LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
AIDS Walk |
by Glen Pruitt |
Don't Just Talk the Talk...Walk the Walk!
Many of us know the basic history of HIV/AIDS in the United States. The first cases of HIV infection were found in gay men living in San Francisco and New York in March 1981. Within a few short years, the gay community suffered staggering losses as the epidemic spread. There were no treatments for the disease. The federal government was slow to talk about it, much less provide critically needed services. The Ryan White CARE Act, which provides much of the federal funding for HIV/AIDS services, would not be passed until 1990. In the early years, HIV/AIDS services were developed, paid for and delivered by the gay community. It truly was an example of neighbor helping neighbor, friend helping friend. In the second chapter of the AIDS story (1990-2000), there were great advances. The Federal Government began providing significant funding for HIV/AIDS services. With the introduction of protease inhibitors in 1996, the number of people dying from AIDS decreased dramatically, and HIV positive persons began to have the hope that they could learn to live with HIV/AIDS. The good news is tempered, however, by the fact that the epidemic had spread throughout our communities. More and more African Americans were being infected, as were women. AIDS was no longer only a gay disease. We are in the third chapter of the story now. Unfortunately the storyline is once again being dictated by the lack of money for services. Federal funding has remained the same (or decreased!) for the past several years, while the numbers of clients that need to be served continues to grow. The federal dollars come with more strings attached to them than ever before, which limit how effectively these dollars can be used to deliver services. Donations to AIDS organizations have dropped as other diseases capture the public's attention and after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Walkathons seem like a quaint way to raise money, almost a throwback to the early days of the AIDS epidemic. However, it works, at least here in Delaware. This year marks the 21st AIDS Walk in Wilmington, the fourth Walk in Dover, and the third walk in Georgetown. Unlike AIDS Walks in most other parts of the country, the Delaware AIDS Walks continue to grow. It does that for one very good reason: it is not a fundraiser for a single organization. Rather it benefits many organizations throughout the state, and it benefits all the many people that those organizations serve. This year's AIDS Walk in Wilmington is on Sunday, September 30th. The AIDS Walks in Dover and Georgetown will be held on the following Sunday, October 7th. Organizations that provide HIV/AIDS services can form a team for the AIDS Walk, and 40% of the dollars raised by those teams go directly back to them. It's like cost-free fundraising for them! All the planning and development work (and expense!) for all three Walks is handled by AIDS Delaware and the Delaware HIV Consortium. What happens to the other 60% of the money? It funds HIV/AIDS services statewide through AIDS Delaware and the Consortium. In the end, AIDS Walk dollars pay for HIV/AIDS services. Once again, it is neighbor helping neighbor, friend helping friend. What can YOU do to help? That's easy. Join a team! Sal Seeley has organized a team for CAMP Rehoboth, called Gays On Our Feet (Y'all), or G.O.O.F.Y. for short. This team is a great one to demonstrate the LGBT commitment to stopping the spread of HIV/AIDS and to helping people living with HIV disease. Give Sal a call at 302-227-5620 to sign up. If you are not feeling "goofy", you can always see what other teams have formed in your community by checking out the AIDS Walk website at www.aidswalkdelaware.org. Form a team! Get together your friends and family, come up with a fun name for your team, pass out some donations envelopes, and start collecting money. Sussex Walk Coordinator Sharyn Warwick can help with all of that. Call Sharyn at 302-684-1328. Support a team! If your feet are not ready for the 5 kilometer route in Georgetown, you can still "walk the walk" by making a donation to your favorite walker, your favorite team, or to the Walk itself. Save yourself a check and a stamp by donating online at www.aidswalkdelaware.org. You'll be glad you did! Yes, we are currently in a chapter of dwindling federal resources. By working together, however, we can change how the story will play out here in Delaware, in the lives of our friends and neighbors with HIV/AIDS. Join us in making sure that the last sentence of the story reads, "And they all lived happily ever after." Glen Pruitt is the Associate Executive Director of the Delaware HIV Consortium.You can email him at gpruitt@delawarehiv.org. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 17, No. 11 August 10, 2007 |