Manhattan Beach officially rolled out the red carpet for displaced Pacific Palisades residents with a massive welcome party on Sunday night that drew more than 500 people.
The party, coordinated by a group of residents calling themselves the "Pali South Community Team," was held at a private home in Manhattan Beach. It brought together local leaders as well as parents and children of families who lost homes in last month's devastating wildfires that destroyed much of Pacific Palisades.
The event featured multiples stations with food and drink - almost all of which was donated by local businesses - as well as live music, games, and kids' entertainment. Organizers had also coordinated a tent with free MBUSD gear and other clothing; and prepared resource lists with references for doctors, hair stylists, sports clubs, and more.
"After thinking about different things to do for tonight, it was really
about bringing you all together," host Toni Knight told attendees at the party. "I also wanted to bring together
people from the South Bay because I know that although we can't feel
your pain, we can't imagine your loss, I want you to know we're here
for you."
(Knight addresses the crowd)
Knight continued, "Although we
are not the Palisades, we are also another
community similar to the Palisades. We are an amazing community filled
with love, and everybody wants to lean in and to support you."
The "Dream Team" Comes Together
Knight explained that she had lived in the Palisades for 15 years before moving to Manhattan Beach and felt that the communities were extremely similar in being close-knit and family-centric. When she saw the news about the fires, her heart was "shredded," she said. "I couldn't stop thinking about what I could do."
Knight said she finally realized that what she could do was provide a sense of community, which many of the Palisades residents seem to have lost when their families had to disperse around the greater Los Angeles area. She said she called up her friends (the "dream team") and said, "'I have this idea; do you want to be a part
of it?' And the reaction was so insanely amazing. It was: 'How can I help?'"
And with that, the dream team (Amy Lange, Becky van de Ven, Candice Lu, Danette Cubic, Janine McMurrey, Kearstin Nuckles, Kerry Thelen, Kimberly Rosenfeld, Alice DeMartino, Patricia Van Hanswijck, Sequoia Boehm, Tawny Huynh, Tiffany Barbara, Tonya Bertino, and Travis Neese) jumped into action.
(Knight, center, with the "dream team")
As far as planning for the party, "We were just going to make some heavy appetizers and bring a few bottles of wine each," said co-host Tiffany Barbara. However, within a matter of days, Barbara added, the party had expanded from a gathering of a few friends to hundreds of people.
(Tiffany Barbara displays hats that are being sold at gametimecouture.com as a fundraiser for student athletes whose families were victims of the fire.)
"When we started this journey, we thought maybe we'd get lucky and get
100 people," said Knight. "I said, 'Oh my God; I hope we don't have a Charlie Brown
gathering where no one shows.' And then when we hit 200, I was like, 'OK,
it's not Charlie Brown,' and we realized the 14 appetizer platters
weren't going to be enough. So we started calling restaurants, and I'm telling
you, I was blown away. Every restaurant, every merchant, everybody we
talked to said, 'How can we help? We will do anything to support them.'"
The resulting event - pulled together in ten days - would have rivaled most weddings, featuring appetizers, drink stations, multiple main course stations, dessert stations, and a kids' zone with pizza and desserts.
(Navy grogs from Rock'N Fish at the party)
Contributing Manhattan Beach businesses included Slay Restaurants, Tin
Roof Bistro, El Gringo, Johnny Rockets, Rock'N Fish, Nick & Sons
Gourmet Market, Two Guns, Gelson's, Barsha, Uncorked, Trilogy Spa,
mbWINEco, Tabula Rasa, and Manhattan Village.
"Three Little Words"
Offering remarks at Sunday night's gathering were Monsignor John Barry of American Martyrs Church, Manhattan Beach Mayor Amy Howorth, MIra Costa High School Principal Jennifer Huynh, and American Martyrs School Principal Kristopher Knowles. (
Hundreds of children whose families were displaced by the fires have moved to Manhattan Beach schools.)
Barry gave a brief blessing and remarks to the crowd. "We're here to say three little words - We. Love. You," said Barry. "We have a statement at our church: No strangers here ever. We
walk hand in hand. Whenever anything challenges one of us, all of us
should group around and help one another. Anything we can do for one
another, it is our gift to do it."
(Monsignor Barry addresses the crowd)
Howorth followed by saying, "Monsignor had three words, but I really just have one word: 'Welcome.' Whether it's for two months or three months or a year or two years, we
are all very glad to have you here."
L.A. City Councilwoman Traci Park, whose district includes Pacific Palisades, welcomed her constituents and expressed her gratitude to the organizers for both the party and for recognizing the commonalities between the two communities. "When I think of all of us here and the Westside, we share a coastline,
we share an economy, we share a culture, we share a common set of
problems - and we're all in it together to find the solutions," she said.
"It Gave Us A New Beginning"
Attendees expressed gratitude for the welcome and the effort to bring the community together.
Jim Moran, whose family lost their Pacific Palisades home in the fire, had relocated to Manhattan Beach with his wife Simone and their two teenage children shortly before the event.
"The past four weeks have been a blur of finding a home in a place we didn’t know, logistics, insurance calls, answering hundreds of friends’ communications, and rebuilding our lives," Moran told MB News. "We weren’t sure what to expect for this event. [Maybe] another well-intentioned gathering where people ask, 'How can we help?' and you have no answer other than thanks?"
Moran continued, "That hesitation disappeared the moment we arrived. Toni Knight and the entire Pali South Community Team didn’t just welcome us—they embraced us. They made us feel like neighbors, like we belonged."
Moran said that a turning point for him was meeting resident Pete van de Ven. "He didn’t just ask what we needed—he told me why they were doing this: 'Manhattan Beach and the Palisades are cut from the same cloth. We didn’t want to ask you how to help. We just decided to act.'"
"That hit me: This wasn’t just a gesture but action, leadership, and heart," said Moran.
Meanwhile, Moran said that his wife Simone felt a turning point when she heard the speeches on Sunday night. "She turned to me and said, 'I can’t believe what they’re doing for us. They really understand.' That moment lifted some heavy feelings off our shoulders."
Moran added that the party wasn’t "just an event."
"It was a reminder of hope, community, and the power of showing up for each other," he said. "Manhattan Beach didn’t just offer support; it gave us a new beginning."
Moran continued: "The Palisades’ recovery isn’t over. We need to keep this story alive. Not for pity, but for progress. The national news cycle may have moved on, but the hard work of rebuilding is just beginning. What happened? What went wrong? How do we build smarter? Manhattan Beach is showing what real action looks like—let’s use that as a blueprint for the future."
Meanwhile, Knight said, her heart was full. "I have said on our group text, I need a new body because my heart has
grown bigger than my body can absorb because I am so blown away by
the love of this community," she said.
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ADDITIONAL READING: The movement of Palisades families to Manhattan Beach is showing up big-time in the real estate market. See the stunning
latest statistics in this post on our sister site, Manhattan Beach Confidential.
(Knight addresses the crowd)
(Knight, center, with the "dream team")
(Tiffany Barbara displays hats that are being sold at gametimecouture.com as a fundraiser for student athletes whose families were victims of the fire.)
(Navy grogs from Rock'N Fish at the party)
(Monsignor Barry addresses the crowd)