Massive Communal Dinner At Rose Bowl on Saturday Will Support Wildfire Recovery

This Saturday, March 8, the iconic Rose Bowl Stadium will host an extraordinary fundraising dinner featuring a 1,000-person communal table to support communities affected by recent Southern California wildfires. The “Day After Tomorrow” benefit event will bring together donors, first responders, and impacted community members for a family-style, farm-to-table meal prepared by Los Angeles’ top chefs, with all proceeds benefiting the Altadena Community Fund and the Palisades Community Fund.

“This is a powerful act of kindness by the food community to nourish the people of Altadena and the Palisades,” said Jim Denevan, founder of Outstanding in the Field, the organization producing the event. “We feel privileged to set this healing table just miles from where the Eaton Fire burned with the participation of the farmers and winemakers that care for our land.”

The community funds were established in January 2025 in response to the devastating impact of the Pacific Palisades and Eaton Fires. They aim to address both immediate relief efforts and long-term recovery initiatives for the affected communities. A group of local residents founded the funds to empower Altadena and Pacific Palisades residents to have agency over their own fundraising and rebuilding efforts. Founding members include Kate Fishel and Bill Fishel, an Executive Vice Chairman with Newmark and current Chairman of the Board for Make-A-Wish Greater Los Angeles; Paul Fuhrman, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Miramar Capital; Sam Bakhshandehpour, Global CEO of José Andrés Group; Mickey Segal, Founder and Managing Partner of NKSFB; and Lindsay Petersen, Associate at Miramar Capital.

An independent board comprised entirely of community members from the respective impact areas will govern the use of proceeds and forward direction of each fund. Tracy L. Lawrence, founder and CEO of The Lawrence Advisory and former Executive-in-Residence at USC’s Marshall School of Business, will chair a committee to oversee the selection of those boards to ensure effective and equitable distribution of resources.

Mickey Segal, chairman of the Rose Bowl Legacy Foundation and Founder of NKSFB, spoke to the importance of the event: “I am honored to be part of this amazing team that is driven to help those families that lost their homes in the Eaton Fire and the Palisades Fire. Our event at the Rose Bowl, America’s stadium, will be a giant step forward in raising funds to help those who lost their homes.”

The dinner was conceived as a call to action and an opportunity for the community to rally around wildfire victims. Attendees are encouraged to “buy one and gift one” to enable first responders or affected community members to join the meal.

Beyond purchasing tickets, supporters can contribute through cash donations or by bidding on items during a live auction at the dinner or online. The auction will be coming soon at Charitybuzz.com.

Sam Bakhshandehpour, Pacific Palisades Resident and Chief Executive Officer of José Andrés Group, added: “In the spirit of community and resilience, I’m proud to work alongside Outstanding in The Field to support rebuilding efforts in Los Angeles. The power of food to connect, heal and inspire is what our city needs, now more than ever. While our neighborhoods may be devastated, our community has never been stronger.”

Outstanding in the Field, founded in 1999 by renowned land artist Jim Denevan, is known for creating roving culinary experiences that connect people to the land and the origins of their food. The organization has set its iconic communal table throughout the United States and in 25 countries, featuring more than 700 of the world’s most notable chefs.

The Altadena Community Fund and the Palisades Community Fund operate as fiscally sponsored projects of the Edward Charles Foundation, a 501(c)(3) public charity. Both funds aim to provide emergency support to victims and their families while supporting ongoing economic, cultural, and environmental revitalization of their respective communities and the greater Los Angeles County region.

Tickets for Saturday’s event are available through Outstanding in the Field, with additional information on relief efforts accessible at altadenacommunityfund.org and palisadescommunityfund.org.