As residents continue rebuilding in the aftermath of the devastating Palisades Fire, three local teenagers are doing their part by raising money for the community they love.
Mason Cohen, Jake Yoon and Dylan Fullmer — three 16-year-olds who are lifelong friends — founded Build Back Pali, a grassroots initiative focused on restoring public spaces, local businesses, community programs and more.
Since founding the initiative, their GoFundMe campaign has raised nearly $50,000 in five days. The friends said 100% of the proceeds will go towards local restoration projects.
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Dylan Fullmer, Jake Yoon and Mason Cohen are raising money for their hometown, the Pacific Palisades, through a grassroots initiative called Build Back Pali, with a focus on restoring the community they love. -
Dylan Fullmer, Jake Yoon and Mason Cohen are raising money for their hometown, the Pacific Palisades, through a grassroots initiative called Build Back Pali, with a focus on restoring the community they love. -
Dylan Fullmer, Jake Yoon and Mason Cohen are raising money for their hometown, the Pacific Palisades, through a grassroots initiative called Build Back Pali, with a focus on restoring the community they love. -
MALIBU, CA – January 08: Dozens of beachfront homes in Malibu, CA were destroyed overnight in the Palisades Fire on Wednesday, January 8, 2025. High winds escalated the spread of several blazes across Southern California. (Photo by David Crane/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News via Getty Images) -
Homes destroyed by the Palisades Fire are seen in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) -
A view of burned businesses in downtown Pacific Palisades following the massive Los Angeles fire ahead of President Donald Trump’s visit in Los Angeles on Jan. 24, 2025. ( Getty Images) -
In this aerial view taken from a helicopter, homes burned from the Palisade fire smolder near the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, California on January 9, 2025. Massive wildfires that engulfed whole neighborhoods and displaced thousands in Los Angeles remained totally uncontained January 9, 2025, authorities said, as US National Guard soldiers readied to hit the streets to help quell disorder. Swaths of the United States’ second-largest city lay in ruins, with smoke blanketing the sky and an acrid smell pervading almost every building. (Photo by JOSH EDELSON / AFP) (Photo by JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images) -
A burned out vehicle rests at a destroyed structure during the aftermath of Palisades Fire along Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, Calif., Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (Scott Strazzante/San Francisco Chronicle via AP) -
An aerial view shows the devastation from the Palisades Fire on beachfront homes Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025 in Malibu, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) -
Buildings and cars destroyed by the Palisades fire lay along the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California, on January 8, 2025. At least five people are now known to have died in wildfires raging around Los Angeles, with more deaths feared, law enforcement said January 8, as terrifying blazes leveled whole streets, torching cars and houses in minutes.
More than 1,000 buildings have burned in multiple wildfires that have erupted around America’s second biggest city, forcing tens of thousands of people from their homes. (Photo by Zoë Meyers / AFP) (Photo by ZOE MEYERS/AFP via Getty Images) -
A K9 unit from the Sheriff department searches for possible body remains in ashes of burned houses at Malibu Beach after ‘Palisades Fire’ in Los Angeles, California, United States on January 12, 2025. (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images) -
Properties damaged by the Palisades Fire are seen from a coastline perspective in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Friday, Jan. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) -
The devastation from the Palisades Fire is visible in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
“Seeing parts of our hometown burning, we just felt inspired to raise money for it,” said Fullmer.
“This is our entire childhood and we really want to restore this as fast as we can,” Yoon said.
The trio met in kindergarten and grew up together in the Pacific Palisades.
“From riding bikes through the canyons to celebrating the 4th of July parade, the Palisades has shaped so many of our favorite childhood memories,” the boys wrote on their website for the initiative. “That’s why we created Build Back Pali — to give back to the place that has given us so much. Our mission is to take all proceeds that we earn and donate it to local businesses to help the business owners, strengthen community ties, and preserve the unique spirit of the Palisades for future generations.”
A GoFundMe page accepting donations can be found here. More information about Build Back Pali can be found here.
