“I still can’t believe it happened,” Ryan Akins told WFAA.
DALLAS — A Dallas man is grappling with the loss of his family home after devastating wildfires swept through the Pacific Palisades neighborhood in Southern California, destroying the house his parents had lived in for nearly five decades.
“I still can’t believe it happened,” Ryan Akins told WFAA, whose parents were forced to evacuate their home last Tuesday. “I feel devastated. I just don’t have a hometown to go back to.”
Video footage captured by Akins’ 84-year-old father shows the approaching flames from their backyard moments before they fled the property. His mother is 78 years old.
“At their age, the last thing they want to deal with is losing their home and thinking about rebuilding,” Akins said. “All these memories, all these things that are important to our hearts are gone, and that’s just hard to believe.”
Despite the heartbreak, Akins has found solace in the outpouring of support from communities across the country. In Dallas, The Potter’s House church has mobilized to help affected families like the Akins, launching an initial response effort they estimate at $100,000. The church is preparing to send an 18-wheeler filled with essential supplies to California.
“We’re sending water, baby food, air purifiers, N95 masks, blankets, and comforters,” Jaylen Bledsoe of The Potter’s House told WFAA. The church is also paying for hotel accommodations for displaced families.
“I think we take for granted what it means to have everything that you need, or to be able to go home, go to bed, and not wake up with the concern you might have to leave it and evacuate,” Bledsoe said.
For Akins, the widespread support has revealed the inherent goodness in people during times of crisis. “It reinforces that people are inherently good, which is a nice thing to see,” he said.
The Potter’s House plans to deliver the supplies to California on Wednesday, offering both material aid and prayers to the affected Pacific Palisades community as they begin their recovery process.
Click here if you’re interested in learning more about the donation efforts by The Potter’s House and how to help.
