Francisca Gunawardena had saved up for years to buy the house she was renting on Lake Avenue in Altadena. It’s where she ran her daycare, and in 2023, it was finally hers.
She spent months fixing up the indoor and outdoor play areas, and remodeled the kitchen where the children ate the meals she cooked for them.
“ I was so happy,” Gunawardena said. She had been a renter since she immigrated to the United States from Sri Lanka in 1999. Then came January’s Eaton Fire…