All posts by : Lisa Poon

By Lisa Poon, CPA, Chief Financial Officer, ACC Senior Services

2020 is undoubtedly a year we will never forget, yet one most of us are glad to see coming to an end. We kicked off 2020 with the usual excitement that a new year brings – plans to fill up our beautiful new facility, ACC Maple Tree Village; sprucing up ACC Greenhaven Terrace with fresh décor; new window treatments and bed linens at the ACC Care Center; and continuance of lifelong learning and social services provided through ACC Home and Community Based Programs.

And then came the global pandemic. March 2020 is a date that is imprinted in all of our minds, a date where the term “normal” took on a whole new meaning. We’ve seen the pandemic have the most significant impact on our senior population, the very people ACC has been serving every day for almost 50 years. Restrictions on where they can go and whom they can see has put an incredible strain on them and their family caregivers. The cancellation of in-person classes and workshops at ACC has further increased feelings of isolation. We long for the days when we can greet our friends with a hug or a handshake. 

However, rather than give in to the urge to raise the white flag, ACC has risen to the challenge and has vowed to keep our seniors healthy and safe, and to provide the best and most “normal” life possible. As 2020 comes to an end, we hope you can make a generous year-end gift to help ACC continue its remarkable work to:

• Protect the health and safety of our residents, staff, and volunteers
• Keep seniors engaged through new online services such as virtual classes, workshops and support groups
• Provide transportation for essential appointments
• Create a “No Wrong Door” social services system for our community

Since the last publishing of ACC News, we have spent approximately $73,000 on COVID-19 testing and over $20,000 on Personal Protective Equipment. We ramped up ACC Online Learning with hundreds of seniors participating. With funding from SMUD, ACC purchased 50 laptop computers to help seniors develop computer skills and find employment.

Our employees in skilled nursing, assisted living, and our home and community based program departments have never been so resourceful and are the true heroes of ACC. With your year-end support, they can continue to rise to the challenges posed by COVID-19.

Bring it on, 2021 – we are ready for you!

The original definition of philanthropy is “love of humanity.” The word was coined over 2,500 years ago by the Greeks in the tale of Prometheus. The tale goes like this – the tyrannical king of the gods, Zeus, wanted to destroy the primitive humans. Enter protagonist, Prometheus, who empowered the humans by giving them the gifts of fire and blind hope (aka optimism). Fire was symbolic of knowledge, skills, technology, arts and science; together with optimism, humans could use fire constructively to improve their conditions. What Prometheus loved was the human potential and what they could become with fire and blind hope.

Today, Merriam-Webster defines philanthropy as “goodwill to fellow members of the human race” and “an act or gift done or made for humanitarian purposes.”  Some of the most well-known philanthropists are Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller; but many of us are also philanthropists (on a much smaller scale, of course).  It was, in fact, a group of individuals who embodied both the historical and modern definitions of the word philanthropy that created the concept of ACC.

Philanthropy has been a part of ACC from day one when the organization was established in 1972 through the volunteer efforts of local community leaders.  ACC’s flagship building, the ACC Care Center, a 99-bed skilled nursing facility, is the direct result of philanthropic efforts that included the first capital campaign and countless volunteer hours dedicated to weekly bingo sessions to raise the initial funds needed for construction.  From here, philanthropic efforts expanded to include recurring fundraising events such as the beloved Care Center Fundraiser, Golf Tournament, Craft & Bake Sale, and, more recently, the Big Day of Giving.

Along with the expansion of philanthropic efforts came the first hire to support fund development, a part-time student who was tasked with basic donor and gift entry and acknowledgement.  A Fund Development Officer and full time Fund Development Assistant were later added.  Today, we have a fantastic team that has a tremendous amount of respect for the history of ACC yet is very optimistic about the future.  ACC was fortunate to find Phong Luu, Donor Services Manager, who was hired in November 2019.  Phong, a recent Bay Area transplant, came to ACC with many years of experience working in fund development for large private foundations and nonprofit organizations.  Thyan Pham was initially hired as an Executive Assistant in March 2018 but is in the process of transitioning to Fund Development and has assumed the lead role in coordinating the quarterly newsletters and direct mail campaigns.  Angela Roberts, whom many of you already know, has been helping out due to the recent uptick in Meals on Wheels by ACC donations; and Nina Fong, On-Call Fund Development Aide, rounds out the department.

Phong regularly poses the question, “What does philanthropy mean to ACC?”  Tangible examples include having the newest technology at the ACC Care Center like the GeneXpert Xpress, a device that provides testing with results within 20 minutes for multiple viruses such as COVID-19, Flu, RSV and Strep; the 3M Bair Hugger temperature monitoring system; a computer lab at the ACC Campus; library at ACC Greenhaven Terrace; or one-of-a-kind artwork at ACC Maple Tree Village.  In recent months, philanthropy has enabled ACC to provide regular wellness checks via phone calls from volunteers and has included extra hours contributed by managers at the ACC Care Center during staff shortages in order to provide the highest level of service to our residents.

However, both the past and the future of philanthropy at ACC extends well beyond the handful of examples I just shared.  Philanthropy at ACC provides the means to offer enhanced services to our seniors that go above and beyond expectations.  This is the magic and foundation of ACC.

I’d like to invite you to read a new recurring section in ACC News, “Your Contributions at Work,” where the most recent philanthropic activity will be shared.  It only seems fitting that if we dedicate a portion to each newsletter in recognition of our donors, that we share how those proceeds are being used.

ACC is extremely fortunate to have the ongoing support of monetary donations and volunteer hours from individuals, families, and corporations.  It’s these contributions that will not only sustain, but help shape the future of ACC and its community of caring.

ACC Fund Development Committee

• Debi Llata, Co-chair
• Winston Ashizawa, Co-chair
• Evelyn Chin
• Jean Chong
• Norman Fong
• Lori Lee
• Mike Marando
• Sylvia Tang
• Helen Yee
• William Yee
• Jean Shiomoto (Ex-Officio)