BEAT AIDS is accepting bids for construction at 618 Hudson St., San Antonio, TX. For details, call 210-224-2200.
Archive for the 'Uncategorized' Category
“All I ever wanted to be is a mom,” says Jeanne White-Ginder. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, she became one of the nation’s most recognized moms as she stood alongside her son Ryan, one of her two children, as they fought for Ryan’s right to attend school after his diagnosis with AIDS.
Ryan told Jeanne shortly after his diagnosis that he wanted to return as soon as possible to a normal everyday life, including going to school and being with friends, and she was supportive of his wishes. A native of Kokomo, Indiana, Jeanne had lived her entire life in her hometown and was shocked by the determination of some of her fellow residents to keep Ryan out of school. Jeanne, however, was determined to help Ryan fulfill his dreams and his simple wish ultimately led to a significant battle that thrust him and his family into the national and international spotlight.
For well over a year, Ryan’s case moved through administrative hearings and the courts, and he ultimately won the right to attend school, though he was shunned and taunted by many of his peers upon his return. The family later moved to Cicero, Indiana, where they were embraced by the school and the community.
Throughout the ordeal, Ryan and his family maintained a positive and forgiving perspective. Ryan attributed much of his strength to his mom’s support and encouragement. In his 1988 testimony before the National Commission on AIDS, Ryan said “AIDS can destroy a family if you let it, but luckily for my sister and me, mom taught us to keep going. Don’t give up, be proud of who you are, and never feel sorry for yourself.”
Following Ryan’s death in 1990, Jeanne continued to dedicate herself to Ryan’s dream of easing the stigma and discrimination faced by so many people with HIV/AIDS. She still speaks to a vast array of audiences about her family’s experience and the role that Ryan played in opening so many hearts and minds. She also remains a vocal advocate for HIV/AIDS programs, including the Ryan White CARE Act.
BEAT AIDS has confirmed that Mrs. Jeanne White-Ginder, mother of Ryan White, will be a Key Note Speaker at the annual BEAT AIDS banquet on October 2, 2009.
San Antonio, Texas – July 27, 2009 — Michele Durham, Executive Director, announces that Mrs. White-Ginder will be Host Speaker at this year’s 2009 Annual Banquet. Ms. Durham further stated “We are so excited to have a nationally recognized speaker at our Banquet — and one who has been so touched by the HIV/AIDS crisis. HIV infects men and women, gay, straight and bisexual, Black, Latino, White – anyone can get HIV. With the current increase in new cases among women of color and young men, it’s time for everyone – even in communities that may never have thought of HIV as “our problem” before – to join the fight against HIV and AIDS. Mrs. White-Ginder has learned this first-hand.”
Ms. White-Ginder is the mother of Ryan White, nationally recognized as a “poster child” for the HIV crisis after receiving the virus from a blood transfusion in the 1980’s. Even though doctors said Ryan could not infect other students, AIDS was poorly understood in the mid 1980’s, and when White tried to return to school after being expelled due to his HIV infection, many parents and teachers fought against his attendance.
A legal battle with the school system and national coverage of the struggle made White a nationally recognized spokesman for AIDS education. He appeared frequently in the media with celebrities including Elton John and Michael Jackson. After a long battle with the disease Ryan White died on April 1, 1990, just before his high school graduation. His mother named a foundation in his name and now continues to educate on HIV/AIDS in the United States.
Ms. White-Ginder will visit San Antonio to bring her message of education. Quoted recently in the New York Times, Ms. White-Ginder stated “This disease brings no glory to anyone,” she says. “Only pain and sadness and worry. Ryan always said if you don’t know about something you will be scared. At least educate yourself. So that’s what I do. Not from a medical standpoint but a human standpoint. Because the best way to learn about AIDS is from human experience, not statistics.”
The BEAT AIDS Annual Banquet will be held on Friday, October 2, 2009 at the Airport Hilton Hotel. For additional information, questions, or tickets, please call (210) 212-2266.
About BEAT AIDS Coalition Trust: BEAT AIDS Coalition Trust was founded in 1986 and is a long-recognized provider of HIV/AIDS community caring services in San Antonio and South Texas. Their mission and promise are the same: “BEAT AIDS will stand with this community, serving one person at a time, one family at a time…until there’s a cure.”
Media Contact:
Michele Durham, Executive Director
BEAT AIDS has been in our current location for about seven years now. Our offices get heavy daily traffic, and we barely have enough office space for our staff, so every corner of our space gets used. Over the years, parts of the office had become a little dingy.
