Messages In The Fire

A Journey of Compassion: Letters From a Street Minister author, Bill Doulos. USHS Pasadena, CA.

In 1973, Union Station Homeless Services was founded by a group of advocates at All Saints Church, including Alice Callahan and Bill Doulos, who later became Union Station’s first Executive Director. Bill also ran four recovery homes, which included the Fair Oaks House in Altadena. For 40 years, that house was a place of healing, offering people coming out of homelessness an affordable, safe space to rebuild.

Until January 7, 2025...

The Eaton Fire reduced Fair Oaks house to ash. A few days later, we received the photos—just rubble and a lone standing fireplace. Like so many in our community, the residents lost everything.

And yet, something remarkable happened. Four days later, a supporter in the evacuation zone posted on Facebook: “My neighbor found burned pages from a book in our yard… A sign of hope.”

The photos showed scorched fragments from "A Journey of Compassion: Letters from a Street Minister", Bill’s autobiography. The book had been stored in the garage of Fair Oaks house, and as the fire raged, pages lifted into the sky, traveling miles across the city.

A page from the book A Journey of Compassion: Letters from a Street Minister, found by neighbors during the Eaton Fire.

More reports came in—burned pages found in Silverlake, Hancock Park, Echo Park. Strangers saw them as messages, as symbols of resilience in the midst of tragedy.

Bill’s life’s work has been about healing, inclusivity, and never giving up. That same spirit runs through USHS. The road ahead is long, but we are still here.

If you or someone you love has been impacted, know that our hearts are with you. We are here, ready to help.

Please visit our Eaton Fire Relief page.