All posts by : Ted Fong

Simone Nazzal is the Public Education Specialist for Cosumnes Fire (part of Cosumnes Community Services District), where she manages Community Risk Reduction programming aimed at promoting safety and wellness across the lifespan.

Previously, she acted as the Education and Outreach Coordinator at Del Oro Caregiver Resource Center in Sacramento, where she developed educational programs to draw awareness to caregiving issues and opportunities for informal caregivers to build community connections and sat on the statewide CRC system’s Education Committee.

A Stanford graduate, Simone serves on the Board of the Sacramento Stanford Alumni Association. In her spare time, she enjoys being an auntie (or “тетя”), acts as a Community Educator for the Alzheimer’s Association, participates in Salsa and aerobic dance, and stays active in her faith community, Midtown Church.

ACC is honored to host her interview series with authors who write about caregiving.

On Saturday, September 17, 2022, ACC Senior Services, along with community partners, hosted the ACC 50th Anniversary Ohana Walk. 750 people registered for this event, raising more than $55,000. At 8:00 am, under clear skies and cool weather, walkers young and old set out on the 2.5-mile Greenhaven Pocket Canal Parkway. The six stations along the route provided the perfect place for friends and families to reunite after being away for so long. Following the walk, ACC hosted a picnic on its main campus with food, live music, bingo, pickleball, shaved ice, face painting, and exhibit booths. A big thanks to Wayne Kurahara and the Ohana Walk Workgroup for bringing everyone together on such a perfect day!

Team Winners

Most Registered Walkers

• Friends of Parkview Presbyterian Church, 43

Most Pledges and Donations

• Saika Superstars, $6985 

Team with Greatest Distance Walked

Fong Bee Steppers, 88.5 miles

Most Team Spirit 

• Sakata Superstars

Greatest Distance Walked

Keiki (8 and Under), Youth (9-12), and
Teen (13-19) Age Groups Combined

• Sophia Ferguson 8.5 miles
• Max Imura 5 miles
• Nori Adachi 5 miles
• Eian Truong 4.9 miles
• Ruth Truong 4.9 miles
• Angela Fong 4 miles

Adult (20-59)

• Dina Louie 5.8 miles
• Jason Kodani 5.6 miles
• Mindy Takechi 5.5 miles
• Alex Takeda 5.5 miles
• Susan Takeda 5.5 miles
• Stephanie Shijo 5.5 miles

Senior (60-79)

• Judith Hall 6.5 miles
• Randy Mori 6.0 miles
• May Ng 6.0 miles
• Gary Matsumoto 6.0 miles
• Jeanne Mae Wong 5.6 miles
• Louise Teranishi 5.5 miles
• Teddi Chan 5.5 miles
• Gina Kato 5.5 miles
• Priscilla Jong 5.5 miles
• Sharon Arase 5.5 miles
• Wanda Kato 5.5 miles
• Pearl Lim 5.4 miles

Super Senior (80+)

• Betty Lee 5.0 miles
• Dennis Hashimoto 3.5 miles
• Gloria Imagire 3.0 miles
• Larry Tom 3.0 miles
• Elaine Saika 3.0 miles
• Judy Poon 2.7 miles

Most Pledges & Donations

Teddi Chan

• Randy Fong
• Claudia Nakata
• Nami Berg
• Sandra Okuno
• Eddie Fong
• Jan Yokoi
• Jackie Chan
• Janet Sakata
• Carla Nishimura

Youngest Walkers

• Keegan Fong 7 months old
• Emi Ishimoto 1 year old
• Max Imura 4 years old
• Jake Kurahara 4 years old
• Nori Adachi 4 years old

Oldest Walkers, 84-95 Years Old!

