Bay Area Lyme Foundation celebrated our 10-year anniversary on Saturday, May 20th at a private residence in Silicon Valley. LymeAid, our exclusive annual fundraising event hosted philanthropists, celebrities, scientists, patients and clinicians for an elegant, fun-filled informational evening of inspiration. This year featured research breakthrough announcements, and comedian Dana Carvey as Master of Ceremonies, Musical Guest, The Bacon Brothers and dance party band, Pop Rocks. Click here for our 2021 Highlights video.
Saturday, May 20th, 2023
5:00–10:30 pm
Master of Ceremonies:
Dana Carvey, Emmy award-winning actor and comedian
Keynote Speaker:
Bill Robinson, MD/PhD, Stanford University
Patient Speakers:
Meghan Bradshaw & Ann Fowler
2022 and 2023 Emerging Leader Awards presentation
Fun-filled Night of Comedy and Music Entertainment
By invitation only • This event was held in an outdoor setting among the California oaks.
We were honored and excited to welcome you to this private event to celebrate our gathering of world-class scientists and supporters as we raise funds for medical breakthroughs in Lyme disease.
Musical Guest: The Bacon Brothers
Bound by blood and a mutual love of American roots music, The Bacon Brothers have spent the past quarter-century in a creative whirl, funneling their shared DNA into a genre-bending sound. They call that sound “Forosoco”—a blend of folk, rock, soul, and country influences, delivered by two songwriters who were born to collaborate—and it’s taken the siblings across the world, from shows in Japan to performances at American landmarks like Carnegie Hall and the Grand Ole Opry.
Dance Party Band: Pop Rocks
“Pop Rocks is the ultimate dance band: Tons of current high energy hits, mixed with the classics from the 80s, 90s, and Today: Nothing but songs to keep your guests on the dance floor *all night long* from Bon Jovi to Bruno Mars and Whitney Houston, we dig deep into classic dance songs and execute them with style and enthusiasm. Pop Rocks is a core 6-piece dance band (all of whom can sing *fantastically* if we do say so ourselves).”
100% of your contributions went directly to our scientific research and prevention programs. Learn more about our research programs here.
For more information, please email Katie Wiederholt at katie@bayarealyme.org.
Sponsorship opportunities are available. Email katie@bayarealyme.org for more information.
For photos from our 2021 LymeAid, click here.
More About the Entertainment
Master of Ceremonies, Dana Carvey
Emmy-award winning actor and comedian Dana Carvey is best known for his iconic and indelible SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE characters—most memorably Church Lady, Grumpy Old Man, Hans, of the Hans and Franz body building duo, and of course Garth—Mike Myer’s “excellent Co-Host” on the classic sketch turned feature film, WAYNE’S WORLD. Carvey has received much praise for his uncanny comedic impersonations of American political figures (popular with both audiences and the subjects of his impersonation), including the elder George Bush, Ross Perot, Jerry Brown, David Duke and Bob Dole.
Carvey made his feature film debut in THIS IS SPINAL TAP, and other earlier works include RACING WITH THE MOON, ONE OF THE GROUP, TOUGH GUYS, and the comedy OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS. Other notable films for Carvey include Alan Parker’s THE ROAD TO for Columbia Pictures, Zanuck’s CLEAN SLATE for MGM, and Twentieth Century Fox’s TRAPPED IN PARADISE. In 2004, Dana starred in THE MASTER OF DISGUISE, a family comedy where Carvey took on 36 different identities and spoke in 14 different languages as the hapless titular character. Most recently, Dana lent his voice to bring ‘Pops’ the dog to life in the 3D animated mega-hit, SECRET LIFE OF PETS.
In 2016, Carvey appeared as the expert-in-residence on USA Network’s comedic half hour series FIRST IMPRESSIONS. The show featured amateur impressionists competing against each other in a weekly battle of celebrity impressions with Carvey mentoring each contestant.
Also, Dana’s Netflix Special STRAIGHT WHITE MALE, 60, was released in 2016, to much acclaim.
Carvey won an Emmy Award in 1993 for Outstanding Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program. He has received a total of six Emmy nominations, one of which was for a guest appearance on “Larry Sanders Show.” He was also honored with The American Comedy Award as Television’s Funniest Supporting Male both in 1990 and 1991.
Musical Guest, The Bacon Brothers
“We’re still exploring the sound we began making 25 years ago; we’ve just gotten a lot better at it,” says Michael, whose success as an Emmy-winning composer mirrors his brother’s own accolades as an A-list Hollywood actor. “Music is a life’s work. It’s a universe of things yet to know. It’s exciting to be doing stuff we couldn’t have done 20 years ago — to know that we’ve come so far, yet still have so much left in the tank.”
“We’re a songwriting band, and the songs lead the way,” Kevin explains. “We’re not beholden to a specific sound. We just write the songs and let them point us in the right direction. That’s how we’ve done it since the very beginning.”
This time around, The Bacon Brothers’ songs point the duo toward unexplored territory. “Let Me Happen” grew out of a piece of unused music Michael had originally composed for a television show two decades earlier. “Michael has another musical life as a composer,” Kevin notes, “and turning one of his instrumental compositions into a lyrical song is not something we’ve ever done before.” Likewise, “In Memory (Of When I Cared)” finds the siblings teaming up with songwriting legend Desmond Child for a track that splits the difference between minor-key rock & roll and modern-day pop. “Desmond has a gift for writing magnetic songs that people get trapped inside of,” Michael says of Child, a Songwriters Hall of Fame icon whose songwriting credits include Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ on a Prayer,” Aerosmith’s “Crazy,” and Joan Jett’s “I Hate Myself For Loving You.” Working with a co-writer was a rare experience for the Bacons, whose previous 10 albums were almost exclusively written by Kevin and Michael. In Desmond Child, they found more than just a collaborator — they found validation in their strengths as prolific craftsmen, too.
Dance Party Band, Pop Rocks
Pop Rocks is the ultimate dance band: Tons of current high energy hits, mixed with the classics from the 80s, 90s, and Today: Nothing but songs to keep your guests on the dance floor *all night long* from Bon Jovi to Bruno Mars and Whitney Houston, we dig deep into classic dance songs and execute them with style and enthusiasm.
Pop Rocks is a core 6-piece dance band (all of whom can sing *fantastically* if we do say so ourselves). The band is also customizable with a percussion player, phenomenal horn section and celeb guest singers.
One of the most in-demand bands for private functions from weddings to galas to holiday parties, Pop Rocks delivers hits, enthusiasm and a fun spirit to your party and has for countless happy ‘clients’. The Yelp reviews alone will let you know what you are getting!
The band stands out with an exceptional knack for reading the crowd at any event, adapting their show to a broad range of audience members, and tackling the most discerning crowds, leaving everyone in awe of their positive energy, excellent musicianship and kick-ass show.
To purchase tables or seats, click here.