Lady Gaga Paid an Emotional Surprise Visit to California Wildfire Evacuees
As wildfires continue to ravage parts of California, displacing thousands of residents, many celebrities are using their platform for good, taking action by motivating those who can to give to relief efforts and donating much-needed supplies themselves.
Lady Gaga, who had to evacuate her own Malibu home, stopped by a shelter set up at Pacific Palisades High School to offer her love and support. TMZ reports that she spent about an hour and a half at the shelter visiting with victims, handing out gift cards, and taking photos. Gaga reportedly even sang to a 98-year-old woman who had to leave her own home.
Gaga also took time to offer a few words of support and a powerful message about mental health during tough times:
"This is not easy. I know this is not easy. And I know that a lot of you are feeling a lot of pain right now, and a lot of shock. I know that I feel kinda in a daze and I'm not really sure when or how this is going to hit me when it does," she said. "What I can tell you is that I will pray for each and every one of you. You will be in my thoughts. I extend my love to each and every one of you. I know we do not know each other, but I love you. This is an emergency but you are not alone."
"And what I'd like to encourage you to do, though it might be hard, is to share your stories and talk to each other during this time. There's a wonderful mental health team here, you know, if you're feeling sad, if you're feeling afraid, if you're feeling hopeless, if you're feeling something maybe you don't even understand, come to one of them and talk," she advised. "And after this is over, this moment, and you move on to going home, or not, if that happens. Remember this moment right now and let's keep the faith together."
She also reminded those who are affected to keep in tune with their mental health: "Please, do not discount your mental health during this time. It is so important that you take care of what's going on in your head and in your heart, because what you feel now is going to feel very different next week. And it's going to feel different the week after that and a month from that and maybe even a year," she said, before issuing a call for unity. "So, let's just, in this moment, I want to be respectful of everybody here...We are probably not all of the same denomination. We might not all be religious, but I would just like to make a pact with you, in this room right now, that I will be with you every step of the way, even the second that I leave this room. I love you and you're gonna get through this, and we're going to get through this together."
(Watch the video of her speech here.)
To help families affected by the Woolsey Fire, you can make a donation to the Hill Fire/Woolsey Fire Sudden and Urgent Needs Effort Fund or the Red Cross.
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