By Grace Lawson
Amongst the devastation caused by the Los Angeles wildfires, the Long Beach community has not faltered in coming together to support those affected.
From collecting donations, to hosting clothing drives and offering free or discounted services, many hotels, restaurants, retail stores and pet groomers across Long Beach have pitched in to aid the victims of the wildfires.
Through collecting donations and hosting clothing drives, these businesses have all pitched in and offered free or discounted services and ways to help collect necessary items for victims of the wildfires.
Among them is Chris Sweeney, the owner of RightMealz on 4th street in Downtown Long Beach.
Sweeney and a team of volunteers collected donations a day after LA fires began and distributed them to families that have been displaced by the fires.
Announcing the donation collection on an Instagram post on Jan. 8, Sweeney organized a drop-off station outside his business.
From 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sweeney and his team of volunteers filled four U-Haul trailers full of donations, which included items like water bottles, snacks, socks, underwear, blankets, dog food and non-perishable items.
“Pulling the trigger without hesitation helps other businesses do it as well, but to see the community come together was just incredible,” Sweeney said.
Over the course of the month, the business, volunteers and Sweeney have continued collecting donations and distributing them at drop off centers.
“I want to see where it’s going, I’m not just going to, you know, give stuff away and not see where it’s going,” Sweeney said.
RightMealz volunteers work late into the evening of Jan. 9, collecting and packing donations for those affected by the LA fires. Photo courtesy of Chris Sweeney.
More recently, Sweeney said he has made efforts to personally help rebuild and strengthen communities in his outreach.
He cites two experiences, where he distributed 4000 sandwiches to people who were displaced and commissioned an exact replica of a surfboard to a friend who lost his in the fire.
“Honestly I’ve been very emotional, overwhelmed with emotion to see and seeing other businesses come together. It’s a really amazing thing,” Sweeney said.
Five minutes away from RightMealz and sharing 4th street is Lucky Penny, a boutique that has followed suit within their own aid initiatives.
Since Jan. 9, Lucky Penny and another local business, Lil Devils Boutique have partnered together to provide aid through a clothing drive. Specifically, they requested women’s and children necessities, including personal hygiene items, diapers, clothes and accessories.
Since they began their drive, Stephanie Spirovski, owner of Lucky Penny, said that they have received an unexpectedly large amount of donations.
“It was unbelievable. I had to stop after 24 hours of accepting cause we couldn’t fit it all in the store,” Spirovski said.
Though Spirovski found an overwhelming support from the community in the form of donations, the excess donated clothing still needed to be sorted, organized and dropped off to donation centers.
“I thought I was going to be able to do everything by myself… I realized I was way in too deep,” Spirovski said. “I just got messages from people to volunteer, there were people walking down the street that lived in the neighborhood that volunteered themselves, it was really beautiful to see.”
As the fires in the LA area become more contained each day, Long Beach businesses still offer ways for the community to donate and provide their support to any and all who were affected.
Though Lucky Penny has paused donations, RightMealz is continuing their efforts to provide relief to victims of the LA fires.
To keep up with each business and the work they are doing, RightMealz and Lucky Penny can be found on Instagram at their handles @rightmealz and @luckypennylongbeach.
