EFSN: Evolving Our Name, Expanding Our Impact
March 31, 2026
Dear friend,
If there's one thing that has guided EFSN from the start, it's this: we are stronger together.
Our community came alive at 6:24 pm on January 7, 2025, when Kathy Aicher typed into our Altadena pickleball WhatsApp that there was a fire on the mountain.
In that moment, something extraordinary began.
Neighbors began helping neighbors evacuate.
Our chat became an emergency hub.
A few months later, in April 2025, we reached across Los Angeles to connect with Palisades Fire survivors. Survivors compared experiences, shared evidence, and stood together.
That unity helped unlock more than $100 million in delayed insurance payments for families.
Our journey has been documented widely in the news media, and I wrote about it here.
From the start, EFSN programs have welcomed all survivors. Our Discord connects Eaton and Palisades survivors every day. Our rebuilding summit, webinars and meetings have always been open to all.
But something kept happening.
Palisades survivors would write and ask.
“Is it okay if I come too?”
Our answer was always yes.
Now, it's time for our name to say that clearly.
Today EFSN becomes the Every Fire Survivor's Network.
We are still EFSN.
Our website is the same.
Our emails are unchanged.
What's changed is that our name now reflects what we've already become: the nation's largest survivor recovery hub, connecting Eaton, Palisades, Malibu and Topanga families.
The need for our name change became especially clear during my recent trip to Sacramento as I advocated for insurance reform. When lawmakers heard that we represent more than 10,000 survivors and allies across Los Angeles, and are building alliances across California, they paid attention.
To win the insurance accountability and availability reforms survivors urgently need, we must build coalitions statewide.
The Every Fire Survivor's Network gives us the platform to do that.
To Eaton Fire survivors worried about our new name, please know this: Altadena remains our home. Our community was born here. That will never change.
This new name simply speaks to our commitment to full inclusion:
If you are a fire survivor, you belong here. We are in this together.
Over the coming weeks, we'll be evolving our website and developing our new brand identity. If you'd like to follow along, follow us on Instagram or on LinkedIn.
Let's Play and Connect!
Pickleball Festival: Saturday May 30
Now that we're in Year Two, the need for survivor connection and coordination is only growing.
At the same time, we're hearing from major funders that most of the funds raised for L.A. wildfire recovery have already been exhausted.
That means the future of this recovery depends on us.
Our Pickleball Festival is EFSN's only fundraiser for the entire year. It powers our ability to keep all survivor programming free so we can continue coordinating our recovery together.
You don't need to play pickleball.
Take a beginner class.
Join a rally if you already play.
Or simply come enjoy the joyful L.A. day we are planning.
Please consider buying 2–4 tickets now for yourself, your partner, friends, or coworkers. You can always share them later.
Because the alternative is a rubber-chicken hotel gala.
And neither you nor I wants that!
Get your tickets here: https://givebutter.com/rally-for-recovery
Sacramento: Insurance Reform Update
Our four-bill insurance reform package is moving forward. We learned last night that all four bills will be heard in the Senate Insurance Committee on Wednesday, April 22.
If you can be in the Sacramento area that day, please join me for an exciting day of media interviews, committee testimony and legislative office visits.
Please invite Sacramento-area friends to join us. If you or friends can attend, please email: hello@efsurvivors.net
And if you've not yet signed on to our reform package for insurance availability and accountability, please learn about the four bills and add your support here: fixinsurance.org
Organizations can endorse the package here.
Dear Edison: Please Keep Eaton Fire Survivors From Going Homeless
More than 250 nonprofits and over 1,000 individuals have signed our call for Edison to advance urgent housing relief for Eaton Fire survivors, for which the company will be fully compensated by the California Wildfire Fund (as the LA Times has reported, “it's effectively a bailout”).
The messages survivors are sharing are heartbreaking.
