and share stories on a day of remembrance honoring the first anniversary of the Eaton Fire. The afternoon includes art activities, music, resources, performances and more, plus Lake will launch her "Eaton Fire Bowl Series," giving away free handmade ceramic bowls to people affected by the fire — each piece a symbol of hope and comfort.
Community Prayer Services and Concerts of Remembrance, Healing and Renewal
Wednesday, Jan. 7, 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. St. Matthew's Episcopal Church 1031 Bienveneda Ave., Pacific Palisades OPEN TO ALL, SUGGESTED DONATION $45; MORE INFO
Grammy-winning violinist Anne Akiko Meyers joins members of the Los Angeles Master Chorale, conducted by Grant Gershon, with music by Bach, Morten Lauridsen and Eric Whitacre. Each concert will be preceded by a prayer service at 12 p.m. and 6 p.m. Donations will benefit Chamber Music Palisades, Palisades Symphony and Chorale, St. Matthew’s Music Guild and Theatre Palisades.
Power Up Altadena!
Sunday, Jan. 17, 11 a.m. (NEW DATE) Zorthian Ranch 3990 N. Fair Oaks Ave., Altadena MORE INFO
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Dena United
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Dena United is hosting this all-day festival at Altadena’s historic Zorthian Ranch to celebrate the community’s diverse culture and commemorate one year since the devastating Eaton Fire. Expect to see a wide range of performances from acts including Bobby Bradford, Dwight Trible, Baba Onochie Chukwurah & the Rhythms of the Village Family Band, the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, Earthseed Band and the Whispering Giants with MCs Medusa and Myka 9.
Writers Bloc presents: Firestorm author Jacob Soboroff
Palisades native and MSNBC reporter Jacob Soboroff has a new book out in January on the L.A. fires, Firestorm. He’ll be in conversation with Mariana van Zeller at Writers Bloc to discuss.
Construction workers begin to rebuild a business destroyed by the Palisades Fire on May 07, 2025.
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The UCLA Labor Center will host a panel discussion at the Lawson Worker Justice Center (adjacent to MacArthur Park), focused on impacts on and protections for workers. Please RSVP; space is limited.
Out of the Ashes: Benefit Concert and Hero Award
Saturday, Jan. 17 Private residence, Malibu COST: $750; MORE INFO
Hosted by Mission Project CEO Erik Rock, the event features a performance from Grammy winner Andy Grammer. Expect other big-name speakers and guests to participate too.
A person prepares a marijuana cigarette in New York City.
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Topline:
When it comes to impaired driving and the state’s open container law, a rolled and ready joint is more like a can of beer in giving police cause to search a car than a few crumbs of marijuana, according to the California Supreme Court.
About the ruling: In a ruling handed down today, the high court ruled that police must find marijuana in a condition that’s ready to be smoked if they are going to charge a driver with an open container violation. The court’s reasoning is that you can smoke a joint and drink a beer, but loose marijuana isn’t readily consumable. Loose marijuana found on a car’s floorboards is like spilled beer, the court ruled.
The backstory: Recreational marijuana has been legal in California since 2016 when voters passed an initiative allowing it. It remains illegal under federal law. The ruling reversed a magistrate judge, trial court and the California Court of Appeal, which had all agreed that the loose marijuana constituted an open container violation and gave police cause to search a vehicle.
When it comes to impaired driving and the state’s open container law, a rolled and ready joint is more like a can of beer in giving police cause to search a car than a few crumbs of marijuana, according to the California Supreme Court.
The court’s reasoning: You can smoke a joint and drink a beer, but loose marijuana isn’t readily consumable.
In a ruling handed down today, the high court ruled that police must find marijuana in a condition that’s ready to be smoked if they are going to charge a driver with an open container violation.
“We hold that at a minimum, to constitute a violation of (the open container law), marijuana in a vehicle must be of a usable quantity, in imminently usable condition, and readily accessible to an occupant,” wrote Associate Justice Goodwin Liu in a unanimous opinion.
Loose marijuana found on a car’s floorboards is like spilled beer, the court ruled. “In assessing whether the marijuana is imminently usable or readily accessible, courts should consider whether the marijuana could be consumed with minimal effort by an occupant of the vehicle,” the court found.
