By STEVE GALLUZZO | Sports Editor
Rummy Goodyear was only 14 years old when he lost his home in the Palisades fire on January 7. Yet, he was determined to help his community heal.
Seeking a way to channel his grief into something positive for his community and the entire city, the eighth-grader recruited his friends and peers to help make seed bombs, tiny balls of native wildflower seeds, clay and compost to share and spread in fire-ravaged neighborhoods.
“It’s a small ball formed from seeds, oil, clay and water,” Goodyear described. “It’s about the size of a meatball. You scatter it, give it a bit of water and it sprouts into a patch of flowers.”
In its first six months, the Seed Bomb Project has distributed more than 3,000 seed bombs to stakeholders from Altadena to Pacific Palisades, helping heal Los Angeles one wildflower at a time.
“Our mission is to share native wildflower seeds with fire-impacted communities as a way to heal our neighborhoods and ourselves,” Goodyear said. “We use special ‘fire-following’ species, like California poppies and bush sunflowers, which restore the ecosystem, detoxify the soil and make our neighborhoods more resilient in the face of future disasters.”
It has been a busy fall for Goodyear and his team: In September they handed out seed bombs to Altadena neighbors affected by the Eaton fire at the Aveson School of Leaders. On October 1, they gave away more seed bombs in Pasadena at the launch of TREEAMS, a program, spearheaded by Margarita Pagliai, head of school at Seven Arrows and founder of both Seven Arrows and Little Dolphins by the Sea preschool, to plant 5,000 native trees in LA County.
One week later, they met nonprofit and civic leaders at the fourth annual LA2050 Grantee Showcase, and launched a mapping project so they can track their impact around the Southland.
Seed Bomb Project set up a booth at Palisades Charter Elementary School’s annual Yee Haw Day on October 18 at Brentwood Elementary Science Magnet.
“We made 591 seed bombs and gave away 200 more,” Goodyear said. “It was awesome.”
On October 26, they joined Steadfast LA to plant hundreds of seed bombs along Sunset Boulevard, south of Palisades Village, from Monument to Hartzell. At that event they also introduced Steadfast LA Founder Rick Caruso to seed bombing with the help of Los Angeles Fire Department Station 69.
“We also saw the first shoots from the seed bombs we planted at our cleared lot in the Alphabet Streets,” Goodyear added. “It rained on a Tuesday and by Friday we had growth. We sincerely thank Eli Johnson and Nicole Gyarmathy from Johnson Tree Company for helping make our dream of turning cleared lots into wildflower meadows a reality.”
Seed Bomb Project has received fiscal sponsorship from Malibu-based Creative Visions Foundation so it can get tax-deductible donations that will allow it to grow. The Goodyears are looking for volunteers to help package seed bombs at a home in Santa Monica on November 30. To help, email rummy@theseedbombproject.com and write “11/30/25 volunteer” in the subject line.
“We’ll be giving seed bombs to fire-affected families at Home for the Holidays, an immense winter wonderland experience created by our friends at Your Next Door Neighbor,” Goodyear said. “We’ll also be running a seed bomb making workshop, so come get your hands dirty with us.”
On December 16, Seed Bomb Project members will be handing out seed bombs while demonstrating best practices for planting.
Anyone interested in turning their lot in the Alphabet Streets into a meadow should meet at the corner of Hartzell and Carey from 1 to 4 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own trowel.
Goodyear grew up in the Alphabet Streets, attending kindergarten at Seven Arrows and playing basketball and tennis at the Palisades Recreation Center. He hopes his project creates a visual symbol of hope and a literal site of renewal for area residents.
Visit theseedbombproject.com or instagram.com/theseedbombproject
to learn more.