• Sumi Honda
• Helen Tom
• Ann Nakata
• Elsie Yun
• Judy Poon
• Esther Hokama
• Kathy Iseri
• Vicki Beaton
• June Kawamoto
• Gloria Imagire
• Betty Harada
• Bob Goldstein
• Larry Tom
• Yvonne Hatano
• Katsuko Hirota

Walking Teams and Member Count

• Friends of Parkview Presbyterian Church, 43
• In Memory of Marilyn Yee, 42
• Saika Family, 40
• Fong Bee Steppers, 37
• Pickleballers for ACC, 35
• ACC Programs Power Walkers, 32
• Placer Buddhist Church, 29
• Friends of Chinese Community Church, 29
• The Kurahara Ohana Team, 27
• Sacramento Buddhist Women’s Association, 26
• Gung Ho Post 696, 26
• Buddhist Church of Florin, 25
• Greenhaven Terrace Residents, 19
• SJUMC Small Groups, 18
• Scouts BSA, Buddhist Church of Sacramento, 15
• Buddhist Church of Sacramento, 14
• Sakata Superstars, 13
• Friends of the ACC Care Center, 13
• TGT Sport, 12
• Asian Resources, Inc., 12
• Sacramento Buddhist Church Jr. YBA, 12
• ACC Board Walkers, 11
• Girl Scout Troup 569, 11
• SASF, 11
• Florin JACL-SV, 9
• Meals on Wheels Walkers, 9
• The ABA Ohana, 8
• Golfers for ACC, 7
• Sacramento JACL, 7
• Friends of ACC Maple Tree Village, 7
• ACC Senior Leaders, 4
• The Goo Family, 4
• Friends of My Sister’s House, 4
• Wildcats of Franklin High School, 4
• In Memory of Janet Eng-Wong, 3
• ACC Music Groups, 3

T-Shirt Designer

• Aaron Louie

Photographers

• Jeff Jong
• Jeannie Fong
• Jonathan Sakakibara

Ohana Walk Workgroup

• Aaron Imura
• Bobby and Joanie Nishimoto
• Carolyn Murata
• Elaine and John Yoshikawa
• Elizabeth and Eric Fujii
• Gail Tanaka
• Lynn and Wayne Kurahara
• Mike Ota
• Ted Fong
• Titus Toyama

Introduction By Ted Fong

The ACC History Project started last year at the urging of Gloria Imagire who wanted to document ACC’s 50-year history “before all these people are gone!” We formed a workgroup whose regular members included Gloria Imagire, Hach Yasumura, Donna Yee, Frances Lee, Jean Shiomoto, and myself.  The Workgroup produced eight episodes of The ACC History Project, which were livestreamed on YouTube, Facebook, and Zoom. We also wrote several history articles for ACC News, which are posted at accsv.org/history.

Through it all, we learned that ACC’s early growth was 100% organic. No artificial ingredients, sweeteners, or preservatives. Just hard work and perseverance. A program usually started from an idea that someone had, and was willing to run with it, or a community need so obvious it could not be ignored. The people we interviewed talked about how everything ACC produced was from scratch. Year after year, through three generations of volunteers and staff, things got done. 

ACC’s grassroots history is unusual. To know its history is to know its strengths, which is helpful in planning its future. In the words of Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, “Life can only be understood backward, but it must be lived forward.” 

What follows on these pages are new testimonials and interviews for your study and enjoyment.

May O. Lee

Little did I know when I was hired as the Coordinator in 1976 by Chewy Ito, President of the then-called Japanese Community Center, that I would be part of a lasting 50-year legacy known as ACC Senior Services. Having come from the Seattle area where there was a visible and vital International District with its Chinatown, Japantown, and Filipino communities, I was at a loss trying to find something similar in Sacramento. I didn’t realize that redevelopment broke apart this community and only a semblance remained on 10th Street and parts of Broadway near the Southside Park area. Volunteering at first at JCC/ACC, I met lifetime friends like Peggy Saika, Wanda Chang Shironaka, Kathy Omachi, and, of course, Harriet Taniguchi who induced or influenced me to be part of the Asian American Movement where so many organizations evolved from ACC: Stepping Stones/Asian Pacific Community Counseling, Health for All. Upon receiving my degree in Social Work, I took over and started Asian Resources, Inc. 

