Seventeen months after the Eaton Fire leveled their neighborhoods, Pasadena and Altadena high school students are being asked to walk into the building where their community has been putting itself back together — and this time, to lead.
Youth Mental Health Advocacy Day, a free three-hour program branded “WE MIND,” is set to take place on Friday at The Collaboratory, the Woodbury Road recovery hub that houses dozens of nonprofits, a county mental health walk-in center, and the daily work of rebuilding after a fire that destroyed more than 9,400 structures and killed 19 people.
The event, a partnership between the Eaton Fire Collaborative, Google.org, and nonprofit Active Minds, runs from 9:00 a.m. to noon and is open to Pasadena Unified School District students in grades 9 through 12.
The program invites students to participate in interactive mental health workshops, deliver presentations, pitch ideas to community leaders, including Assemblymember John Harabedian, during a panel discussion, and connect with peers, according to event organizers and registration materials.
Students will also learn practical ways to support the well-being of their friends and communities while developing leadership and advocacy skills, the materials state. The program includes food, drinks, and giveaway items, organizers said.
Active Minds, the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit partnering on the program, was founded in 2003 and now operates more than 500 peer-led chapters at high schools and colleges nationwide, according to its website. In April, the organization announced a $1 million grant from Google to expand its “Your Voice is Your Power” Resource Hub, a digital platform designed to help young people advocate for mental health and develop digital well-being skills in their schools and communities, according to an Active Minds press release. Google’s funding for Active Minds is expected to be formally highlighted at Friday’s event, according to organizers.
“This funding helps us further amplify youth voices, provide stronger digital tools for mental health advocacy, and foster peer connections that drive lasting change,” Alison Malmon, founder and executive director of Active Minds, said in the April announcement.
Harabedian, a Democrat who represents the 41st Assembly District including Pasadena and Altadena, has made behavioral health access a legislative priority since taking office in 2024. He authored AB 1032, the Wildfire Trauma Recovery and Resiliency Act, which would require health care insurers to cover 12 annual behavioral health visits for residents in wildfire-affected counties, according to his office.
“Wildfire trauma doesn’t disappear when the flames are out,” Harabedian said when he introduced the legislation in February 2025. “Survivors deserve affordable access to behavioral health care when they need it most to support their recovery.”
His office has cited California Parent & Youth Helpline data showing that 62 percent of all calls after the Eaton and Palisades fires related to mental and behavioral health needs came from Southern California.
PUSD, which serves Pasadena, Altadena, and Sierra Madre, expanded its mental health resources after the fire by partnering with Daybreak Health, a school-based telehealth provider, to offer virtual therapy to students at no cost, according to the district’s website.
“We are grateful for the support for the well-being of our students, which is especially important as they recover from the Eaton Fire,” PUSD Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Blanco said in a May 2025 press release from the California Governor’s Office. “When students feel healthy, supported, and valued, they can learn and succeed.”
The Collaboratory, at 540 West Woodbury Road, opened in October 2025 as the Eaton Fire Collaborative’s permanent hub. The collaborative brings together more than 200 community groups, nonprofits, and civic agencies coordinating long-term recovery, according to the organization. The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health operates a walk-in behavioral health center at the same address through June 2026, funded by a federal SAMHSA Emergency Response Grant, according to a county press release.
Youth Mental Health Advocacy Day takes place Friday, June 12, from 9:00 a.m. to noon at The Collaboratory, 540 West Woodbury Road. Admission is free with online registration, available through a link in PUSD’s announcement. Free parking is available on site. For more information, contact event organizers at info@efclc.org.
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