PDA solidarity visit includes a listening session with current and retired PC(USA) clergy and lay leaders
After a meal, Presbyterians share the Eaton fire impacts they’ve witnessed — and experienced
PASADENA, California — Monte Vista Grove Homes, the home to retired Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) clergy, mission co-workers and other staff, provided hospitality Friday for the second day of the solidarity visit being made by Presbyterian Disaster Assistance and other staff of the Interim Unified Agency. The conversation around lunch and afterward occurred on the two-month observance of the Eaton fire.
The Rev. Megan Katerjian, CEO of Door of Hope, a Christian nonprofit that helps connect unhoused people with housing opportunities, talked about how the nonprofit she leads is launching a new program to house families who lost their homes in the Eaton fire. The mother of two is launching this undertaking even as she deals with having lost her home in the fire.
“I’m thinking a lot about what long-term recovery looks like,” she said. “We are thinking about families who probably can never afford to live in Pasadena or Altadena again.”
“My situation is hard, but I feel lucky and blessed to have family helping me. I know there are families really struggling to make life in really expensive Southern California work, and it just got a lot harder,” Katerjian said.
“I can’t tell you how much laundry we’ve been doing,” said Tineke Switzer. “Washing clothes and putting them in storage is time-consuming.”
House of Rest, which employs Switzer’s husband as a handyman, has provided the couple with living quarters. “I can’t thank them enough for letting us stay there,” Switzer said. “Most of his expensive tools were in the garage, which burned down.” When filling out insurance claims, “it’s hard to remember how many socket wrenches you had.”
The Rev. Dr. Rebecca Prichard, a retired PC(USA) pastor, said she feels grateful to have landed at Monte Vista Grove Homes, along with her three cats. She finds herself increasingly dealing with “those onerous details,” like uploading a half-dozen more required documents just when you think you’ve filed everything that’s needed.
“It could be helpful to sit in a room and work on our lists together,” Prichard said. “That could be something therapeutic.”
The Rev. Matt Colwell, pastor of Knox Presbyterian Church in Pasadena, saw his home destroyed by fire even as the church was spared. “The journey has been around recovery — finding a place to live and addressing the needs of the church,” where seven families lost their homes and many others are displaced.
He said Knox Presbyterian Church “has long been concerned with the plight of immigrants and refugees” as well as with environmental issues. “I am a climate refugee, and that’s been on my mind,” he said.
Then there’s “the emotional and spiritual piece of feeling solidarity with people seeing us, caring about us and wanting to do something,” Colwell said. “More broadly, we see that in a coalition of clergy and people wanting to help. We recognize the journey ahead is going to be really long.”
“Those in positions of leadership are also survivors,” said the Rev. Dr. Jim Kirk, PDA’s Associate for Disaster Response in the U.S. Pastors including Colwell and Katerjian “are living the experience of those you’re trying to help.”
“I don’t have to say, ‘I can only imagine what you’re going through,’” Colwell said. He said finding time to address the increased trauma needs is getting “extremely difficult.”
PDA offers resilience programs for faith leaders and other community leaders impacted by disaster, said the Rev. Dr. Kathy Riley, PDA’s Associate for Emotional and Spiritual Care. Half-day and full-day programs deal with topics including compassion fatigue. “We often get people together who really need to tell their stories and build some resilience tools,” Riley said.
Ted Bruins was present for the discussion with his wife Suzanne. “You’d be surprised how many people ask, ‘Where’s home?’ We don’t have one,” he said. “We are nomads. We’re refugees. We just navigate that and try to keep some sanity.”
According to Kirk, one of the things that happens following a disaster is “everyone is a survivor. You’ve all been impacted. The people you love are dispersed. How can you be a community when you can’t be a community?”
Spiritual and emotional care providers can also be advocates for justice, Kirk said. “Call people to task for not resourcing some community members,” he suggested.
“This is going to be a long process,” said the Rev. Edwin González-Castillo, PDA’s director. “We recognize the importance of walking with you and facilitating the process. Sadly, as well as you, PDA is no stranger to responding to this type of disaster in this area. We still have volunteers working in Paradise,” which was almost destroyed in 2018 by the Camp fire.
Kirk offered a blessing to the group following the 70-minute meeting, encouraging those in attendance to love and serve the Lord but “please do not grow weary doing what is right.”
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