In the Wake of the Eaton Fire Tragedy, This LA Bar Is a Beacon of Hope | Bon Appétit

"Opened less than two months before the Eaton fire in January 2025, Good Neighbor Bar—owned by Randy Clement, April Langford and Emely Cubias—survived when so much of Altadena did not, and I watched it quickly become a protected gathering place where survivors process their feelings, share resources and rebuild community ties. After Clement used social media and the restaurant’s delivery app to check on evacuees’ homes, the bar turned into an emotional hub: neighbors compared stories at the bar, bartenders like Nathan connected with patrons who were also fire victims, and the patio area and parking lot hosted fundraisers and events. Outside the shop is an 8' x 14' color-coded map of the fire’s destruction by Noel McCarthy that became a meeting and remembrance site, and a bright mural by Eric Junker that helped raise funds after he sold posters (raising $40,000 for Altadena Mountain Rescue). Clement and Langford’s sons organized a school concert in the bar’s lot that raised $7,000, and the lot was the start for a multistop 50-kilometer ultra that helped raise $50,000 for local relief organizations. In short, I saw Good Neighbor evolve from a newly opened bar into an incubator for relationships and a pivotal community center in Altadena’s recovery." - ByEsther Tseng