Jennifer Garner is doing whatever she can to help the Pacific Palisades community after the latest wildfires. She has been personally impacted by the significant losses in the area, and she opened up in an interview with MSNBC about it.
Jennifer Garner Lost a Friend From Church in the Fires
MSNBC caught up to Garner while she was in the area working alongside Jose Andres of World Central Kitchen. Garner knows the community well, having lived in and around the Palisades for the past 25 years.
As Garner and Andres spoke with MSNBC correspondent Katy Tur, they touched upon a difficult personal loss Garner has experienced. Her family’s Methodist Church was entirely lost, and one person connected with the church died.
Tur asked Garner about it, and Garner wiped away tears as she briefly acknowledged the loss. “I did lose a friend and for our church it’s really tender. So I don’t feel like I should talk about it yet,” Garner explained.
She continued, “Yeah, I did lose a friend who did not get out in time.” Garner revealed she knows at least 100 families personally who lost their homes, amid the estimated 5,000 lost in the area in the past week.
“I feel almost guilty walking through my house. Just, what can I do? How can I help? What can I offer? What do I have to offer with these hands and these walls and the safety that I have?”
Garner also explained that her best friend’s house was a short distance from where they stood, and she reminisced about the activities she and her kids did in that area over the years.
She explained, “It is not some far away place that you can’t reach. This is the street we drove, we run down on 5k [races].” Garner continued, “This is where the little fire truck that, God bless our firefighters, this is where the fire truck goes on the 4th of July parade. This is a neighborhood.”
Sadly, now Garner also has a lot of families she knows personally who are navigating the loss of their homes.
“Our little elementary school, 35 families lost their homes, five teachers, families lost their homes… The people are strong and the sense of community is strong. We will look after each other.”
The church that was lost was “Where my kids went to Sunday School. We lit the advent candle together there a couple of weeks ago… It’s a central place for our community,” Garner shared.
She added, “I love belonging there because wherever I went, I would run into somebody” she knew.
Garner is struggling with all of the loss, and feels compelled to personally step in to help in whatever way she can.
English (US) ·