Speaker 1: Right now, let's say good morning to the director of
Speaker 1: Disaster Services for Dream Center, La Clint. Carlton Clint, So,
Speaker 1: thanks so much for getting up early and talking to
Speaker 1: us this morning. It's been just over a month since
Speaker 1: the wildfires. The Dream Center has been key in getting
Speaker 1: aid to people affected by the fires. So tell us
Speaker 1: where we're at now and then we'll talk about where
Speaker 1: we're going.
Speaker 2: Oh, we're in their recovery phase right now. I sat
Speaker 2: on Friday. I sat in a room full of people
Speaker 2: from all different walks of life. As the Dream Center,
Speaker 2: thanks to our partners iHeartRadio, KFI Radio, we were able
Speaker 2: to give ten thousand dollars checks to six different families.
Speaker 2: And the thing is, these people were all walks of life.
Speaker 2: They're retired, some were doctors, some were car salesmen, all
Speaker 2: different walks of life, and just hearing the stories of
Speaker 2: how they're coping.
Speaker 1: Uh.
Speaker 2: One was a was an er doctor and because of
Speaker 2: the PTSD, she hasn't made it back to work yet.
Speaker 2: And and you just during this recovery phase, you just
Speaker 2: sit here and you listen as they have closure, but
Speaker 2: but as as you hear them out. I mean, she's
Speaker 2: an er doctor and she says, every time she hears
Speaker 2: the sirens, it just it takes her back to that
Speaker 2: night where she was rushing home from the hospital to
Speaker 2: get to her family, because, let me tell you something,
Speaker 2: she she told her her dad or her husband to
Speaker 2: take the pets and take the kids to her parents' house,
Speaker 2: which they live in Altadene as well, but they were
Speaker 2: never in a fire zone. And so she told me, now,
Speaker 2: take take the take the animals over there, take the
Speaker 2: kids over there, and I'll meet you guys there. And
Speaker 2: on her way, they're getting evacuated, you know, her parents
Speaker 2: are getting evacuated. So it hits so many of these
Speaker 2: families and it's very, uh, it's sad with the stories
Speaker 2: you're hearing. And but you know, thanks to you guys,
Speaker 2: we've been able to give out almost two million dollars
Speaker 2: to families and that and that is monetary gifts. Two
Speaker 2: million dollars of families that have been affected.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and that's and that's like, you know, a five
Speaker 1: thousand dollar check or or a ten thousand or maybe
Speaker 1: even less than that, but just something to help them
Speaker 1: just to kind of start thinking about starting over, knowing
Speaker 1: that this is just the very very first steps.
Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, and it's it's where they're getting
Speaker 2: into their apartments. You know, these these shelters are closing now,
Speaker 2: so they're they're faced with these life decisions and saying, Okay,
Speaker 2: where are you going to live? And and what I've
Speaker 2: seen is and this is what I see with with
Speaker 2: all the different hurricanes that I'm involved with, is the
Speaker 2: families and the people that live in these towns, they
Speaker 2: want to be as close as they can to where
Speaker 2: it happens. So so these families want to get too altered,
Speaker 2: whether it be sit a restaurant all day long, or
Speaker 2: or sit at a family's house all day long, or
Speaker 2: or a part they want to be close to to
Speaker 2: these areas. And that's I'm working with, you know, the
Speaker 2: City eleven Foundation on the Palistad side to bring back
Speaker 2: their public spaces quickly. And if if we can't get
Speaker 2: them back in the in the Palistades quick we're trying
Speaker 2: to get them as close to the Palistaates in Brentwood
Speaker 2: are different areas, so we're working on that area, uh,
Speaker 2: to bring back the public spaces, but also in the
Speaker 2: Altadena area t help these families, you know, rebuild their
Speaker 2: their mindset as well.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and so do you. Because we've talked before, Clint
Speaker 1: that there are four stages of recovery. You just said,
Speaker 1: we're we're in recovery now. But so there was the
Speaker 1: rescue is the first one, and then what's the next one?
Speaker 2: Ye, the rescue, the release, and then the recovery and
Speaker 2: then and then the rebuild is the final stage, and
Speaker 2: and uh, you know, and and then that's what that's
Speaker 2: what we're dealing with too. Is obviously we deal with
Speaker 2: the county and the state, uh in federal for the
Speaker 2: Alta dentifier where uh e PA is coming in pulling
Speaker 2: out the you know, uh the big debris that they
Speaker 2: can of these houses. We're still in in different areas
Speaker 2: going through the ashes, do a personal propertycovery and and
Speaker 2: sifting through the ashes for the residents in Altadena. But
Speaker 2: then in the Polisades, we're dealing with the city. We're
Speaker 2: dealing with the county of the state in federal. So, uh,
Speaker 2: the fires are two different animals. Uh. For a disaster,
Speaker 2: you have a lot of people that that want to
Speaker 2: be involved, uh, that that have you know, want to
Speaker 2: have their say.
Speaker 1: Uh.
Speaker 2: And so I feel like right now the Altadena fier
Speaker 2: is a little bit easier for us to get around
Speaker 2: to to help these families out to have closure, you know,
Speaker 2: and and they're you know, obviously I just heard you know,
Speaker 2: the e p A is working to get the debris
Speaker 2: into different areas. So so they're starting that process in
Speaker 2: Alta Dina right now.
Speaker 1: Okay, So Clint, knowing that we just have a couple
Speaker 1: of seconds off, do you still need donations of physical
Speaker 1: items or is that on pause for now?
Speaker 2: No, we'll still take donations. They can drop them off
Speaker 2: from nine to noon at the Dream Center because we
Speaker 2: also have a store that's open every day that's Relief
Speaker 2: Resource Center from three pm to seven pm Monday through Friday,
Speaker 2: and then from nine am to noon on Saturday. So
Speaker 2: if the piece of somebody was affected by the fire
Speaker 2: and they need clothing, they need any supplies, we have
Speaker 2: that at the Dream Center. But you can also continue
Speaker 2: to drop off donations, okay in the address.
Speaker 1: I know it's on Bellflower is it twenty three.
Speaker 2: Oho three two three zero one Bellevue Avenue two three
Speaker 2: zero one Bellevue Avenue. It's the one on one in Alvorado.
Speaker 2: You're right, you're good, two.
Speaker 1: Three zero one Bell View Avenue.
Speaker 2: View Avenue, YEP one on one in Alvarado. That's a
Speaker 2: cross streets.
Speaker 1: Okay, perfect, And monetary donations.
Speaker 2: Monetary donations, you know, they can go to dreamcenter dot
Speaker 2: org to donate Dreamcenter dot org and and we have
Speaker 2: a fire relief tab on there where to go straight
Speaker 2: to the fire victims. And we can't thank you enough
Speaker 2: for your voice.
Speaker 1: Well can thank you enough for everything that you're doing, Carlton,
Speaker 1: the director of Disaster Services for dream Center LA, doing
Speaker 1: such important work. And like you just mentioned, this isn't
Speaker 1: going away. I know that it's not in the headlines
Speaker 1: as much anymore, but this is We're in this for
Speaker 1: the long haul. So anything you can do as much appreciated.
Speaker 1: Thanks Clint,