A fund was set up on March 2 to support the family of Shawna Lynn Jones, the 22-year-old inmate firefighter who died battling a brush fire in the Santa Monica Mountains above Malibu two months ago. Following her father’s death from cancer last year, she is survived by her mother Diana and two younger siblings, Daniel and Ashley.
The “Shawna Lynn Jones Fund” is being administered by the charitable hand of the Firefighters First Credit Union in response to the Malibu community’s desire to help. According to Robin McCarthy, an employee at the fund, “about $4,000” has been collected so far.
Shortly after news broke about Jones’ passing, there was immediate reaction from the Malibu community to express gratitude for the firefighting daughter who lost her life protecting the city. Mayor Pro Tem Lou La Monte has been running public service ads on KBU radio, urging citizens to contribute to the fund, and Jones has also been discussed at City Council.
Jones was the first female inmate in state history to lose her life while battling a wildfire, according to the California Department of Corrections. Jones, a Lancaster native, joined the firefighter program at the all-female Fire Camp 13 in Malibu last year. Officials said she was hit in the head by a boulder that fell about 100 feet from the hillside above while battling a seven-acre brush fire near Mulholland Highway, working as part of a hand crew in a steep ravine.
To contribute to Jones’ fund go to firefamilyfoundation.org.