Hello ,

After the Thomas fire burned over 270,000 acres, we survived California’s largest wildfires in history. By all accounts, this has been a difficult two weeks for everyone in our beloved little town of Ojai (and beyond in Ventura Counties).

During and after the fire, I was evacuated and displaced for numerous days due to hazardous air quality. I am incredibly fortunate that my Tiny House and tiny office SOL POD remained unscathed and intact, but so many were not as fortunate - there were almost 200 homes burned to the ground. Many were tiny homes, some of which I was involved with. It's heartbreaking to see so much devastation to our landscape and natural wildlife.

In particular, many friends lost their homes from Search & Rescue team in Upper Ojai and Santa Paula, where the fire started. My husband Cliff is a long-time Search & Rescue member, and he worked tirelessly on the frontline as a volunteer, alongside the rest of the team.

We are so grateful for the first responders who worked endless days and nights to protect our homes and community. A quick look at the donut shaped fire map shows how downtown Ojai was miraculously saved after over 9,000 firefighters from 8 states worked tirelessly on the scene.

For the past two weeks, I have been deeply moved by heartfelt outpourings of love and support from so many of you. Thank you for all your texts, emails, and messages of love and support.

LOVE IN THE AIR IS THICKER THAN THE SMOKE

Throughout this experience, we have seen the best of our communities working together like I have never seen before. I have been deeply moved by random acts of generosity in the face of tragedy.

More than ever, even after four years of living in my tiny house, I feel like I have so much while others have so little. Watching lifelong homes and personal belongings in ashes after the fires. It's a sobering reality during this holiday season. I've had a deep sense of loss while feeling immense gratitude.

It will take time to restore our little town. There are so many opportunities to build a better, resilient future: with fire-resistant building methods, water harvesting strategies and innovative housing solutions. Check out this competition to build more sustainable communities. Join me in the challenge!

I'm excited to see a rebirth and transformation as we start to rebuild in 2018.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL !!!

With immense gratitude to all of you,

WANT TO HELP?

1) HELP OF OJAI This non-profit organization is supporting families who lost their homes to the fire and individuals whose employment was interrupted by the fire. Please specify FIRE RELIEF. I've been assured that 100 percent of donations are passed along to fire victims. Your donations are tax-deductible.

2) GO FUND ME CAMPAIGNS This list consists of about 200 people who lost their homes. The funds will go directly to each of the family. Below I have listed two friends who built beautiful tiny houses and now ALL GONE:
* Ian Grahm - I have seen Ian's wonderful tiny houses in the canyons. He is very passionate about his work, especially in finding unique beautiful pieces from the waste stream. He had just finished building a skoolie to turn over to his clients before the fire had taken it. Ian built many tiny houses over many years, also all gone. Truly heartbreaking.
* Daniel Wright - Daniel put his life savings into building his tiny house, and it was almost completed before the fire had taken it. It was a very unique design which I hope he will be able to rebuild again.

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