Legacy Land Project says it has provided over $1.7 million in aid to families after the Eden fire

Dr. William Sims, director of the Legacy Land Project, told Pasadena in Focus that the nonprofit has grown out of Victory Bible Church’s response to the Eden fire and has distributed more than $1.7 million in direct aid to affected families.

Sims said the project began when Victory Bible Church opened its doors on Jan. 7 to serve residents displaced by the fire and expanded into a broader nonprofit to reach people who might not attend church. “Victory opened its doors on January 7 and never closed them,” he said on the program. He said the project has provided emergency supplies, direct cash assistance and material support and has placed care managers in offices at 2 North Lake to help families complete applications and follow individualized recovery plans.

The effort centers on case-by-case recovery planning, Sims said, using a tracking platform he called “Hold Dena” to monitor the steps required to return a household to safe housing. He described partnerships with local organizations — Restore Altadena, Habitat for Humanity and the Hope Crisis Network — to fill gaps in rebuilding and housing placement. “We use care managers to identify needs, build a recovery plan and follow each step in that plan to make sure somebody gets home,” Sims said.

Sims gave several tallies of program activity: he said the organization has awarded more than $1.7 million in direct aid, distributed 47 cars, is providing 20 mini-grants of $500 to families, and recently helped a family secure an $8,000 cash grant. He characterized recovery as a long process — he estimated about 30% of the community might be back in homes by Christmas — and said roughly 9,000 families lost homes in the affected area (figure given on-air by Sims).

Pastor Jonathan Decure, who the program identified as president of the Legacy Land Project and pastor of Victory Bible Church, said people can register for assistance at legacylandpro.org or by visiting one of four locations the project operates, including an office at 2 North Lake, Harambee Ministries, the NAACP office and the Eden Fire Collaborative site. He asked listeners to use the project’s “Built With Us” volunteer page to sign up.

Decure also emphasized community well-being beyond housing. He described planned events to bring joy amid recovery — the group’s “Ashes to Anthems” music event in Central Park — and underscored the importance of mental-health services. Sims noted Foothill Family Services is providing 10 free sessions and that LA County mental-health staff are available at the collaboratory.

Why it matters: the Legacy Land Project positions itself as a single point of coordination for many post-fire services, combining cash assistance, referrals to trusted builders and mental-health supports. The organization’s public-facing website and neighborhood offices are presented as entry points for displaced families and volunteers.

The project’s leaders asked for volunteer support and directed listeners to legacylandpro.org for registration and more information. The program did not provide audited financial records or independent verification of the figures stated on-air.