At only 20 years old, Nina Hungerland has spent enough of her youth in Malibu to develop a strong sense of community. According to those who nominated her, Hungerland is “quiet and unassuming,” but you’d never know it from her actions during the Woolsey Fire. The 2016 Malibu High School graduate and self-described animal lover took it upon herself to rescue three horses and stay with them overnight at Zuma Beach under bleak conditions with no supplies and cut off from the rest of the community. During the chaos of the week that followed, Hungerland fed animals in the area that were stranded when their owners couldn’t get back into town, helped to cook and feed stranded people, washed dishes after community meals, made welfare checks on neighbors and put out spot fires. Hungerland was also instrumental in assisting efforts to bring in supplies from outside Malibu. Many credit her selfless courage and energy in helping to save or limit the damage to their properties all while on little to no sleep.
“I’m beyond honored and overwhelmed,” the young woman told The Malibu Times regarding her Dolphin honors. Hungerland credited many others with helping her—some by name others she says she may never know.