 Hach Yasumura

I have always been active in advocacy and support for language and cultural access to health and human services. As a social worker for the Sacramento County Department of Social Welfare, I assisted our Asian and Latino Caucuses to develop a list of volunteer interpreters for our non-English/limited-English speaking clients. This was done in the early ’70s until the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors supported our efforts to have paid certified bilingual staff. We also supported the Dymally-Alatorre Bilingual Services Act which was signed into law in 1973.

Many of our established agencies were not sensitive to serving our non-English/limited-English speaking communities. We, in the Asian and Spanish-speaking communities, began to develop our community-based, nonprofit agencies in order to provide those services.

This was why I began to support having a community-based organization, Asian Community Services, which began in 1970 at the “Yellow House” on the grounds of Parkview Presbyterian Church. A group of us, members of the Asian community and many students from the local colleges, began to advocate and support language access and combat racism.

When the members of the Asian Community Services decided to disband, some of us felt it was necessary to continue. We eventually moved to George/Toshi Tambara’s rental house. Thus, we organized the Japanese Community Center of Sacramento Valley (JCC). The Board of JCC did a survey led by Leo Goto and Peggy Saika to determine the needs of the community. The survey indicated the need for senior citizen housing. The project was directed to expand its service to a broader Asian community. However, funding for senior citizen housing never materialized due to changes in federal funding. The project, led by “Chewy” Ito, Leo Goto, Earl Shiroi, and others, was then directed toward a possible Asian nursing care home. The organization changed its name from the Japanese Community Center to the Asian Community Center of Sacramento Valley.

Frances Lee

My time with ACC goes way back to 1980 when I joined the ACC Board. Since then, I have seen the amazing growth of ACC, the planning and building of our 99-bed care facility, the purchase of the Prudential building which is now the Meals on Wheels office, the purchase of Greenhaven Terrace, the purchase of the Merryhill School for the ACC offices and the building of Maple Tree Village. What a whirlwind this has been! I am so proud to have been an active part of the early years, especially my work with the volunteers at ACC Bingo and the annual Craft and Bake Sales.

Linda Revilla

During my years as Program Director, one of the things the Programs team really enjoyed doing were special events. We had legendary Lunar New Year’s luncheons with the Chung Mei Lion Dance Troupe; luncheons for Caregivers and their loved ones during National Caregiver Month; we brought Tom Ikeda from Densho, writer/filmmaker Frank Abe from Seattle, Judge C. Kobayashi, and more VIPs for our commemorations of Executive Order 9066; holiday parties with sing-alongs; concerts with Asian Pair; Open Mic nights; and one of my favorite memories, the Senior Senior Prom, where Lois and Keiji were crowned Prom Queen and King. I’ll never forget one woman who would call us up months in advance, to make sure we knew that she wanted to attend one of our holiday luncheons- she said she really looked forward to it every year. We knew that many older adults with no family often only had ACC to celebrate with. I appreciate the free reign we had to be creative and do fun and meaningful things for the community.

 Jessie Lee

The beginning of anything and everything is different for everyone. It can be a project that involves a few or hundreds of people or it can be a soul-searching way of life for oneself. One thing is for sure, whether it be for a community or for oneself, there must be a sense of commitment and dedication to realize an unmet need and/or to realize a dream. 

I became involved with the ACC for both reasons. When my mother got very ill in 1980, I floundered. I was lost. I had no one to turn to help me get through this difficult time. When she died in 1981, I struggled and stumbled through many stages of grief and the seeds were planted firmly in my mind. It was not right; no one should have to go through that turmoil. There was such a great unmet need for help not only for her but for me as well. 

I became actively involved in ACC several years later through volunteer work. I was nominated for the Board of Directors and was later elected president. Our main focus at that time was to increase our membership and to help pay off the debt on the nursing home. But we also had our dreams of an ACC office and a community center. During those early years, we were still holding our Board meetings in a conference room at the nursing home. Our dream at that time was to find a place to call ACC home and to have a community center where people could meet for information, education, socialization, and lots of fun and games. In 1996, we started on the journey to fulfill our dream. We started the search for a physical location. Dr. Vic Okamoto and I spent many hours looking at possible locations and meetings with agents. When Vic left our organization, and as President, I appointed Wil Lee and Chewy Ito as co-chairs of the Acquisition Committee for our new home. Through the hard work and dedication of Wil and Chewy and active support from the Board of directors and the community, the grand opening of our new home at 7375 Park City Drive was held on June 22, 2002.

