Los Angeles wildfires

Eshele and Brayden find hope after the wildfires

Eshele was at work when her 11-year-old son Brayden called her to warn her about wildfires near their home in Altadena, CA. She immediately left the office where she practices as a marriage and family therapist and went home to Brayden and their chihuahua, King Tut.When they saw the red glow of the Eaton fire just east of their house, they evacuated. “There was no understanding that we weren’t coming back,” Eshele said. Born and raised in Altadena, Eshele lived blocks away from her mother and sisters. All of them lost their homes in the wildfires.

A chimney and several beams stand among the ruins of a burned home on a clear day with a view of a mountain in the background.

Eshele and Brayden were able to recover a few keepsakes, including jewelry and Brayden’s charred dance medals, from the ashes of their home of 17 years.

Eshele found out about emergency housing through Airbnb.org and applied for the program through Airbnb.org’s partner, 211 LA. She, Brayden, and King Tut moved into an Airbnb hosted by Inessa in nearby Glendale. They stayed there for a little over a month. During that time, Brayden turned 11 and had a sleepover to celebrate with friends and family at the Airbnb.

A woman with long dark hair wearing a green sweater and jeans stands with her hand on a table in front of the window in a sun-lit room with a green chair.

“Being in this space has allowed me to breathe, and rest, and know that I’m protected and taken care of,” Eshele said. Inessa and her family live across the driveway and have been checking in on their guests. “Now that my family is separated, it feels good to have somebody close by if I need anything and people really caring,” Eshele said.

Side-by-side images of a boy wearing dark jeans, a black sweatshirt, and ballet shoes pointing his toes in the air in front of a garage door.

“Being in this space has allowed me to breathe,  and rest, and know that I’m protected and taken care of.”

A woman in jeans and sweater sits on a bench talking to a woman in a red dress in a garden filled with rocks and sculptures.

Host Inessa and her family live across the driveway from their Airbnb and regularly checked in on Eshele and Brayden throughout their stay.

During her Airbnb.org stay, Eshele continued working to support her therapy clients, many of whom also lost their homes. Brayden, who is an accomplished dancer at the Debbie Allen Dance Academy, kept dancing and even performed at a fundraiser for the Academy in February. Shortly after, they moved from Inessa’s Airbnb into long-term housing nearby.