Three people killed in the Eaton Fire are remembered at a memorial service. Jonathan Gonzalez reports for the NBC4 News at 3 p.m. on Thursday Feb. 6, 2025.
Three people who died in the Eaton Fire were remembered Thursday at a memorial service that also celebrated the resilience of a Southern California community.
The service at the First AME Church of Pasadena offered a moment for a those bonded by tragedy to honor the lives of Erliene Kelley, 84, Evelyn McClendon, 59, and Rodney Nickerson, 82 and recognize the beloved community where they lived -- Altadena.
Seventeen people were killed in the Eaton Fire.
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"The strength of our community is evident in these moments, and we remain steadfast in our commitment to support one another as we navigate the challenges ahead," said the Rev. Dr. Larry Campbell, of First AME Church.
As family members remembered their loved ones, they also expressed concern about the future of the beloved San Gabriel Valley community.
"I'm thankful for the fact that God has blessed us to put us at the forefront, to be seen," said Evelyn McClendon’s brother Zaire Calvin. "We want to be made whole. Black people always end up last. I'm just going to say it now. We always end up last. Can we just be first in line in this?"
Altadena has long stood as a haven for Black families, who established lives and generation wealth in the city when discriminatory housing laws were commonplace elsewhere.
"We owned our property five generations," said Trevor Kelley, Erliene Kelley’s son. "But I do want to tell America this. I have two granddaughters that are going to be living in that same house. My mother lost her life in, and they will be able to raise their great grandchildren. We're not going anywhere.
"I want my whole community, Jewish, white, Asian, Korean, everybody to be made whole in my community, because Altadena is a full community and I love all of them."
The Rev. Al Sharpton was among the mourners in attendance. Sharpton, founder and president of the National Action Network was joined by national civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the families of some people who died in the fires.
“The wildfires scourging Los Angeles these last few weeks have been a devastating humanitarian and natural disaster,” Sharpton said in a statement. “People have lost their homes, their memories, and ultimately their lives to this devastation, while some have sought to use this horrific event to score political points. This Thursday, I will join with attorney Crump to bring the community together to mourn those we have lost and galvanize them to recover, restore, and rebuild.”
A UCLA study released last week found that Black residents of Altadena were disproportionately impacted by the Eaton Fire.
The study found that 61% of Black households in Altadena were located in the fire perimeter, compared with 50% of non-Black households. Roughly 48% of Black households were destroyed or heavily damaged, compared to 37% of non-Black households.
Authors of the report suggested that “historical redlining practices” led to a high concentration of Black families in the areas of Altadena that were most impacted by the fire. They also noted that more than half of Black homeowners in Altadena are over age 65, and many could face additional issues such as insufficient insurance and “risks of financial exploitation” as they look to rebuild.
