January 2026 Burn Bulletin

Central California

On December 6th, the Central Valley came together for our annual Holiday Party at the Clovis Rodeo Grounds in Clovis, CA. We had around 160 people in attendance which included burn survivors, family members, and volunteers who enjoyed a day filled with holiday crafts, cookie decorating, pictures with Santa, presents and great company. The energy that filled the room is a wonderful reminder of the strength and connection our community shares. Thank you to everyone who joined us and helped make the day so special.

AARBF would also like to thank all of our Central Valley Toy Drive sponsors for helping to make the AARBF Holiday Party a success. For the 3rd year, the Central Valley Firefighters Credit Union, Leon S Peter Burn Unit at CRMC, FCC Fire Academy Class 64, and the Sierra High School CSF collected toys for Santa to hand out this past Saturday. Your dedication to supporting the Central Valley burn community brings holiday joy to many. We appreciate your support. 

Southern California

December 7th was one for the books.

We celebrated the holiday season at theannual Southern California Holiday Party, and it was an unforgettable day. Everyone enjoyed visiting with one another, creating festive holiday crafts, snapping photos with Santa, and even interacting with several Avengers who stopped by to spread some cheer.

A heartfelt thank you to our incredible volunteers for making the day so special for the 25 burn survivor families in attendance. Your dedication and kindness truly shine.

We greatly appreciate the support of the Children’s Burn Foundation for their generous toy donation that helped make the event even more magical. 

Northern California

The holiday celebrations continued into the next weekend, December 13th and 14th, with parties taking place in San Jose and San Francisco. At the UCSF-Hyde (St Francis Hospital) on the 13th, we partnered with burn unit and hospital staff to welcome 85 guests. In San Jose, we were privileged to work with the San Jose Firefighters Burn Foundation where we experienced an evening get-together welcoming 28 families.

Thank you to our holiday party partners and fabulous volunteers for creating holiday fun for our burn survivors and their families.

On Saturday, Dec 6th, AARBF’s Director, Katrina Arthur; Care Manager, Michael Knopf; and Board President, Dave Miller, along with volunteer Knuckles and burn survivor Leif, attended the Camp Ocean Pines Legacy dinner. We were honored to be recognized as one of the 2025 Legacy Champions. In accepting, Michael shared the strong legacy our partnership with Camp Ocean Pines has had on not only him but also on survivors who attend our Young Adult Summit and Adult Retreat, helping build strong life skills, community bonds, and a sense of “Camp Magic” that can be found between the pines and shore of Camp Ocean Pines.

AARBF would like to congratulate Class 64 on their graduation from the Fresno City College Fire Academy on December 6th. At the event, AARBF’s Katrina Arthur took the opportunity to recognize the essential support Class 64 provided the foundation through both volunteerism and fundraising. This group of aspiring firefighters raised $2,085 for AARBF’s programs and services and also helped set up and serve dinner at the 15th Annual AARBF Dinner & Dance Their commitment to service helped the Dinner event to raise $45,440. As this new generation of firefighters join departments across the state, we look forward to seeing them again as partners, volunteers, and supporters of the Alisa Ann Ruch Burn Foundation. 

On December 11th, Katrina Arthur joined the members of the TCSA Central Valley Chapter for their annual Holiday Luncheon. For the third year, members of the Traffic Controllers Supervisors Association donated toys to four families in need of extra support this holiday season. Their generosity is mirrored in the joy on the faces of the burn survivors and their families as they receive the toys. Thank you to members of TCSA from the communities of Clovis, Fresno, Madera, Tulare, Kings, and Kern County. Thank you to the City of Fresno Fire Department and the Leon S. Peters Burn Unit at CRMC for hosting the families.

On December 14th, AARBF’s Care Manager, Martha Banks joined Board Member Ché Ochtli at UCI Medical Center’s Winter Celebration.

Martha had a wonderful time reconnecting with members of our burn community and making new friends. As part of her role, she visits UCI’s burn unit weekly to provide care and support.

We are so grateful for our ongoing partnership with UCI and look forward to finding even more ways to collaborate in the coming year.  

We are very grateful to the volunteers, donors, and supporters of the Alisa Ann Ruch Burn Foundation. With you, our team accomplished so much for burn survivors and their families as well as furthering our reach in fire and burn prevention education in 2025. Below are the numbers of survivors, families, and community members we reached this past year.

For survivors and their families:

Camps and Recreation attendance = 769
Support Group attendance = 520
Peer Support sessions = 388
Hospital Visits = 538
Therapy Grant sessions = 40

Expansion to our fire and burn prevention education included:

Firefighters in Safety Education (FISE) welcomed a new agency reaching an additional 4,000 elementary students. Our FISE program typically reaches over 30,000 elementary students each year.

Wildfire P.R.E.P.A.R.E. reached 6,000 new households within a targeted campaign in Fresno County. In late 2025, we received additional grant funding to expand further into Fresno County as well as Riverside County.

Our partnership with Pyramid Educational Consultants added the “Toys vs Tools” lesson to our N.I.C.K. (Neurotypical/diverse Independent Communication Kit) for Fire and Burn Safety program.

For everyone who volunteered, donated, shared our posts, attended our events, invited us to your events, these accomplishments are your accomplishments. Thank you to our burn community for an impactful 2025. We look forward to accomplishing even more in 2026.

We are honored to celebrate Alberto Hernandez, a true pillar of the AARBF community. Burned at just 9 months old, Alberto carries hidden scars but has never let them define him. Since joining AARBF in 2000, Alberto has dedicated his life supporting burn survivors and their families with compassion and strength.

Since he became SOAR-trained, Alberto has been visiting the UCLA burn unit weekly, offering hope and encouragement to patients. He has volunteered as a bus chaperone for Champ Camp, ensuring campers arrive safe, and he has been bringing joy to our holiday parties, making every gathering brighter.

Alberto is not only a compassionate listener and communicator, but also a shining example of resilience and service. His commitment inspires us all, and we are deeply grateful for the countless lives he has touched.

We appreciate Alberto for his unwavering dedication to AARBF.

Young Adult Summit and The Adult Retreat

Applications for the Young Adult Summit “YAS” (burn survivors ages 16-20) and the Adult Retreat (burn survivors ages 21+) opened in December. Both events are happening the same dates, President’s Day Weekend, February 13-16, 2026. Registration will close on January 23, 2026.

Register today: http://app.campdoc.com/register/aarbf

Please note: Due to limited space, the submission of your application does not guarantee your attendance. Please complete your application in full as soon as possible and you will be informed by our Camps and Recreation Manager directly if your participation/attendance is confirmed or waitlisted. We appreciate your understanding, if you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to Erika “Kika” at emendoza@aarbf.org.

Champ Camp

Champ Camp registration is open for all levels. This years’ camp will be held June 6-13, 2026. Please note, we have three deadlines for this year.

Counselors – must complete your registration by January 31, 2026

Counselors in Training (CITs) – must complete your registration by January 31, 2026

Campers – parents must complete their child’s registration by May 22, 2026

Register today at http://app.campdoc.com/register/aarbf

For more information, please contact Erika “Kika” Mendoza at emendoza@aarbf.org. 

Join us for the first What Now Workshop for 2026. We will be discussing next steps in the recovery process and how to create achievable goals. Caregivers are encouraged to attend.

When: January 22 at 7:00PM PT
Registration: https://tinyurl.com/nhzhk6uf
Questions: contact Martha Banks at mbanks@aarbf.org

We look forward to seeing you.