LOS ANGELES — Shaw Zhao felt a sense of dread before his arrival in Los Angeles last week, knowing that his father’s neighborhood was in an evacuation zone amid the raging wildfires that swept through the area. He hadn’t received any communication from his 84-year-old father the night prior, which heightened his concern.
Upon landing, Zhao encountered police barriers as he made his way from the airport to his father, Zhi-feng Zhao’s home located in Altadena. Not deterred, he sought refuge in an evacuation shelter, combing through the rows of beds in a desperate search for the familiar figure of his father, but to no avail. The following day, he managed to enter the neighborhood on foot, aided by a Lyft driver and his wife, whom he had just met, as they traveled together for over an hour.
As Zhao neared his father’s residence, he was met with devastation; nearly every house on the block had disappeared. A coyote wandered through the ruins where his father’s home once stood. Upon investigating, Zhao found himself horrified to discover his father’s remains, bringing him to tears as he grappled with the loss.
Zhi-feng Zhao was one of at least 25 victims of one of the most destructive natural disasters to impact Southern California. His son recounted that Zhi-feng immigrated from China to the United States in 1989. Orphaned at a young age and growing up in poverty, he earned degrees in mathematics and mechanical engineering. However, after arriving in the U.S., he faced challenges continuing in his academic field due to language barriers and ultimately turned to the restaurant industry for work.
In 2003, Shaw Zhao purchased the Altadena home for his parents. His mother, a local Chinese schoolteacher, passed away from cancer in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, terrified of being isolated from her family if she went to the hospital for treatment.
The couple cherished their home near Pasadena, which featured a tree in the yard that produced an abundant supply of avocados each year for themselves and their neighbors. “He just loved the peace, the fresh air above Altadena,” Shaw Zhao said of his father, who was a vibrant hiker, remaining active and strong until his wife’s death. After that loss, he had needed assistance from a caregiver, who fortunately was away when the wildfire struck.
The fire consumed a trove of cherished memories, including old photographs of his parents, his mother’s extensive stamp collection, and sweaters she had lovingly knitted for him prior to her cancer diagnosis. One of his father’s poignant pieces of advice had been, “Shaw, Mom will leave you. But you will always have something to warm your body.”
Shaw Zhao plans to bring the ashes of both parents back to China, where they have adjacent burial plots in Shanghai. He is also determined to rebuild their home, even as a resident of Portland, Oregon. Zhao reflected on his close bond with his father, describing him as a “smart and talented” man who often offered guidance on standing up for oneself and facing life’s challenges.
During visits to Los Angeles, his parents would delight in preparing meals, especially fish, his favorite dish. Even when his father’s ability to cook waned, he would direct his caregiver to whip up meals or order authentic Shanghainese cuisine from Alhambra, an area in Los Angeles known for its large Chinese community.
In their last conversation, just a day before Zhao flew to Los Angeles, his father expressed his enduring love and care, asking, “When will you be here at home? What do you want to eat?”
