Bozoma Saint John, who was up for AUNTIE MAGAZINE‘s 2024 Auntie of the Year honor, is grieving the loss of the home she “prayed for” and “worked in blood, sweat and tears for,” as a result of the mass fires in Los Angeles. The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills cast member shared her grief in a heartfelt caption on Instagram along with photos that showed the beauty of the home that Boz built. The business savvy founder secured the home not for herself and daughter Lael, but for loved ones to enjoy as well—and she had to jump hurdles to do so.
“This is the house where I found peace after battling with racist neighbors and a community that made me have to buy it in a trust within a trust so no one would know that [a] widowed, single Black woman with a teenager was buying on the exclusively-held beach,” Bozoma captioned.
“This was my EFF YOU I’m here house. The house that I built a movie room dedicated to my sister so she could see her films in her own sanctuary. This is the house where I finally felt like I could choose to spend time… when I wanted to and how I wanted to.”
She continued: “It is gone.”
Over 11,000 IG users commented with care and concern and left kind regards.
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Saint John, known as Badass Boz, has been putting that work in for sometime now. Boz shook up a number of corporate rooms as the first Black woman executive to head global marketing for Apple in 2014; as chief brand officer of Uber in 2017; and as a chief marketing officer of Netflix. The Ghanaian-American added author to her repertoire in 2023 with the release of her memoir, The Urgent Life. Shortly after becoming a member of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Boz announced her latest endeavor, Eve By Boz, a wig collection and company.
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According to AP NEWS, Saint. John’s home is one of 10,000 structures damaged by fires that destroyed the Altadena, Hollywood Hills, Malibu and Pacific Palisades neighborhoods in Los Angeles; along with Jhene Aiko and Tina Knowles who also took to Instagram to share their loss. Knowles echoed Saint. John’s sentiment, stating that her home was her “favorite place, my sanctuary, my sacred Happy Place. Now it is gone.”
Aiko confirmed her family’s home is also “gone” and “burned to the ground,” with their belongings. “Lord have mercy,” the singer said. “Thankful we still have each other starting from scratch. My heart is so heavy.”
The Los Angeles wildfires have been ongoing with the first starting the morning of Jan. 7 in the Palisades region. By Jan. 10, four other fires sparked and are all under investigation. Roughly 130,000 have evacuated for safety, LA Times reported. Ten people have died by fire according to CNN.
Deep regards go out to those who have suffered loss—both physical and materially. AUNTIE will continue to follow this national tragedy and share new developments.
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