Monday morning, as the Southern California rains poured down on us, the coastal town of La Conchita was buried in a devastating landslide. As of early this morning, there had been at least six confirmed deaths, one of them being a man named Charlie Womack.
Charlie was a member of The Clan Destino, the Burning Man camp that I have been affiliated with over the past two years. His remains were pulled out of the wreckage on Monday night, leaving behind four children of his own, Cory, Isaiah, ORyan, and Tessa, the youngest of which being a 15 year old girl. Charlie was a kind and generous man, whom I had the pleasure of meeting a number of times. He was a father figure, a well known musician, a DJ, a Burner, a mediator, a mentor, an avid surfer, and good samaritan. Charlie was the leader of the neighborhood, dubbed The La Conchita Llama Tribe, and is deeply loved by his friends, family, and neighbors. He was known as Charlie Llama, Uncle Charlie, or Papa Chonga.
Charlie did not have an uncharitable bone in his body. There were times that he put himself out on a limb, emptied his pockets and opened his home to others. To quote some of his friends:
Everything about Uncle Charlie was charitable, and in true elder fashion, his smile, his embrace, a good word, a glass of wine, and even his home were always available to those in need. I liked his humor, his wicked grin, and the sound of his voice. He spun great tracks. We jammed the guitars on many occasions. And I was truly impressed with how immediate his life was. He lived as he pleased, made no apologies, and followed his dreams in a rambling sort of way. El Dutche
On other occasions, he laid down his own money to fund events, such as Pavements End during the Summer of 2003, and paid for friends admissions into Burning Man, just so that he could share his experience, and his life, with others.
At the time of the landslide, he had been hosting a family of 6 in his home. The Wallet family was made up of mother Michelle, father Jimmie, and daughters Paloma, Hanna, Raven, and Jasmine. Jimmie and Jasmine are the only survivors. The home in which they all lived was irrevocably destroyed, along with all of their belongings.
Charlie was a father figure in a number of social circles, including the Clan Destino and the La Conchita Llama Tribe. Charlie had always been a provider for those in need, and now we are trying to raise money to help with the cost of funeral services, memorials, and to help the families of those who have lost loved ones in this tragedy. We will be hosting a number of fund raiser events in the local areas in the near future, and a number of Memorial Funds have been established already.
These funds include:
The Wallet Memorial Fund
The Delgado-Kennedy Memorial Fund
The Bryson Memorial Fund
The Charlie Womack Memorial Fund
The Alvis Memorial Fund
To make a donation to any of these funds, please send a check or money order payable to the family that you are contributing to, addressed to:
Santa Barbara Bank and Trust
250 South Mills Road
Ventura, CA 93003-3436
To donate directly via Pay Pal to the Charlie Womack Memorial Fund, please visit
The Clan Destino
I thank all of you for taking the time to read this, and my deepest condolences to anyone who has lost family or friends in the recent events.
-f.
The Clan Destino
Victims of La Conchita Relief Fund
Fund
VIEW 25 of 59 COMMENTS
Charlie was a member of The Clan Destino, the Burning Man camp that I have been affiliated with over the past two years. His remains were pulled out of the wreckage on Monday night, leaving behind four children of his own, Cory, Isaiah, ORyan, and Tessa, the youngest of which being a 15 year old girl. Charlie was a kind and generous man, whom I had the pleasure of meeting a number of times. He was a father figure, a well known musician, a DJ, a Burner, a mediator, a mentor, an avid surfer, and good samaritan. Charlie was the leader of the neighborhood, dubbed The La Conchita Llama Tribe, and is deeply loved by his friends, family, and neighbors. He was known as Charlie Llama, Uncle Charlie, or Papa Chonga.
Charlie did not have an uncharitable bone in his body. There were times that he put himself out on a limb, emptied his pockets and opened his home to others. To quote some of his friends:
Everything about Uncle Charlie was charitable, and in true elder fashion, his smile, his embrace, a good word, a glass of wine, and even his home were always available to those in need. I liked his humor, his wicked grin, and the sound of his voice. He spun great tracks. We jammed the guitars on many occasions. And I was truly impressed with how immediate his life was. He lived as he pleased, made no apologies, and followed his dreams in a rambling sort of way. El Dutche
On other occasions, he laid down his own money to fund events, such as Pavements End during the Summer of 2003, and paid for friends admissions into Burning Man, just so that he could share his experience, and his life, with others.
At the time of the landslide, he had been hosting a family of 6 in his home. The Wallet family was made up of mother Michelle, father Jimmie, and daughters Paloma, Hanna, Raven, and Jasmine. Jimmie and Jasmine are the only survivors. The home in which they all lived was irrevocably destroyed, along with all of their belongings.
Charlie was a father figure in a number of social circles, including the Clan Destino and the La Conchita Llama Tribe. Charlie had always been a provider for those in need, and now we are trying to raise money to help with the cost of funeral services, memorials, and to help the families of those who have lost loved ones in this tragedy. We will be hosting a number of fund raiser events in the local areas in the near future, and a number of Memorial Funds have been established already.
These funds include:
The Wallet Memorial Fund
The Delgado-Kennedy Memorial Fund
The Bryson Memorial Fund
The Charlie Womack Memorial Fund
The Alvis Memorial Fund
To make a donation to any of these funds, please send a check or money order payable to the family that you are contributing to, addressed to:
Santa Barbara Bank and Trust
250 South Mills Road
Ventura, CA 93003-3436
To donate directly via Pay Pal to the Charlie Womack Memorial Fund, please visit
The Clan Destino
I thank all of you for taking the time to read this, and my deepest condolences to anyone who has lost family or friends in the recent events.
-f.
The Clan Destino
Victims of La Conchita Relief Fund
Fund
VIEW 25 of 59 COMMENTS
datura:
Burning Man will be less without him, and I know his clan will find a way to raise his memory out there. It is sad to see him(I did not know him) and the other victims who lost their lives and/or homes in the slide. It is beautiful that you wrote of him, and the others lost, to share their memory with the rest of us. My thoughts to all who have lost,...
beyond_rhythm:
It's always so heart breaking to see such influential people go...but they leave their mark on the hearts of those they left and leave a part of their fire there. I know people will do great things in his honor...