The ruling reversed a magistrate judge, trial court and the California Court of Appeal, which had all agreed that the loose marijuana constituted an open container violation and gave police cause to search a vehicle.
Recreational marijuana has been legal in California since 2016 when voters passed an initiative allowing it. It remains illegal under federal law.
The case at issue was out of Sacramento, where police officers stopped a car and searched it, finding 0.36 grams of marijuana crumbs on the floorboards of the backseat, along with a tray on which to roll joints. The driver hadn’t been driving erratically, her registration and license were unblemished and she had no warrants out.
“No officer suggested he was concerned that (the driver and passenger) could have somehow, while riding in the front of the car, collected the scattered bits of marijuana from the rear floor behind (the passenger) for imminent consumption,” the court ruled. “Nor was there evidence of paraphernalia, such as matches, lighters, rolling papers, blunts, or vaporizers, that could facilitate the marijuana’s consumption.”
The Supreme Court also found that the officers did not have probable cause to search the car in the first place. The police had argued that the driver’s nervousness and possession of a rolling tray was sufficient to search the car, an argument the court rejected.
Mariana Dale
explores and explains the forces that shape how and what kids learn from kindergarten to high school.
Published January 30, 2026 5:00 AM
Robert King teaches U.S. History and is the student government advisor at Palisades Charter High School.
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LAist
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Topline:
Last January, Robert King watched on TV as Palisades Charter High School burned. While his classroom is still standing, King lost the collection of posters, books and other artifacts he used to tell the story of our country’s history from the colonial era to the modern day.
The backstory: The blaze destroyed 30% of Palisades Charter High School and closed the campus for a year. The U.S. history teacher returned to the school for the first time last week ahead of the school’s Jan. 27 reopening.
Rebuilding a collection: The post-fire clean-up stripped King’s room of nearly everything he’d collected over his career, but he’s already started to rebuild his collection. A former student ordered a new copy of the World War II era poster of Rosie the Riveter and a New York Times reader donated a collection of vintage campaign buttons after reading about the school’s relocation in the paper.
“ I like things to be able to tell a story. That's my approach to teaching history,” King said. “ When I put things on the wall, it's with an idea that I will bring it in as part of the story later on.”
Last January, Robert King watched on TV as the school where he’s taught for 30 years burned in the Palisades Fire.
The blaze destroyed 30% of Palisades Charter High School and closed the campus for a year. The U.S. history teacher returned to the school for the first time last week ahead of the school’s Jan. 27 reopening.
“To be back here in my classroom — as I started in this room, actually in 1996 — it's just an incredible, joyful thing for me,” King said.
While his classroom is still standing, King lost the collection of posters, books and other artifacts he used to tell the story of our country’s history from the colonial era to the modern day.
“One of the reasons I've been working all week to set up the room is I want normalcy,” King said. “I want [students] to be able to connect with the room. I want them to feel that this is a place that is comfortable for them and a place that they can learn.”
King's classroom on the eve of students' return to campus for the first time since the Palisades Fire.
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Mariana Dale
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LAist
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How the fire changed Pali High
Pali opened as part of the Los Angeles Unified School District in 1961 and now as an independent charter school it enrolls 2,400 students from throughout Los Angeles. The school’s palm trees and grassy quad have appeared in a handful of movies and shows including Freaky Friday (the 2003 Lindsay Lohan edition) and Carrie.
When King first arrived last week, a chunk of that picturesque campus was gone. He avoided the north side of the campus where the J building and baseball fields once stood.
A grassy field at Palisades Charter High School where an academic building once stood.
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Mariana Dale
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“ I thought ‘OK that's not the school,’” King said. “‘I don't know that.’”
King said now that he’s had some time to process the change, he’s started to imagine how his students will see the grassy expanse after spending much of the last year in a refurbished Santa Monica department store.
“They're gonna love having a big open space,” King said. “That part of it is kind of joyful, but it is just so different.”
As part of the post-fire clean-up, the Los Angeles Unified School District stripped King’s room of nearly everything he’d collected over his career.
A photo of King's classroom before the Palisades Fire.
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Courtesy Robert King
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King's classroom on Mon. Jan. 26, 2025, the day before students returned to campus for the first time since the Palisades Fire.
