The Los Angeles Conservancy selected the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine as its 2025 Chair’s Preservation Award recipient for “extraordinary stewardship and dedication to preserving this historic and sacred space.”
“It’s a beautiful, serene, historic place that we and so many other Angelenos feared would be lost during those early days of the fire,” said Adrian Scott Fine, president and CEO of the Los Angeles Conservancy, referring to the Palisades Fire, which devastated so much of the Pacific Palisades in early January of this year. “Thank you for all your efforts, bravery, and well-planned response to the fire.”
In addition to an independent jury that honors a number of award recipients each year for excellence in historic preservation, the Los Angeles Conservancy board members recognize one special project for preservation excellence with its esteemed Board Chair’s Preservation Award.
Preservation Awards Celebration
Brother Saralananda, a member of the SRF Board of Directors, and Brother Satyananda, minister-in-charge at the SRF Lake Shrine Temple, accepted the Chair’s Award on behalf of the SRF president and spiritual head, Brother Chidananda, at the awards ceremony on April 23 held at the Founder’s Church of Religious Science, located in Koreatown.
The Los Angeles Conservancy produced a video feature on the SRF Lake Shrine, which includes a short interview with Brother Satyananda. This video was played at the 2025 Preservation Awards Ceremony.
“Our Chair’s Award recipient has long been a sacred sanctuary — a place of peace, spiritual reflection, and natural beauty. Through years of dedicated care and preservation, it has remained a refuge for generations of Angelenos,” said Steven McCall, Chair of the Los Angeles Conservancy Board of Directors.
“But recently, that refuge was nearly lost. Wildfires came dangerously close, threatening everything. And yet, it endured — thanks to the quick thinking and advanced preparation of community members and the steadfast leadership of those who’ve long protected it.
“Their courage and commitment didn’t just save a beloved place. They reminded us of something profound: that even in moments of danger and uncertainty, our shared values — and our shared love for these places — can bring us together and carry us through.”
The Los Angeles Conservancy has included a feature on the SRF Lake Shrine in its list of historic places in Los Angeles.
The preservation efforts of the Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine are a remarkable model of stewardship to protect this peaceful spiritual sanctuary against all odds, including Mother Nature.
Los Angeles Conservancy
“We are extremely grateful to the Los Angeles Conservancy for recognizing Self-Realization Fellowship’s stewardship and care of our beloved historic buildings and properties,” Brother Saralananda commented about this award.
“Having completed a few restoration projects over the past few decades, we have a deep appreciation for the additional workload carried by all the LA Conservancy award winners, past and present. For many, there’s an aspect of it being a labor of love, and so we offer our congratulations and deepest respect to all those team members who have accomplished the wonderful projects that the LA Conservancy has highlighted now and in past years.”
Self-Realization Fellowship now has legacy locations with buildings that are between about 75 and 116 years old — such as the SRF Lake Shrine, the SRF Hollywood Temple and Ashram Center, and the SRF International Headquarters — requiring efforts to preserve and protect these properties for many generations to come.
“Being recognized by the Los Angeles Conservancy provides a wonderful opportunity to celebrate and share the unique history and legacy of Paramahansa Yogananda and SRF in Los Angeles and that legacy’s lasting impact,” said Brother Satyananda.
“This moment is a great opportunity for us to remind people of all faiths or of no particular faith that they are welcome to enjoy the Lake Shrine (as soon as it reopens) and the other sanctuaries established by Yogananda. They can come and sit quietly and pray or meditate, or just enjoy the rejuvenating feeling they get from being in such a beautiful natural setting. These special places are each a safe and welcoming spiritual home for anyone seeking peace and love in this hectic, material world.”
You can read on a different blog post the latest update concerning the reopening of the SRF Lake Shrine, and of multiple recent occasions where SRF members who were affected by the wildfires this past January have been able to gather in divine fellowship with one another and with the support and encouragement of the SRF monks and nuns.
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I can only reiterate once again deep gratitude to the Asad family for their devotion and courage. You were channels...Master was working through you! Prayers for all affected by the fires are ongoing, and may Divine Mother shelter and support you all through this huge ongoing challenge. The Lake and Peace prevailed...Jai Guru.
Tank you tonthe Asad family.
This is incondicional Love!
God bless you....
Thank you for the video, some parts heartbreaking to watch but the world saw God and Guru’s blessing on this work and how crucial it is to be saved for generations to come. Much Thanks and blessings to Assad’s family. Jai Guru Jai Divine Mother
Beloved Guruji's Lake Shrine... a place where Gurudev worked tirelessly to make it a Sacred Sanctuary and where HE Communed with God. Today Lake Shrine stands as a Beacon of Light and Love,a testament to the devotion and dedication of all the Monastic family and Devotees . Eternally Grateful to Beloved Guruji for saving this Legacy for all to come and enjoy this Sanctuary....many many thanks to the Asad family for their tireless work.... we're all so Blessed to have our beautiful Lake Shrine....brings tears... Jai Guru !
To the Asad family: Namaste. Namaste. Namaste.
This shows Tremendous Will power ( power of Kriya Yoga)and devotion to God and Gurus by Asad family.
So much gratitude to the Asad family for preserving our Guru’s beautiful Lake Shrine.
May Love and Light of God always shine upon us.
A sudden rush of emotion and gratitude to the Asad family and the Los Angeles Conservancy came over me. I am so glad that the part the Asads played in this little drama is memorialized for all to appreciate, and that the beautiful Lake Shrine is so revered by the greater Los Angeles community. It is a place of peace, joy, love and hope. May it always be so! Jai Guru!
Thank you for this blessing Master. A beautiful example for each of us to gain inspiration and motivation to continue our love, loyalty, and devotion to God, SRF, our Guru Paramahansa Yogananda and our line of Gurus.
Blessings to Lake Shrine and Los Angeles. Jai Guru
Congratulations on this beautiful and well-deserved award! Jai Guru!
Dear Friends, how deeply touching to the soul, reading of all the help rendered, especially 'the labour of love' help and other restorative work that has gone into bringing back the 'legacy monuments' of our Beloved Guru who planted with his own divine hands, the very initial efforts of setting up this beautiful oasis of renewing tranquility for the many who will come later to partake of it's Peace and Love. Thank you so much.
Idf,
My husband and I just watched the video. Congratulations and thank you so much for bringing this to us. So much gratitude to the Asad family. A deep bow to you all.
Beautiful. It brings tears to my eyes. Much love to all. Peace.