I am incredibly grateful to the DeoWorks team (Josh Chien, Peggy Koralage, DJ Chuang, Marina Kong) for offering up their powerhouse support in the quietest and most humble of ways. The creation of our beautiful website, our back-end financial book-keeping, the discovery of Zeffy infrastructure, our collective capacity to be a channel of blessing to Altadena + Pasadena – all of this is because of you. Now we’re known! Looking forward to what’s ahead! 

First Covenant Church of Oakland has been fabulous to work with. Pastor Marco Ambriz, Clare Loux, Arlyn Ranillo, and Alex Figueroa made everything so smooth!  THANK YOU Pastor Joey Le for the friendship and trust that paved the way for the ABC to find a home! Appreciation for Pam Grove and her shepherding of the Velocity Handbell Ensemble. 

Appreciation to Josh Lo and Eric Bailey for connecting us to Brandon Lamar. Credit to Andy Olsen for sharing about Mayra Macedo-Nolan and the CCC and following up with Edward Housep. Props to Sarah Hill  for being an overcomer and telling me about Kathy and Mr. Wolgast. Thanks to Judy Haccou for starting off the art auction with her stories about her father and her cousin Dennis Hill.  Thank you to Xochi Watts Kuo for connecting us to Ben Lazar. Edward, it means so much to have you here with us in person! 

Friends like Kristina Kanemoto and Carol Herman at the River Church Community in San Jose were invaluable for their deep ongoing partnership in creating the ABC - helping with communications, connecting us to other talent, and filling in as needs arose. I’m so grateful for you! Beto Espitia made us all look good. His eye for simplicity, his sense of order, and his calm helped me think through program design and how to tell the ABC story. 

Foothill Covenant Church generously gave us practice space twice, and Pastor Hans-Erik Nelson printed all our programs for us – at cost!  Many other pastors shepherded me, though Randy Young takes the cake for doing it with the greatest care. He also connected the ABC to Ken Medema thru Mary Naegeli! Grateful to Bev Vandermolen for coordinating with Ken on our behalf! 

Appreciation for Janet Russell, Paul Chung, Dave Watermulder, Susan Cho Van Riesen, Gary Gaddini and Mark Labberton! Acknowledgement for the helpful conversations with Chi-Ming Chien, various churches in RWC, Santa Clara, and Cupertino.  Brad Wong and Kevin Marks, thank you for being willing to host early on! 

Brian Harwell helped me decide to go with JJ Islas from El JJ Films, and thought thru so much complexity with me. He is also the one who is providing our awesome photobooth!  The one and only Aaron Wippold is coming in to save the day as our photographer! Charitha Gowda helped us leap from Docs to Sheets! Saira read all my emails, and Felicia was a great connector! Hilit cared, Tomomi listened, Heidi advocated, Joye resourced us, and so many others encountered along the way helped me see how worthwhile this was. 

The Auction involved many. Carol Herman did a ton to help with this, as did Liping Cheung. Kathy Matsushita, Ely and Sue Shachal, Judy and Dirk Haccou, Hwaen Chu’qi, Shirley Lin Kinoshita, Amy Da-Peng King, Ruth VanderZee, Karisa Low, Hanna Tredak, Geoff Mack, and Jenny Impellizzeri all gave SO generously! 

Liz Ditty, Emma Marie Chiang, and my Southeast Santa Clara Buy Nothing Facebook community shared bundles of gifts so we could be a channel of blessing! 

Though they’re not present, Tracey S, Milena, Yusuf, Nancy M, Dee, Bev W., Meritt & Steve, Ram, Julia G, Lanie, Paul M, Steve W, Briona, Lusi, and others at the River encouraged us, gave feedback or connected us to others. Sometimes the way forward is to wait until the opportune moment, when dances and ensembles prove more primary! Bre and Kirsten Jill Aguilar’s critical help in the early months brought Joaquin, Ervin, Lina, and Christina to our dinner table. This group clued me into the complexities of program design, the need to grow in leading teams, and launched our social media branding and marketing strategy. 

Vern VanderZee and John Henson led the ushers. Beth Sevilla of @busy_bloomin is to be credited for the flowers, and Rebecca and Supriya helped with lots of last minute help the night before! 

THANKS to Ellen Diebold for driving the Sugar and Sprinkles treats down from Sacramento and spearheading our beverage acquisition & Safeway platter set-up! 

Childhood friend Kevin Kuo of B & B Accessories Inc made the embroidered keepsakes: “Bringing People Together, One Patch at a Time.” Keith Koo and Craig Roberts gave us air time on KFAX!

Kaleo Johnson, Ava Wallis, Mia Johnson, and Peter Teng-Henson ran the children’s program, picked up the food, and helped with set-up! Yay for Rebuilders KAMP!

Chinese Canadian Anita Ng was our unexpected Angel in Disguise five times over, who felt the call to give to Altadena and Pasadena back in January. Thank you to Tim and Dali Ng for being the pathway. 

Kristin Chun was our one and only Angel in Disguise, who single handedly and very lovingly underwrote ALL the food and refreshments for ALL our volunteers and guests! This was one month’s salary she so generously gave to our needs!! 

Mary and Stephen Teng backed this initiative more than I ever deserved. Their quiet, unwavering support – and financial generosity to this effort – touched and moved me! Gail and Ed Henson gave five times what was expected– amidst seachange in their own lives. The DC Hensons, the Louisville McCormacks, my sisters in NYC and SF, and Aunt Sonia in LA showed support in various ways from all corners of our country.  John Henson was ready to do anything on the day of. Grateful for how 15 years of marriage has led to greater partnership. Thanks goes to Beatrice, Peter, and Teresa for choosing involvement in ways that were life-giving to them.

THANK YOU, each and all, for participating in the Altadena Benefit Concert! I know it’s a Saturday afternoon, Oakland is far for most of us, and this required a TON of effort to come alongside. 

THANK YOU to every talented musician, young dancer, gifted ensemble, and compelling speaker, whose photos and bios are elsewhere in this program, for being willing to step into the mysterious beauty of this shared endeavor together! I am so grateful to the Dream Team for their patience and flexibility, and willingness to share leadership. That is noteworthy in a complex world! May you each and all receive back a thousand fold for being willing to share your talents with the world without cost. 

Finally, thanks be to the Godof all creation, who nudged me to co-create this with him in the midst of the most unusual season of vocational discernment. I’m glad we worked on this together during Lent, Ramadan, and Eastertide. I hope you feel good about how we brought everyone together for common cause in this year of Jubilee (Leviticus 25), on the last day of my 42nd year of life (Deuteronomy 15), in the spirit of Acts 2-5, called by the Holy Spirit and compelled by the example of our Lord Jesus Christ.