A framed September 12, 2001 front page of the L.A. Times that reads “Terrorists Attack New York, Pentagon,” and a copy of a World War I documentary on VHS are a few of the only items left from before the fire.
There’s also a metal sign that reads “The King is in residence” on the wall above the whiteboard. Next to it is a new sensor, part of a network set up throughout the Palisades schools to monitor air quality.
Rebuilding a history collection
King has had help rebuilding his collection.
“Some of the things that I truly loved, kids remembered,” King said.
A family's unwanted collection of campaign buttons now has a new home in King's classroom.
“Before I even was able to start setting up at Sears, I had gotten it in the mail,” King said.
Want to make a donation to King’s collection?
You can reach Robert King by email. King said anything that he doesn’t use in his own classroom may be shared with his Pali colleagues.
A New York Times reader donated a collection of vintage campaign buttons after reading about the school’s relocation in the paper.
“When I get to each of these elections, I'm now gonna have something to be able to hold up to the kids,” King said. “We can even look at what's on the buttons to even see what the story was, … How were they using these buttons to advertise what was gonna happen in that election?”
Last summer King traveled through Georgia and Alabama and stopped at several famous civil rights landmarks, including the Edmund Pettus Bridge.
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Courtesy Robert King
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This summer King went to Alabama and Georgia. On a road trip from Selma to Montgomery, he picked up a poster of (and walked across) the Edmund Pettus Bridge, where state troopers beat nonviolent civil rights protestors in 1965.
“ I like things to be able to tell a story. That's my approach to teaching history,” King said. “ When I put things on the wall, it's with an idea that I will bring it in as part of the story later on.”
King said he remembers what’s been lost as he moves through his lesson plans for the year.
For example, he imagines reaching for a copy of Only Yesterday from the bookshelf behind his desk to read a passage to his students about the 1920s, and remembering it’s not there.
He plans to share these moments as they happen with the class.
“ I'll say, ‘I had this and this is what I would've done,’” King said. “And we'll kind of have a moment with that.”
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Destiny Torres
is LAist's general assignment and digital equity reporter.
Published January 30, 2026 5:00 AM
If approved, the Charter-Cox merger would combine two of California's largest telecom companies.
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Getty Images
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Topline:
The California Public Utilities Commission is hosting a series of public forums — including one in Los Angeles — where the public can learn more and comment on Charter’s $34.5 billion bid to take over Cox Communications.
What we know: Charter Communications is vying to take over Cox for $34.5 billion, merging two of the country’s largest telecom companies. The two companies are also part of the state's Big 5 providers, along with AT&T, Verizon and Comcast.
Why it matters: Digital equity advocates have said that communication company mergers are declining competition, meaning there’s an increased concentration of power over broadband pricing and services.
Read on … for when and how to join the forums in L.A.
The California Public Utilities Commission is hosting a series of public forums — including one in Los Angeles — where the public can learn more and comment on Charter’s $34.5 billion bid to take over Cox Communications.
The merger would combine two of California’s largest telecom companies.
Digital equity advocates have said that communication company mergers are declining competition, meaning there’s an increased concentration of power over broadband pricing and services.
The Verizon-Frontier merger came with state requirements to promote digital equity, but advocates are concerned that fewer companies will hold greater power over affordable prices.
According to Charter, the merger to combine companies will help the provider compete more aggressively with other broadband companies.
How to participate
An in-person forum will be held on Feb. 12 at the East L.A. County Library on 4837 E. 3rd St. The first forum begins at 2 p.m. and a second begins at 6 p.m.
If you can’t make it in person, two virtual meetings will take place on Feb. 4 and Feb. 25. More details can be found here.
Details on the merger
If the deal is approved, the combined Charter-Cox company will be named Cox Communications, but customers will see Spectrum as the brand when they purchase internet, cable and mobile services.
Spectrum is owned by Charter Communications and is the home to the Dodgers’ regional sports network.
According to the filing, the Charter-Cox merger will mean that existing Cox customers will get access to Charter’s service plans.
Charter also reported that all Cox job roles that are overseas will be transferred to the U.S. In a statement following the merger announcement, Chris Winfrey, president and CEO of Charter, said the move will allow both companies to provide products that save families money, and create more American jobs.
With the merger, the combined company will also be able to compete more aggressively with other broadband companies, according to Charter.
