Sansei Live! 2015 Coming Together for Kimochi’s Seniors

SAN FRANCISCO — Mark your calendars for Kimochi’s “Sansei Live!” on Saturday, Oct. 17, from 7 p.m. to midnight.

This year’s party and annual fundraiser will be held at San Francisco Japantown’s Kabuki Hotel, 1625 Post St. One of the Bay Area’s hottest bands and a Sansei Live! returning favorite is Rendezvous, the night’s headliner.

Rendezvous’ performance will kick off at 8 p.m., accompanied by their special guests. DJ John Jow will also provide music to dance by. The emcees for the evening are NBC Bay Area’s Robert Handa and KTVU’s Jana Katsuyama.

Ticket price: $75 per person; $50 per ticket for groups of 10 or more. All proceeds go to support Kimochi programs and services.

Doors will open at 7 p.m. with music by the Kimochi Singers, followed by line dancing lessons with Soul Inspired Line Dancers, who always raise the energy level. A raffle will also be a part of the evening’s festivities. Prizes include two domestic round-trip tickets courtesy of Southwest Airlines.

“Sansei Live!” major sponsors include Pacific Gas & Electric, AT&T, California Pacific Medical Center, Union Bank, Mary Ishisaki and Japan Airlines.

“The tradition of ‘Sansei Live!’ is carried on by new generations and those who are young of heart,” said a Kimochi spokesperson. “It is a night of live music and friendship to benefit Kimochi seniors.

‘Sansei Live!’ started with a shared knowledge that our community and the prospects of our senior generations were the responsibility of younger generations. And we’d take on that role and responsibility together, with kimochi.”

Tickets can be purchased online at http://sanseilive2015.eventbrite.com. Call (415) 931-2294 for more information about how you can support Kimochi or volunteer.

Since 1971, Kimochi has provided culturally sensitive, Japanese language-based programs and services to 3,000 Bay Area seniors and their families each year. Services include transportation; referral and outreach services; health and consumer education seminars; healthy aging and senior center activities; social services; congregate and home delivered meals; in-home support services; adult social day care; 24-hour residential and respite care.

Like other social service organizations, Kimochi has been affected by the increasingly tentative and unreliable nature of government funding. The organization has made hard adjustments to absorb city-funding cuts while protecting the quality of programs and services. Kimochi increasingly relies on its donors and supporters who join the organization in providing the network of services that allow elderly to live with dignity and independence.

In addition, Kimochi maintains an active volunteer program consisting of approximately 200 volunteers who assist staff at four different program sites in San Francisco’s Japantown, with services being introduced soon to the San Mateo area.