What began as a dream and a vision became a reality when the nursing home opened in 1987. As we continue this journey in meeting the needs of seniors and families, we must continue our dreams. Our Rides program, Meal On Wheels, Bridge to Healthy Families, Lifelong Learning and Wellness Program, and all of our programs need you. We want your dreams, your expertise, your skills, and your time to help make yours and everyone’s dreams come true. Imagine the possibilties!!!

 Janet Sakata

All the ACC accomplishments are wonderful. The continuum of care provided for elders (Independent Living, Assisted Living, Care Center and Maple Tree Village) provides us with security knowing there’s a place when it is needed. One of their best programs is Rides. We sighed as the seniors eagerly unbelted before the bus stopped and then raced off through ACC doors. The joy of seeing their smiles and laughter after attending a class is the best reward!

Ray Gee

Over the past 50 years, ACC founders, leaders, management, and staff have faced what sometimes appeared to be insurmountable challenges in providing a continuum of senior services in the South Sacramento community. For the most part, those challenges were successfully overcome with the support of the community and the dedication of volunteer leaders, capable management, and devoted staff. Due primarily to the impact of COVID on all ACC operations, ACC now faces its greatest challenge ever in order to sustain its services and remain financially viable. I trust that current leaders, management, and staff will again persevere. 

Raymond Lee

Asian Community Services, the precursor of ACC, presented a change in the philosophy and goals of the Asian American movement in Sacramento. We were students and young people. We all had an intense desire to serve the community but lacked an overarching goal and the means to achieve it. AT ACS, we learned that it was not enough to just help people. We learned to galvanize and empower them to determine their needs and seek solutions. Helping the people simply meant assisting the human service department in their tasks and their tasks only. The struggle never ends. The fight goes on. This is the beginning. These are the roots.

Don Morishita

For the first half of its 50-year existence, ACC was known as the operator of the highly successful nursing home. A small group of founders, led by Chewy Ito, recognized the need for a skilled nursing facility in the Asian community, and through the generosity of persons like Angelo Tsakoupolis and the hard work of volunteers, a nursing home was built in the Pocket-Greenhaven. Funds raised from bingo became the primary source of income for its operation. But the need for increased senior services was becoming apparent as the baby boomer generation was nearing its senior years. I was fortunate to be invited to join the Board of Directors in the late 1990s. 

At the time, ACC consisted of the nursing home and a recently acquired building now occupied by Meals on Wheels by ACC. There was an executive director and a small staff housed in cramped quarters at the nursing home. This is where my wife, Sheri, first started volunteer work assisting office staff with their daily duties. The Board, together with the new Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Donna Yee, through many facilitated strategic planning meetings spent many hours developing the vision and strategic direction which laid the foundation for what is now ACC today: offering an array of programs including skilled nursing, assisted living, independent living, transportation, senior programs and the Meals on Wheels program. ACC was much smaller back then and I recall being part of a “working Board” since the committee structure was not yet implemented. 

Board meetings regularly lasted over three hours as we poured over detailed financial reports questioned many expenditures and discussed and made decisions on almost every topic imaginable. As Board members, we and other volunteers spent several days under the supervision of Howard Harris, wielding sledgehammers and hand tools and doing the demolition work on the Park City building to ready it for the construction of staff offices and classrooms for our first senior center.

A 50th birthday deserves more than one day of celebration, which is why ACC Senior Services is celebrating with multiple events.  ACC will start with “Big Day” lead-in events throughout April and cap this off with the “Big Days of Giving,” a two-day telethon on May 4th and May 5th. The celebration features a mix of pre-pandemic favorites and exciting virtual programming for new and existing supporters alike.

