Greetings;     

 From your brother and friend Fa Zang Lama.

  As you probably know things have shifted and most donation centers are no longer accepting emergency supplies from donors in California for fire victim's. Instead the Salvation army and the Red Cross have taken over in many ways and are requesting those who are able to please provide funds to help them be flexible responding to the variety of needs the people may now have.

    Many thousands of people have been so kind in many ways, providing tons of water, pet food, sanitary products and much, much more. Everywhere we went the volunteers accepting supplies as donations and providing those supplies to the people in need were, enthusiastic, kind and helpful. The outpour of humanity was almost overwhelming.  A feeling of smallness overcame us when we saw the thousands of people helping out at the Santa Anita race track.  Every place including the YMCA, shelters for the homeless, local grassroots groups in parks and churches were busy helping others, benefiting them with emergency needs. With all the good happening now we wish all people could be this way everyday, with no greed or selfishness but only compassionately fulfilling the true needs of living beings who suffer the most in the world.

  Our group received help along the way from people at stores loading the van, and even people just jumping in to help, out of no where, the volunteers at the various locations were putting out great effort bringing in supplies, offloading them into sorted stacks and loading them into vehicles of the people in need. 

  Thanks to everyone connected during this time of life when cause and effect stood out with brightness shinning, and diminishing some of the darkness in the lives of thousands of people deeply effected by the wildfires in California.

   We saw the appreciation expressed by the people but there is still a long way to go before the karmic effects of these disasters calms and the lives of people return to better moments in life.

 Lets pray for everyone's happiness and to be free from suffering and it's causes, and for everyone to be extracted from extraordinary needs and all desires and to always live free of them.

Fa Zang Lama

January 25 2025

Scroll down to see pictures and brief stories.

The pictures do little justice for what I believe was the largest donation location of all and was also a grassroots home grown center. There was thousands of people here giving and receiving donations at the Santa Anita race track. There was two long lines of cars, one for donations and one for people getting what they needed. The volunteers were numberless and were very enthusiastically loading and unloading donated supplies as well as directing traffic to keep the operation moving smoothly.

See the news!

(Click) https://abc7.com/videoClip/15790819/  

These pictures above and bellow are of a local grass roots donation collection area at the park near   The Holy Miracle's Temple in Pasadena California.

This kind man appeared out of no where running up to help load the van. What a wonderful person he is!

All of these people and others helped unload water. They were all very grateful and nice people.

This picture does this operation little justice. Many volunteers and most of a parking garage floor of supplies made the YMCA an impressive group helping out for the crisis.