Checking in With the Altadena Girls Nearly a Year After the Los Angeles Fires

The community center continues Colvert’s original mission of serving teen girls. Clothing and hygiene products are still paramount to the mission, with the space’s free boutique offering “dignity-first” essentials, including feminine hygiene products. “We definitely want to meet basic needs first,” Sandidge says. “That’s part of the dignity piece. But also I think it gives you permission during a crisis, or in a time where you’re really feeling really low, to getting back to self-expression.” Colvert adds that she wants the space to give girls “permission to look nice and feel good too.”

Colvert is also keen for the community center to serve as a “third space,” separate from home and school. While many companies and businesses donated goods and services in the immediate aftermath of the fires, donations were just as important long-term.

Beyond the multipurpose central gathering space, there are rooms that cater to different needs and interests: Fender partnered with Altadena Girls to create a music studio and podcast space; Paris Hilton sponsored a “sliving lounge,” a portmanteau of “slaying” and “living,” where teens can do just that. There are also more flexible spaces dedicated to homework and quieter activities.

“I really hope girls can come into Altadena Girls and maybe discover something that they don’t know is therapeutic for them yet, and they can learn, Wow, this really makes me feel a lot better,” Colvert says. “Not even just that, just having fun.”