No one in Los Angeles has been free of the damage the fires have caused.
Not even the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers.
JJ Redick was holding back tears when speaking to the media, revealing his house was burnt down in Pacific Palisades, along with the rest of their community due to the fires across the Los Angeles-area over the last week.
“I kinda had to see it for myself,” Redick said.
“I was not prepared for what I saw. It is complete devastation and destruction.
“I had to go a different way to the house, but I went through most of the village and it’s all gone. I don’t think you can ever prepare yourself for something like that.
“Our home is gone.”
The head coach went into detail about how it felt losing so many things that weren’t necessarily of great financial value, but things that simply can’t be replaced.
“Look, we were renting for the year to try to figure out where we wanted to be long-term,” Redick said.
“Everything we owned that was of any importance us, almost 20 years together as a couple, 10 years of parenting, was in that house.
“There’s certain things that you can’t replace, that will never be replaced. It’s weird s***, like my son did an art project last year at St. Ann’s in Brooklyn, it was a charcoal pencil painting of a lighthouse that we had framed above the stairs.
“You can’t ever replace stuff like that.”
Redick had to take a moment to collect himself.
“Memories, 18 years together now Chelsea and I, there were certain things that were in that house that you can’t replace,” the head coach said.
“The material stuff is whatever.”
“It’s an awful feeling to lose your home.
“I think what has happened over the last 72 hours from me being up there and from having a number of people that had homes in the Palisades that are also staying at the hotel, you really get a sense of just the communal destruction.
“I got back to the hotel, and of course my wife and I are emotional.
“I’m not sure I’ve wept or wailed like that in several years.”
Redick went on to stress the importance of just how great the community was and what lies ahead in order to rebuild.
“The Palisades community has really just been so good to us,” Redick said. “I think that’s the part for us that we’re really struggling with, is just the loss of community.
“And I recognize that people make up community, and we’re going to rebuild, and we want to help lead on that. But all the churches, the schools, the library, it’s all gone.”
He made sure to note that he doesn’t want people feeling sorry for him.
“I don’t want people to feel sorry for me and my family.
“We’re gonna be alright.
“There’s people that because of some political issues and insurance issues are not gonna be alright, and we’re gonna do everything we can to help anybody who’s down and out because of this.”