Charlotte Phillipp is a Weekend Writer-Reporter at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2024, and was previously an entertainment reporter at The Messenger.
Jennifer Garner says she lost a friend as destruction tore through her Los Angeles neighborhood amid the Palisades and Eaton fires.
On Friday, Jan. 10, the actress, 52, spoke candidly on MSNBC alongside World Central Kitchen's Chef José Andrés and anchor Katy Tur about the death of one of her friends from her church.
"I did lose a friend, and for our church, it's really tender so I don't feel like we should talk about it yet," Garner said, her voice cracking. "I did lose a friend. She didn't get out in time."
Garner was working alongside Andrés as a volunteer at one of his several pop-up locations around Los Angeles County to feed evacuees who fled the fires.
"My heart bleeds for my friends," Garner continued. "I mean, I can think of 100 families, and there are 5,000 homes lost. I can -- without even [thinking] -- I could just write out a list of 100 friends who lost their homes."
"I feel almost guilty walking through my house," she continued. "You know, what can I do? How can I help? What can I offer? What do I have to offer with these hands and these walls and the safety that I have?"
The mom-of-three was photographed serving food to firefighters battling the blaze through World Central Kitchen.
Elsewhere in the interview, Garner praised Andrés, 55, and his mission to help serve the community through World Central Kitchen amid the tragic fires.
"It is an incredible thing to watch," Garner told Tur, 41. "World Central Kitchen and Chef José just come in and... 'We've got you. We've got this handled. Don't worry.' "
"I've lived in and around the Palisades for 25 years, so I just think all of us, we want to get our hands into working, somehow, to be helpful," she added. "And because of my work with Save The Children, we have a relationship with the chef, and I was able to just say, 'Can I be with you for the day? What can I do to help? Put me to work.' "
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The Palisades Fire, which broke out on Tuesday, remains the largest fire ravaging Los Angeles County. The fire has destroyed over 21,000 acres in Pacific Palisades and Malibu and is currently only 8% contained.
Residents, including many celebrities, from areas such as Malibu, Santa Monica, Altadena and more, were forced to evacuate. Adam Brody and Leighton Meester, Anna Faris, Cobie Smulders and Taran Killam, John Goodman, Jennifer Grey and others all lost homes. Billy Crystal, Ricki Lake, Cameron Mathison, Miles Teller and Paris Hilton are among the stars who have confirmed their homes are gone.
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