This article was updated Jan. 17, 2025.

Mennonite churches on the northern edge of the Los Angeles area were assessing the needs of their congregations and neighbors after wildfires destroyed whole neighborhoods, including the parsonage of a Church of the Brethren congregation in Pasadena, Calif., and the homes of multiple members of Anabaptist churches.

The Church of the Brethren reported the Conexion Pasadena congregation’s second parsonage adjacent to the church was not damaged. The church’s main building, two blocks from the destroyed parsonage, was spared by the fires, with only two windows broken by windstorms, letting ash into the structure. The building also houses Pasadena Mennonite Church, The Church We Hope For and a nursery school.

“Hold pastors Juan Pablo Plaza and Adriana Rios and their children in prayer, as the church parsonage where they make their home was destroyed by fire overnight,” said Pacific Southwest District executive minister Russ Matteson in a Jan. 8 prayer request on social media, which noted the family was out of town when the parsonage burned.

On Jan. 17, Pasadena Mennonite Church community coordinator Karen Newe said the congregation had been joined by visitors from Mennonite Disaster Service to assess needs. The building was very near the evacuation zone, prompting the congregation to meet for worship Jan. 12 and 19 at All Saints Episcopal Church about four miles away.

Stanley Green, executive conference minister of Pacific Southwest Mennonite Conference of Mennonite Church USA, said Pasadena Mennonite and Wholicare Community Missionary Church in Altadena were the two PSMC congregations most directly impacted.

“Dozens of families from our churches have been displaced through evacuation,” Green said Jan. 8 before winds calmed somewhat, giving firefighters a better opportunity to control the blazes. “Three families from Pasadena Mennonite Church lost their homes to the fires. . . .

“I watched businesses across the street from our conference’s Full Circle Thrift Shop burn down. . . . All around the store other businesses were completely burned down. Some are calling it a miracle.”

Wholicare Pastor Helen Mfwilwa­kanda requested prayers for the thousands of people who lost their homes.

“At first we were certain the fire would be contained,” she said Jan. 10. “But then the Santa Ana winds made it hard for the fire crews. We were up the whole night watching the news in disbelief; then we had to water the roof. As the fire was raging and approaching, we left.”

Wholicare is a predominantly Congolese congregation. Members who evacuated were staying with friends and relatives. Mfwilwakanda said her family left their home around 5 a.m. Jan. 7, taking only a few items, including passports.

“There was smoke everywhere. It was hard to help my 97-year-old mother, who is bedridden, to evacuate,” she said. “With the help of God, we made it to safety. We’re still away from home. Our homes have been spared.”

The Pacific Southwest Conference Executive Committee is contributing an initial $10,000 to relief and repair efforts. It welcomes additions from other congregations and individuals to assist in recovery efforts at ­pacificsouthwest.org.

Mosaic Mennonite Conference reported one family from Jemaat Kristen Indonesian Anugerah in the neighboring community of Sierra Madre lost their home. Members of the congregation and International Worship Church to the south in San Gabriel evacuated their homes.

“In the face of loss, displacement and struggle, please pray for comfort, resilience and strength for those affected by Eaton Fire, and support our LA communities through donations, volunteering and simply being present for us,” said Virgo Handojo, Anugerah’s pastor, in a Mosaic release.

MDS will offer support where it may be needed. MDS executive director Kevin King said in a Jan. 10 release that wildfire cleanup work often requires removal of toxic debris before volunteers can lend a hand.

“Long-term recovery and rebuilding after wildfires can take years,” said King, noting MDS began working in Paradise, Calif., two-and-a-half years after a fire caused 85 fatalities, displaced more than 50,000 people.

Los Angeles area Mennonite Brethren and Brethren in Christ congregations are located in neighborhoods that have been less affected by fires, which burned more than 62 square miles, destroyed 12,000 structures and killed at least 27 people.