Larry Vein, the founder of the Pali Strong Foundation, has died at 61. His death has been met with shock and sadness from the community he dedicated his life to helping.
Larry Vein , the founder of the Pali Strong Foundation , which fought for victims of the Palisades Fire , has died at 61. Since his death in late April, friends and family have gathered to remember his passion and spirit as a relentless advocate for his community as they worked to rebuild from tragedy.
Vein dedicated his life to keeping the devastating Pacific Palisades community connected in the wake of the fire, using social media to bring survivors and recovery resources together and working to spread information and hope however he could. He's remembered for his positivity and optimism, which is why his death by suicide has been so stunning to those who knew him best.
They say that he felt intense pressure after receiving a half-million-dollar grant from the FireAid concert, which raised $100 million to aid the recovery from the Los Angeles County wildfires in January 2025. Mental health experts say that regardless of his private life or personal health situation, he was a part of a very vulnerable community.
There's all these compounding losses: homes, community, sense of identity, sense of routine, normalcy, all of those things, said Loyola Marymount University mental health clinician Nancy Choe. Oftentimes, there's so much that was lost in the fire, not just belongings and not just items, just a whole sense of, sometimes, identity. Choe, who lost her own home in the Eaton Fire, says that this kind of loss can sometimes grow even stronger the longer the recovery takes.
She's been researching what helps survivors cope, and what hasn't been beneficial thus far. What we found is, after analyzing all the data, is that connecting individuals to community resources was essential, said Choe. So, having those immediate community resources were really important. Vein was a board member of the Palisades Long Term Recovery Group.
After his passing, members say that they're now working to partner with even more mental health experts, who say that staying Pali Strong, and following Vein's personal motto, can help save lives. I would say that you gotta trust humanity. You gotta reach out, you have to ask for help, and you have to fight and do what you can do to not be alone with it, right, said Dr. David Swanson, a psychologist.
The worst thing ever, is to be alone with these struggles and not share them, not get help. A celebration of life for Vein is scheduled for Wednesday morning in the Pacific Palisades. Organizers say that information for mental health resources will be readily available. If you or someone you know may be experiencing a mental health crisis, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing or texting 988
Larry Vein Pali Strong Foundation Palisades Fire Mental Health Community Resources
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