Free bongs and a place to puff: how the L.A. cannabis crowd is helping fire victims
For the record:
11:45 a.m. Jan. 30, 2025: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified where the Embarc dispensary chain is based. It is based in Sacramento, not Arcadia.
Medical marijuana patients and other 21-and-older weed consumers who left behind their pipes, bongs, rolling trays and other pot paraphernalia in the recent wildfires in L.A. County can get new gear — free of charge — at six West Hollywood dispensaries through an accessories drive organized by the local cannabis community.
"Not everyone thinks about putting that stuff in their go bag," said Scott Schmidt, executive director of canna-business marketing organization Emerald Village West Hollywood, which spearheaded the effort with help from the Cannabis Chamber of Commerce and Los Angeles NORML.
Asked how the drive came about, Schmidt said: "We were really inspired by the generosity of folks that came out, donating clothes, donating water, diapers, first aid supplies and all of the necessities, but we weren't seeing that the cannabis community was being included in that ... Especially because of federal prohibitions, a lot of nonprofits probably don't want to touch any of these [cannabis-related] things.
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"And with 100,000 to 150,000 people evacuated, any number of those would be people who are regular users of cannabis and likely many medical patients who really rely on it," he said.
Last week, drop boxes were set up at at six local dispensaries, and the call went out to the cannabis community in search of unused dab rigs, bongs, vaporizers, pipes, rolling trays, grinders, odor-proof storage bags, pouches and containers, joint rollers and cone fillers, rolling papers, lighters and cleaning supplies for fire evacuees.
"Basically we can accept anything except hemp-based products or THC, which is for legal reasons," Schmidt said.
Under state law, dispensaries are prohibited from giving away cannabis products, and the only ones they can legally sell need to go through the Metrc track-and-trace program. Schmidt estimates that to date, $2,000 worth of gear has been collected.
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Impacted local residents hoping to replace that lost vape battery, pipe, stash jar or grinder can do so free of charge by heading to one of six West Hollywood dispensaries serving as distribution points: Calma West Hollywood (1155 N. La Brea Ave.), MedMen West Hollywood (8208 Santa Monica Blvd.), PleasureMed (7715 Santa Monica Blvd.), Urbn Leaf (8477 Sunset Blvd.), the Woods WeHo (8271 Santa Monica Blvd.) and the Artist Tree West Hollywood (8625 Santa Monica Blvd.) during regular business hours. (Schmidt said the dispensaries will cross reference addresses on valid, government-issued IDs — which are already required to enter a dispensary — with a list of fire-affected ZIP Codes to confirm eligibility.)
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In addition, the dispensaries with consumption lounges (the Artist Tree, the Woods and PleasureMed) are waiving cover charges and minimum purchase requirements for displaced card-carrying medical marijuana patients who want to smoke or vape on-site through Feb. 28. That's an effort to smooth out another wrinkle caused by the disconnect between state and federal law, Schmidt said.
"Federal rules prohibit cannabis patients from consuming — or even possessing — cannabis in [Federal Emergency Management Agency] housing," he said. "So if you're receiving FEMA assistance for housing — funding to stay in a hotel or to rent an apartment — you can't [legally] consume there."
A FEMA FAQ published in 2019 in the aftermath of the 2018 California wildfires confirms the prohibition against cannabis use in its manufactured housing units and temporary housing, but doesn't specifically address transitional shelter assistance, which funds short-term hotel stays and the like. Calls and emails on Wednesday to confirm further with FEMA were not returned as of press time.
For those interested in donating items, those distribution sites also serve as drop-off sites. "As for what we're looking for, everything from the very big to the very little," Schmidt said. "Dab rigs and gravity bongs are very expensive products, but pipes can start at five to $10. And there's [also the need for] grinders, rolling trays and rolling papers — all those little things people usually have to pay for."
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Additional aid efforts in the cannabis space include L.A.-based accessories maker Puffco's offer to replace devices its customers lost in the fires, a wildfire relief sesh and mixer at the Artist Tree Studio Cannabis Lounge on Friday (100% of the $20 ticket price and event purchases will benefit wildfire victims), a pledge by the Artist Tree to match up to $25,000 in donations to the California Community Foundation's Wildfire Recovery Fund and the United Cannabis Community Fire Relief Fund, a centralized GoFundMe campaign launched by Sacramento-based dispensary chain Embarc to benefit World Central Kitchen.
Additional information on the device and accessories drive can be found on the Emerald Village West Hollywood website.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