Julia Barajas
explores how college students achieve their goals, whether they’re fresh out of high school, pursuing graduate work or looking to join the labor force through alternative pathways.
Published January 30, 2026 5:00 AM
The award-winning Cal Poly Universities Rose Float, "Jungle Jumpstart," during the January 2026 parade.
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Topline:
The Cal Poly Rose Float team, made up of students from Cal Poly Pomona and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, is accepting design submissions for next year’s Pasadena Rose Parade. Community members of all ages are encouraged to submit a float design—and they can make as many submissions as they’d like.
What you could win: The winner will see their work showcased for audiences around the world. They will also have the choice between two tickets to the 2027 parade or a $500 cash prize.
The deadline to enter is coming up! Community members must submit their entries to rosefloat@cpp.edu by Feb. 5 at 5 p.m.
Keep reading: To learn why the contest deadline is so early in the year.
The annual Pasadena Rose Parade took place less than a month ago, but at Cal Poly Pomona and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, students who are part of the cross-campus Rose Float team are already prepping for 2027.
Now through Feb. 5, the team is accepting design submissions for next year’s float. Community members of all ages are encouraged to apply—and they can make as many submissions as they’d like.
Over the next few months, a fleet of Cal Poly students will bring the winning design to life. The winner will see their work showcased for audiences around the world. They will also have the choice between two tickets to the 2027 parade or a $500 cash prize.
The Cal Poly float design contest is part of a decades-long tradition. Since 1949, students from both campuses have teamed up to create dozens of floats. Last year’s piece, titled “Jungle Jumpstart,” featured a 40-foot robot being tended to by animals as it lay on the rainforest floor.
Every part of the float is done by students, from the construction down to driving the float along Colorado Boulevard, said Allyson Jane Castillo, a mechanical engineering major at Cal Poly Pomona. She’s been part of the Rose Float team since her freshman year and now serves as campus president.
Members of the Cal Poly Rose Float team weld the robot for the 2026 float.
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What happens after you submit?
Bennett Parisi, Castillo’s San Luis Obispo counterpart, is a graduate student in electrical engineering. He said that, each year, the team receives approximately 100 submissions.
But the work actually starts before the submission deadline. In December — before the year is even over, before they even finish the float — the team chooses student leaders from each campus for the following year.
Then, once they select the design in February, the students work on sourcing the materials they need and start building the bones of the float. In the fall, they get down to business to flesh it out.
It can take up to 300 students to bring each float to life, Parisi said. Every fall, students from his campus make a 200-mile trek to Cal Poly Pomona to work on the float on Saturdays. Then, a week before New Year’s Day, the entire fleet heads west to Pasadena, where they stay at a hotel while working on finishing touches.
Parisi joined the team as an undergrad, after being cooped up during the pandemic. He said the group has been a chance to build enduring ties with students from all walks of life at both campuses. Parisi grew up playing team sports, but, in his view, the Rose Float team’s camaraderie is unparalleled.
That’s fitting, because the theme of next year’s parade is “Welcome…celebrating the simple joy of belonging—that feeling that you’re always welcome, no matter who or where you are,” said Terry Madigan, president of the 2027 Tournament of Roses Association in a press statement. “It’s the warmth of family,” he added, “whether related or chosen, the love of good friends and the welcoming embrace of community.”
How to apply
Castillo and Parisi encourage applicants to create designs that align with the theme. They also emphasize that you don’t need to be a great artist to be competitive. Some of the entries they receive are drawn by children, Parisi said.
There is no limit to the number of entries an individual can submit, but these entries can only be submitted to the Cal Poly Rose Float Team.
Submissions can be in color or black and white, no larger than 11-by-17 inches.
Community members must submit their entries to rosefloat@cpp.edu by Feb. 5 at 5 p.m., with the subject line “2027 Concept.” The body of the email should include the applicant’s name, phone number and email address.
![A white sign with red text reads "We [love] u beautiful Altadena" is affixed to a tree on a sidewalk. A two story home can be seen in the background with yellow caution tape hanging down from the roof towards the left.](https://scpr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0c0cf5b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5000x3296+0+20/resize/1414x932!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fscpr-brightspot.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2F24%2F47%2F1345aa6b4b3b9c943ea58dbdad8a%2Fgettyimages-2193703889.jpg)