The Big Day of Giving (BDOG) is the 24-hour online giving marathon for regional nonprofits that has made a profound difference since its inception in 2013. The $7.2 million raised across Sacramento last year helped shine a bright spotlight on more than six hundred charitable organizations.

ACC is one of these charitable organizations! Last year’s BDOG telethon raised $210,000 – more than double the $100,000 goal – and gave crucial support to our COVID safety measures and operations. In addition to careful safety measures at our three residential facilities and in-person programs like Rides, the Big Day of Giving funds allowed the Lifelong Learning and Wellness Program to pivot to online programming to reach our community at home. This pivot provided and helped expand services to older adults while classes were closed at the ACC campus. It also showcased ACC’s services to people who did not know about ACC. The online classes, workshops, and support groups have become so popular that they will be a lasting part of ACC’s Lifelong Learning and Wellness Program. 

In addition, ACC Care Center’s COVID response and vaccination rates also earned U.S. News and World Report’s national Best Nursing Homes rating. This would not have been possible without the safety measures funded by the Big Day of Giving. 

What the Big Day of Giving Means This Year

“Care” took on new layers of meaning during the pandemic and is the heart of what this year’s Big Day of Giving donations will fund. Older adults whom we protected with lockdowns need extra care and support even if they live independently. Our 50th anniversary goals focus on older adult’s individual needs with ACC offering a new Care Navigator Program, Options Counseling, and Senior Escort programs; as well as expanded services with Rides, Lifelong Learning and Wellness Program (LLWP), the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), and activities for the residents in our facilities.

The new programs are part of a larger “No Wrong Door” initiative that helps identify and meet an older adult’s needs in full, not just in the first program they encounter. Care navigators and options counseling help older adults navigate health and social services from understanding the best options to enrollment assistance and referrals. Senior escort volunteers who are also trained in bystander intervention offer exercise, companionship, support, and most of all safety for older adults during public outings. These programs, combined with Rides expanding Saturday group outings for ACC senior living facility residents and same-day service scheduling, further our Community of Caring through more options

Our expanding programs, meanwhile, stand on our conviction that growth, development, and education aren’t just for the young. Both LLWP and SCSEP empower clients through skill-building and our expanded classes are in direct response to participant feedback. Clients at home have loved searing, frying, or stirring along with live cooking demonstrations, while SCSEP’s job-seeking participants have needed more technological literacy to work or seek employment during lockdown. 

“What strikes me most about ACC is its mission has always been the community’s needs,” said Marketing and Development Director Kala Haley-Clark. “Before I was even born our founders were building programs and services around our clients’ needs. That focus stays with us today, and it’s the reason I am so proud to be part of this incredible organization.”

Why Support ACC for the Big Day of Giving?

The Big Day of Giving is special in that donors aren’t just supporting organizations they love, but helping new donors take notice. BDOG donors and nonprofits alike love watching the leaderboard to see which organizations climb to the top – and learn more about what those leading organizations stand for. Your donation to ACC’s Big Day of Giving campaign lights the way for donors across the Sacramento region to learn about our programs, be part of our impacts, and share our story with others. 

In short, you demonstrate what our Community of Caring stands for when you support our Big Day of Giving campaign. 

How You Can Help

There are several ways to support ACC Senior Services for Giving.

Donate to ACC. Note on your check or online donation that you want your gift to support our Big Day of Giving campaign, and we will add your gift to our total.

Donate to ACC through the Big Day of Giving website. You can find us at bigdayofgiving.org/accseniorservices where you can donate or create your own fundraising page to share with friends. You can schedule your gift as early as April 21st, or you can donate on the Big Day of Giving to watch us climb the leaderboard!

Share our story. Our community is the reason we get to celebrate our 50th anniversary. Help us ensure the next  50 years by helping us build that community bigger and stronger.

Join our Big Day of Giving events. A birthday isn’t really a birthday without a party. We hope to see you at our wonderful lead-in events and two-day telethon!

Give yourself a hand. You are the heart of our success, and you should be proud!