So, on Friday, June 26th, we closed our office to the public and our whole staff pitched in to paint the place. It was a long, hot day, but the BEAT AIDS staff is a bit of a family, and we always have a good time. We think that the lobby and public areas look a lot more clean and bright, and we hope you’ll agree!
Executive Director Michele Durham
Case Manager Jody Casey with Health Intervention Specialists Lenny Poyser and Joseph Vonallmen
Risk Reduction Specialist Dominique Nettles, Prevention Team Leader Dela Jamerson, Case Aide Candice Davis, and Accounting Director Ester Antuna
Prevention Program Data Specialist Venus Perez
Information Services Director Kevin Baker and Prevention Director Kalia Hawkins
Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor Brian Pryor, Prevention Director Kalia Hawkins, and Risk Reduction Specialist Dominique Nettles
BEAT AIDS was saddened to learn of Michael Jackson’s passing on June 25. At the height of his popularity in the 1980s and early 1990s, Jackson leveraged his considerable talent and fame to address civil rights issues, including HIV/AIDS.
Jackson’s HIV/AIDS efforts began in part with his participation in the 1984 song collaboration, “We Are the World.” Monies from the project supported hunger, poverty and AIDS relief programs in Africa and the U.S. Soon after, he, along with Sir Elton John and other celebrities, befriended Ryan White, who gained media attention for fighting his expulsion from school for having AIDS. Jackson supported White’s AIDS advocacy efforts, and honored the teenager’s memory with "Gone to Soon," released shortly after his death in 1990.
In 1992, during President Bill Clinton’s inaugural gala, Jackson famously pressed the newly elected leader to increase funding for AIDS research and care. “The early 1990s were a scary time. So many people were dying every week, and there were no treatments on the horizon,” says Michele Durham, BEAT AIDS’ Executive Director. “But here was the infamously shy ‘King of Pop’ asking the President to fight AIDS in front of millions of people. He knew that that people would listen to him. And they did.”
Despite controversy in recent years, Jackson’s continued to support numerous charities and humanitarian programs, including the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund; the Red Cross; UNESCO; and the United Negro College Fund. He also established the Heal the World Foundation.
“Michael Jackson has left an indelible mark on the world, as an artist and as a champion for the rights of those living with HIV/AIDS to be treated with dignity and respect,” says Ravinia Hayes-Cozier, NMAC’s Director of Government Relations and Public Policy. “While others around the world turned their backs on people with AIDS, Jackson was there to call them friend and lend his fame to raise awareness. The AIDS community will be forever grateful.”
For 23 years, the people of San Antonio have come out for one of the largest MLK commemorations in the United States.. Since 1986, the march has been led by a city garbage truck, symbolizing Dr. King’s last peaceful protest march in support of striking sanitation workers in 1968 – our march begins where his work ended.
Every year, the staff and friends of BEAT AIDS proudly join this march in honor of Dr. King’s undying dream. Here are a few of the pictures I snapped as I walked with a crowd of nearly 100,000 people from the MLK Freedom Bridge down Martin Luther King Drive to Pittman-Sullivan Park on San Antonio’s east side.
(Click on any picture to see a full-sized version)
Title: Martin Luther King Jr. March & Commemoration
Location: 3500 Martin Luther King Drive
Link out: Click here
Description: Please join the staff and volunteers of BEAT AIDS as we celebrate the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in this historic year. San Antonio is home to one of the largest MLK Day marches in the world, and BEAT AIDS is always proud to be a part of this celebration.
The march begins at 10 AM at the MLK Freedom Bridge:
Start Time: 10:00
Date: 2009-01-19
End Time: 16:00
Title: BEAT AIDS Offices Closed (MLK Day Observed)
Description: Since our entire staff works all day at the MLK March on Monday, we\’re taking our MLK holiday day. You can join us on Monday at the MLK March, and the office will re-open at 8:30 AM on Tuesday.
Date: 2009-01-16
Title: Office Closed (Staff In-Service Training)
Description: Our offices are closed on the third Friday of every months for ongoing in-service training and development for our staff.
Start Time: 08:30
Date: 2008-10-17
End Time: 17:00
Title: Velvet Mafia Juntos T-Dance (Benefits BEAT AIDS)
Location: The Sky Loft @ Alameda Theater, 318 W. Houston St.
Link out: Click here
Description: Music by Bryan Konrad
$5 admission
Start Time: 17:00
Date: 2008-09-28
End Time: 22:00
