ACC Raises $150,000 on the Big Day of Giving

The first-ever ACC Telethon took place on the Big Day of Giving, Thursday, May 7, 2020. ACC joined more than 600 nonprofits in the Sacramento region raising money for their respective causes. According to the Sacramento Region Community Foundation, the total raised by all organizations was $11,965,229, far surpassing last year’s total.

Watch the ACC Telethon replay.

ACC Senior Services raised $150,000 in sponsorships and donations, setting a new record for money raised in a single ACC fundraising event. The bulk of the donations came in during the five-hour online telethon, which ran from 12 Noon to 5 PM on Facebook Live. ACC’s goal was to raise $75,000, a 30% increase over last year. But, by the fourth hour of the telethon, ACC surpassed that goal, at which time ACC President and CEO Darrick Lam issued a new goal of $100,000.

At 4:45 PM, Councilmember Rick Jennings appeared on the show and exhorted viewers to go big and reach $125,000. After all the mail-in donations were counted in June, the total reached $150,000.

The money raised will be used to help battle the impact of COVID-19 on ACC residents, participants of ACC programs, and more than 250 ACC employees. ACC’s COVID-19 prevention measures have been very costly in terms of staffing, supplies, and equipment. 

“For the past eight years, ACC has hosted a ‘BDOG party’ at its campus during the Big Day of Giving,” says Program Director Linda Revilla, “However, the quarantine made this impossible, so we had to find an alternative. The telethon format was an obvious choice.”

A special workgroup headed by ACC Board Chair Jean Shiomoto assigned Ted Fong to produce the telethon, which led to the selection of three capable emcees: Mike Marando (ACC Board member), Linda Revilla (ACC Program Director, ACC) and Scott Okamoto (Marketing Manager, ACC Maple Tree Village). IT Director Perfecto Bravo came up with a plan to install a phone bank to receive donations during the show. The wheels were put in motion with only five weeks to prepare.

A host of staff and volunteers chipped in to help plan and staff the telethon. A TV studio was set up in the Community Room of ACC’s main campus with strict adherence to social distancing. All staff, volunteers, and on-camera talent had their temperatures taken and were required to wear masks before they could work.

The telethon went live on Facebook Live at exactly 12 Noon, opening with live music from guitarist/vocalist Michael Deneau, who is also the Memory Care Nurse Manager at ACC Maple Tree Village. He performed intros and outros throughout the show as well a special number during the show.

Emcees Mike Marando, Linda Revilla and Scott Okamoto introduced musical acts, conducted interviews, announced major gifts, and interacted with each other on camera like old friends. Throughout the show, the public posted comments on Facebook Live which were added to the live stream for all to see and enjoy.

Garrett Ashizawa and Nina Fong ran the video switcher, sound board, and managed the dozens of Skype video calls that had to be patched into the live stream. “It was a miracle. Every guest was connected to the live stream, we did not lose a single guest,” said Nina. Michael Yang ran the live graphics workstation. Allan Moua, Chris Fernando, and Alexa Mark operated the cameras. 

The show had several technical glitches, some of them funny. The green screen arrived the night before, which gave the production crew very little time to practice with it. “Green screen mistakes are painful but oddly fun to watch,” said producer Ted Fong. “Our entire production crew had no prior work experience in TV or live production of any kind, yet we kept the show going for five hours. It was exhausting but fun.”

The live five-hour show had more than 40 produced segments including:

• Dennis and Janet Fisher, Banjo Ukulele Duo
• Jean Shiomoto, Japanese Flower Arranging
• Chef James Hutchins, How to Make a Peppercorn Bourbon Steak
• Gary Yee and Jane Nakagawa, Musicians
• Alexi Ishida, Singer and Actress
• Dani Joy, Recording Artist
• Maeley Tom, Interview
• Judge William Shubb, Musician
• Dina Morishita and Welly Yang, Broadway Musical Actors
• Journalists Lisa Ling and Laura Ling, Interview
• A Special Message from Howard Harris
• George Connor and Mary Nakagawa, Musicians
• Virginia Wieneke, ACC Rides
• Donna Yee, Bird Watching Talk
• Jeri Shikuma, ACC Job Training Program
• Soojin Yoo, ACC Social Services
• Hair and Makeup Contest
• A Special Message from Vicki Bezzone
• Yesenia Jones, ACC Greenhaven Terrace
• Kyle Fredrickson and David Troxel, ACC Maple Tree Village
• Shirley Stassi, Hula Demo
• Poonie Holst, Yen Marshall and Matthew Ceccato, Census 2020
• A Special Message from Rick Jennings
• Carla Fontanilla, Musician
• Music Video by ACC Care Center
• Music Video by ACC Maple Tree Village People
• A Special Message from Jimmie Yee
• Darrick Lam, Musician and President/CEO of ACC
• Rick Jennings, Special Appearance
• Michael Deneau, Musician
• APAPA Announcement of Donation of 4,000 Masks to ACC
• Koichi and Ellie Mizushima, Father and Daughter Singing Duo
• Elsie Yun, ACC Resident, Interview
• Linda Louie, Musician
• Jay Reynolds, Sacramento Guitar Society
• Sunny Jung, Pickleball Talk