ACC is pleased to introduce Michael Selland, CPA, as ACC’s new Director of Finance. Michael was the Controller at Agency on Aging Area 4, the funding agency for the Federal Older Americans Act programs in Sacramento and six other counties. As a result, he is familiar with ACC fiscal operations and our staff. Michael obtained his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the California State University, Sacramento and is a CPA.

One thing that Michael did not know about ACC is how popular pickleball is. “Now I know, because the courts are right outside my window,” he says. Michael loves to travel and has been to six of the seven continents. He adds, “I still need to check Antarctica off of my list.”

ACC also welcomes Kala Haley-Clark, MPA, MNM, as the new Marketing and Development Director. Kala leads ACC’s philanthropic giving, grant proposals, and sponsorship programs. She also manages the donor services staff who are responsible for processing and acknowledging thousands of annual gifts for ACC Senior Services and Meals on Wheels by ACC. Kala obtained her Master of Non-Profit Management and Master of Public Administration from the University of Oregon, Eugene, and her Bachelor of Arts in Linguistics from UC Davis.

Prior to ACC, Kala ran development and marketing for Integrative Healers Action Network, an emergency response nonprofit helping wildfire survivors and first responders. She was inspired by her grandmother, who earned a master’s degree in gerontology and worked with older adults.

Outside of work, Kala trains for triathlons, watches rugby and hockey, plays Dungeons and Dragons, and is an avid reader. 

Finally, ACC welcomes Moses Momoh, RN, who joined the ACC Care Center as its new Director of Nursing. Working under the Care Center Administrator, Tamara Kario, Moses oversees the nursing staff and overall nursing operations. 

Moses has worked in skilled nursing for most of his career, including 17 years at the VA hospitals in Dallas, Houston, and Mather. His experience also includes mental health, telemetry, trauma, and staff development. 

Moses likes to play Scrabble. He is also an avid tennis and ping pong player. But when asked if he plays pickleball, he said he had not heard of it before. Welcome to ACC, Moses, our pickleball courts await you!

“One day, the doctor told me I was legally blind,” says Leonard Williams, aged 62. “I had no idea, because my vision loss happened so slowly.”

With his big smile and warm “hello,” Leonard makes his rounds at ACC Care Center delivering laundry to residents and several linen supply closets around the facility. I met him in the laundry room at ACC Care Center to hear his unusual story. 

As a young man, Leonard was the picture of health. He was a runner and he loved to play basketball. He had tremendous physical energy and an irrepressible personality to match. But that changed.

“I got glaucoma when I was 35 or 36. I didn’t feel anything when this was happening,” says Leonard. He worked for 15 years, including a job in construction, until he was declared legally blind. “My left eye has only 9% vision, and I only see 30% in my right eye.” 

Leonard became a statistic. The labor force participation rate for working-age people with no disability was 76% in 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. For people with disability, the rate was 37%. Employer bias is a big factor in this discrepancy. 

Last fall, Leonard entered ACC’s paid job training program (see next story below) and was assigned to work in the laundry room at ACC Care Center. At first, I couldn’t tell he had a disability because he seemed to function like anyone else in that job. Leonard hauls laundry from the washing room to the folding room without missing a step. He folds the laundry fast and with machine-like precision.

“I have to turn my head to see through the narrow part of my right eye that still has some vision. So, right now, I can’t see you,” Leonard tells me. Then his turns his head slightly. “Now I can see your face, but I can’t see your hands or any other part.”

Fortunately, the sliver of vision Leonard still has is enough to get around ACC.  “I’ve pretty much adapted to the space here. I don’t have to count steps or use my blind stick. When I fold laundry, I look and feel my way through the task. Most of the clothes are repetitious like towels, face towels, sheets, blankets, fitted sheets, flat sheets. They showed me how to fold them and I picked it up pretty good.”

Marissa Belmes, the Billing Manager, works next door to the laundry room. “Leonard has such a positive attitude,” she says. “It’s my honor to meet him, knowing that his disability doesn’t stop him from doing his work and other activities of daily living. He gives me the inspiration to come into work every day.”