“I am 69 years old. I retired 12-31-2025. A week later my house burned to ashes. I lost everything I have worked my entire life for. Because of your lack of leadership and State Farm refusing to honor my policy, I am being forced to sell my property. I am being forced to spend my last years in a place where I don't know anyone. I am lost. I don't sleep at night. I fear being homeless.”
“We are a family of six and will run out of Loss of Use funds this spring. It will take at least two more years to rebuild our home. SCE needs to step up and keep us housed while we navigate this financially devastating and emotionally devastating tragedy.”
“I rented a house for thirteen years. I lost everything. I feel like renters are being left behind. My whole life disappeared in an hour and I won't be getting enough to rebuild. The $25K Edison is offering barely covers furniture and a couple months of rent.”
Given Edison's soaring profits and executive compensation while survivors are going homeless, the time to do the right thing is now.
Help Out a Reporter: Did you get dumped onto the FAIR Plan just before or since the fire?
An investigative data reporter from a major media outlet is seeking survivors who were dropped from private insurance onto the FAIR Plan in the two weeks before the fire, or since the fire.
Especially helpful: ZIP codes 91107, 91103, 91105.
If this is you, please contact EFSN Communications Director Sandra Stanisa:
Spa for the Soul — TODAY
Tuesday March 31, 7–8:30 pm
Recovery is not just financial. It is emotional.
In the latest Department of Angels survey, 83% of Los Angeles fire survivors report their mental health has worsened since the fires.
That's why, together with the Trauma Resource Institute and mental health and emotional wellness non-profits and small businesses across Los Angeles, we created Spa for the Soul.
A 90-minute online gathering where survivors can connect and be cared for.
Choose what feels most helpful:
Music therapy
Art therapy
Chair yoga
Mental health support
All-faith or no-faith reflection spaces
TODAY (Tuesday) March 31 - Register here.
April 29 - Register here.
May 21 - Register here.
All survivors are more than welcome!
Community Events and Resources
Youth Empowerment Festival + Easter Egg Hunt
A joyful day of games, music, resources, and connection for families rebuilding after the Eaton Fire.
Learn more here.
No-Cost Post-Fire Soil Bioremediation
Restore contaminated soil safely using plants and fungi while preparing your property for rebuilding.
Learn more here.
Check Your California Voter Registration
Critical statewide elections coming up June 2. Make sure your voice is heard.
Learn more here.
Property Tax Relief After Relocating (Prop 19)
If you are a survivor age 55+ OR are severely disabled, and you've relocated to a new home, you may be able to transfer your lower property tax base.
Learn more here.
What Survivors Have Built Together
What I find most beautiful about our new name is that it simply tells the truth.
Every Fire Survivor's Network
A place where every survivor belongs.
Where we turn isolation into strength.
Where together we recover and rebuild faster and stronger.
Before we close, we want to share a few words from survivor Gina. Speaking about how Eaton and Palisades survivors have come together, she shared:
“The EFSN has been so powerful, building bridges for people who are desperate and people who are tired and people who shouldn't have to be fighting for their lives.”
She continued:
“What gives me hope is that there has been recovery as a direct result of the advocacy being done by this group of people.”
This is what the Every Fire Survivor's Network is about.
Restoring strength, hope, and momentum when families are running out of steam.
Watch Gina's story. It brings me to tears knowing that together, we built this: https://vimeo.com/1170394532
“The EFSN has been so powerful, building bridges for people who are desperate and people who are tired and people who shouldn't have to be fighting for their lives.”
“What gives me hope is that there has been recovery as a direct result of the advocacy being done by this group of people.”
I cannot wait to see many of you at the Pickleball Festival on May 30!
Please buy your tickets now:
https://givebutter.com/rally-for-recovery
With love,
Joy Chen and the EFSN team
The Every Fire Survivors Network (EFSN) is the nation's largest survivor recovery hub, connecting more than 10,000 Eaton, Palisades, and Malibu fire survivors and allies. Through survivor leadership and coordination, we work to remove barriers and unlock resources so that recovery is accessible to everyone. Learn more: efsurvivors.net.
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