Exclusive: Meghan Markle's Behind-the-Scenes Help "Made the Biggest Difference" for Altadena Girls Fire Relief

When devastating wildfires swept through Southern California in January, 14-year-old Avery Colvert knew she had to do something. What she didn’t expect was for Meghan Markle and the Archewell Foundation to lend a helping hand in what Colvert says has turned her charity, Altadena Girls, from a temporary relief effort into a full-blown nonprofit organization.

The eighth-grade student tells Marie Claire that while her Altadena home was spared in the Eaton fire, her school, the Eliot Arts Magnet Academy, was not. “I felt really bad that I didn't lose my home because almost everybody I knew lost everything in the fire,” she shares. “Their homes, their cars, their everything, all their stuff.”

In the days following, Colvert gathered clothing to help local wildfire victims. Then she and stepdad Matt Chait had an idea: They would “collect some clothes from whomever will donate” and “have a little bit of a free fair for one day.” Colvert decided to also include products like skincare, accessories and makeup—“exactly what a teenage girl would want.” A friend of her stepdad's offered his creative space, Small Green Door, for them to use.

“It was supposed to be a weeklong plan,” Colvert says with a laugh. However, word quickly spread and “within probably 30 minutes of releasing the location” there were “trucks lined up down the street donating items.” Girls from around the area flocked to their temporary space to shop. One day, Shauna Nep, the co-executive director of the Archewell Foundation, called.

When Avery's stepdad told her that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s foundation wanted to get involved, Colvert says she “just started to break down crying.” In the following days, celebrities like Paris Hilton and Ariana Grande shared Altadena Girls's story and major brands—including Grande's R.E.M. Beauty and Bella Hadid's Orebella—sent in donations.

“Meghan is so incredibly kind,” the Altadena Girls founder continues. “She was so excited to help.” After the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were spotted volunteering at a Los Angeles food bank and Meghan appeared in an Instagram Reel from Altadena Girls, numerous "royal experts" claimed the duchess was just looking for a photo opp.

Colvert says she finds the claims “ridiculous.” “They’re like, ‘Oh she came in and she just dropped her stuff off and left. People weren’t there,” she shares, explaining that Meghan “came in with bags of clothing from her own closet” and “was there for multiple hours in a day.” The duchess even “got stylist training” so she could help girls choose outfits and accessories.

“For all the girls that were coming in, they got to be styled by Meghan Markle,” Colvert continues, noting that some clients “came in and just completely broke down” when they saw the duchess there.

As for her stepdad, Chait, he says he was in shock at how long Meghan—who recently spoke with Marie Claire about her work with the Southern California Welcome Project—stayed and helped. “She was carrying out bags to people’s cars,” Colvert says.

But the Archewell Foundation’s support “has continued beyond just that day,” as Chait tells Marie Claire. “They’ve continued to open lots of doors for us and make connections,” he says. When it came to Altadena Girls’s new permanent space, which opened in Pasadena last week, Archewell even helped them “to secure the building,” Chait says.

Without a school to attend, or the ability for many students to take online lessons, Avery and her friends have found themselves out of class for the time being. As Chait points out, local students “can't do remote [learning] like during Covid because most of the kids' laptops burnt in their homes.” He continues that "all of these kids are home with their parents if they even have homes...they're not in schools and the other schools don't want to absorb a bajillion kids."

But as his stepdaughter has worked to build her organization, she’s learned invaluable lessons about “charity and team-building and giving back,” Chait points out.

Altadena Girls is now fiscally sponsored by the Edward Charles Foundation, a California-based charity that funds nonprofits, and is applying for its own 501(c)(3) status. Chait notes that while Altadena Girls is run under the Edward Charles Foundation's infrastructure and board, he and Avery are "very involved" in shaping its future.

As for that future, Altadena Girls has now become "a long-term solution” to help girls in need, Colvert says, and not just a project to address the wildfires. Along with providing clothing and other items, mental wellness services—which Altadena Girls is already offering—will be at the heart of the organization’s new 12,000-square-foot permanent space in Pasadena. The building will also give kids who have lost their schools and activities a safe place to gather.

“There’s going to be therapy services, we're going to build out a dance room and have dance classes and yoga classes,” Colvert says of Altadena Girls's new HQ, which, of course, also includes a free storefront where girls can shop. Chait adds several national brands have reached out to provide funding for the activity rooms. "This isn't like a pipe dream right now," he says. "We signed a long-term lease."

Discussing their aim for a "fun, clean, beautiful" spot, Chait says he and Avery wanted to give teens and families "a core memory" rather than feel uncomfortable asking for assistance. Making their building "not feel like a place where you were getting help, but feel like simply a positive experience" is critical to Altadena Girls, he says. "On any day of the week, on any year, how special would it be to make an appointment and go in and get a free shopping trip with the stylist? That's just a cool thing anytime, any day, anywhere."

While Altadena Girls has been lucky to receive support from the likes of Kerry Washington—whose birthday party the duchess recently attended—along with Charlie XCX, Mindy Kaling, Skims and Huda Beauty, Chait calls their relationship with the Archewell Foundation “the most surprising and really consequential” connection to date. “It really made the biggest difference,” he says.

To learn more and help girls impacted by the Los Angeles fires, visit Altadenagirls.org.