CNN en Español featured the “Rising Together” float as a space of healing for Spanish-speaking wildfire survivors, including Altadena resident Rubén Rodríguez, who described losing his home alongside every neighbor on his street. Miguel Santana explained the float’s deeper purpose: “From the stories of survivors, they felt it was important to do something symbolically to recognize this actually happened and so many lives were impacted.”
NPR covered the “Rising Together” float on parade day, featuring Miguel Santana’s reflection on the emotional toll survivors continue to face a year later. “People are really starting to feel a real mental breakdown,” Santana said, describing struggles with a failing insurance system and inadequate federal disaster relief. He hoped the float would offer a moment of healing: “We’re hoping that, even for just one day, when they see that float going down a street that they’re all familiar with, that they know that the world does care about them, that they’re not alone in their journey of grief.”
Miguel A. Santana reflected on the deeper meaning of the “Rising Together” float for Latino families in Pasadena and Altadena for whom the Rose Parade holds special significance. “This float is about community—people who didn’t know each other before, now crying, remembering, healing together,” he said. “It’s a space to grieve, to build, and to show the world our strength.” The article also highlighted survivor Ruben Rodriguez, who lost his home of over 30 years in the fires and called his selection to ride on the float “a great blessing.”
Good Day LA took viewers inside the float barn for a closer look at “Rising Together,” with Artistic Entertainment Services president Stefan Pollack walking through the float’s intricate symbolism, from the floral waves representing Palisades and Malibu communities, to California poppies, butterflies, acorns, and 31 sunflowers honoring those who perished. “It does take a community,” Pollack said. “The theme of the parade is magic in teamwork—this is teamwork, bringing back these communities to the vibrant communities that they were.”
A behind-the-scenes look at CCF’s “Rising Together” Rose Parade float featured perspectives from CCF Board Chair David Newman and Chief of Policy and Programs Cielo Castro, who emphasized that the float was designed as a reminder that recovery is far from over. “We didn’t want people to forget that a year later people are still suffering,” Castro said, noting that rebuilding entire communities can take a decade or more, which is why long-term philanthropic commitment remains critical.
A Los Angeles Times photo essay capturing the volunteer spirit behind the Rose Parade featured the “Rising Together” float, co-sponsored by California Community Foundation, as volunteers—including wildfire survivors who lost their homes—worked side by side to bring the float to life ahead of January 1.
A KTLA 5 segment on “Rising Together” interviewed CCF President and CEO Miguel Santana, Tournament of Roses President Mark Leavens, and Eaton Fire survivors Jacque Robinson-Baisley and Gina Clayton-Johnson. Robinson-Baisley looked ahead with cautious optimism: “I’m grateful and I’m looking forward to having those few moments of joy, because this has been a less joyous year.” Clayton-Johnson spoke to the float’s deeper meaning: “What is the strongest and most important thing in those moments is community. I get to ride on it with other fire survivors who have been my community and the reason why I’m able to get up every morning.”
KTLA 5 brought cameras inside the float barn for a morning news segment on “Rising Together,” giving Southern California TV audiences an up-close look at the float taking shape ahead of January 1. Palisades Fire survivor Myra Burg, who lost her Malibu home, captured the emotional weight of the moment: “There are days I wake up and I need to do a mental pull-up from the depression. We still have to keep moving forward.”
California Community Foundation and the Black Freedom Fund co-sponsored the “Rising Together” float in the 137th Rose Parade, dedicated to the 31 victims of the Eaton and Palisades fires and the tens of thousands of survivors still rebuilding their lives. Miguel A. Santana joined fire survivors at the float barn in Pasadena, reflecting on the power of community healing: “We acknowledge this horrible thing happened, and people are still suffering, but we can offer this as a way of healing together.”
Nearly one year after the Eaton and Palisades fires tore through Los Angeles communities, California Community Foundation and the Black Freedom Fund announced the “Rising Together” float—a 45-foot tribute to the 31 lives lost and the tens of thousands still rebuilding. The float’s phoenix centerpiece, native California landscapes, and 31 sunflowers tell the story of two devastated communities through four themes: remembrance, resilience, the disproportionate impact on Black and Latino families, and the urgent need for sustained support. “When we come together with purpose, there is no challenge too great to overcome,” said Miguel Santana. “Los Angeles will rise from these ashes.”
As the holiday season approached, the California Community Foundation awarded $6 million in grants to 14 nonprofits providing direct assistance to Eaton and Palisades fire survivors—many of whom are heading into the holidays with depleted savings and growing concerns about affording basic necessities like food. “As we approach the holiday season, we are providing immediate relief as families struggle to meet their basic needs while also confronting the long road to rebuilding,” said CCF President and CEO Miguel Santana. While noting the critical role of philanthropy, Santana also called on the federal government to step up with large-scale investment to get survivors back in their homes
Miguel Santana was interviewed about the California Community Foundation’s latest efforts to support wildfire survivors as the holiday season approached, explaining that nearly a year after the devastating Eaton and Palisades fires the foundation awarded $6 million in grants to 14 nonprofit organizations to provide direct assistance—such as food, basic needs support, and rebuilding help—to families still struggling with depleted savings and rising debt, and he emphasized the urgency of this relief as people confront both immediate needs and “the long road to rebuilding,” saying, “As we approach the holiday season, we are providing immediate relief as families struggle to meet their basic needs while also confronting the long road to rebuilding.”