From our Tacoma A3D partner: Pierce County AIDS Foundation!

2009 Is a crucial year in the fight against HIV/AIDS. While the reverberating excitement from the presidential inauguration has encouraged more people to volunteer with PCAF, and the promise that our government will once again be willing to hear the voice of concern about HIV/AIDS in the United States, we also face financial uncertain and upheaval. That is why The Pierce County AIDS Foundation will be attending the AIDS Awareness and Action Day (A3D) in Olympia on February 18th 2009, and I invite you to join with us and a coalition of communities from across Washington State to advocate for critical HIV prevention and care services funds.

A3D is about more than the promise of change, it is about taking an active role in functioning of our government, and making our voices heard. As friend of PCAF I know you are aware of the critical importance of funding for HIV prevention and HIV/AIDS care services. You may not be aware of the devastating impact state budget cuts will have on people living with HIV/AIDS in Washington State. At a time when financial upheaval is causing more and more people to seek services from AIDS Service Organizations across Washington State, we must work together to advocate for the protection and reinstatement of these critical funds.

I am asking you to join me on February 18th 2009 to make your voice heard, join with our coalition of communities, and advocate for those living with HIV/AIDS Across Washington State.

-Duane Wilkerson
Executive Director, Pierce County AIDS Foundation

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DO IT NOW!

If you have registered…
THANK YOU!

If you have not registered…
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR – DO IT NOW!

If your family, friends and colleagues have not registered…
SIT THEM DOWN IN FRONT OF THE COMPUTER, STAND BEHIND THEM WITH YOUR HANDS ON THEIR SHOULDERS UNTIL THEY
DO IT!

Calling All Activists!

Checkout the following legislative districts by clicking on the link to the district map – if you know of someone in these districts, recruit them to join us on A3D in Olympia. Be a hero and help us find more participants!

District 5 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=05
District 10 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=10
District 15 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=15
District 17 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=17
District 18 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=18
District 35 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=35
District 40 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=40
District 47 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=47
District 49 http://apps.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/results.aspx?District=49

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Have you picked up the Seattle Gay News this week?

Check out page 11 for AIDS Awareness & Action Day ad! Or click here...

& don't forget to REGISTER!

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A3D is only 3 weeks away! Can we count on YOU?

This legislative session, HIV/AIDS community needs our supporters and allies to help raise AIDS awareness among our state legislators. Every body counts! Whether you are HIV/AIDS knowledgeable, want to share your story of how HIV/AIDS services keep you alive and healthy, or just want to support the people who do – your presence makes a difference! We need as many of you to take the day off and join people affected by HIV/AIDS in Olympia as possible!

BE COUNTED!

CLICK HERE & REGISTER TODAY!

The first 300 participants to register will receive this free t-shirt upon their arrival in Olympia:

We need as many participants as possible! If you live in the Puget Sound region, and can get to Olympia on your own the day of the event, or want to hop on one of the buses Lifelong is providing (departing from Seattle, Tacoma, and Everett) - sign up today! We will be booking buses next week, so if you need a seat reserved, this is the time to register and let us know!

If you live in districts 5, 35, 47, or 49, we extra-need you to sign-up! Please go to
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/statewide.aspx to locate your legislative district.

An important note to participants traveling 110 miles + only:
Please note that due to a limited budget, we can only provide two transportation and accommodation stipends per each legislative district in those areas. Right now we still have hotel and transportation assistance available for participants from districts 10, 15, 17, 18 and 40. Please go to http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/statewide.aspx to locate your legislative district.

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Invisible.

That’s how people with AIDS often feel. Because we have medications that fight the virus now, many people think that AIDS is no longer an issue, or that it is only a problem in Africa.

Not so.

Here in King County, thousands of citizens live with HIV/AIDS. While some have homes, jobs, and the support of family and friends, many do not.


That’s where Rosehedge and our partner organizations come in. Whether an individual needs a little bit of help with rent or meals, or total assistance with all aspects of life, there’s an agency that can help.

Rosehedge provides housing and round-the-clock care to men and women who have mental illness, substance dependency, and/or dementia in addition to their AIDS diagnosis. Many of our residents come to us from the streets. They are not able to work, care for themselves, manage their medication, prepare their meals, or get to doctor appointments. They are too disabled to live on their own, yet not disabled enough to qualify for nursing home care.

In our three Seattle homes, we care for 18 people at a time. At Rosehedge, residents have private bedrooms in warm, safe houses, assistance with all activities of daily living, nutritious meals, medication, coordination of medical appointments, counseling, transportation, and more. All in a welcoming, accepting environment.

Without Rosehedge, many of our residents would have no place to go and would find themselves back on the street. Can a compassionate community allow sick people to be homeless and hungry? We don’t believe so.

Please register today to join us at A3D in Olympia on 2/18 to insure the Washington Legislature protects those who need it the most!

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Sign-up for A3D Orientation and Advocacy Overview Sessions!

Already registered for AIDS Awareness & Action Day? Never participated in one before? Join us!

• Find out what AIDS Awareness & Action Day is all about
• Get tips on how to talk to your legislator and make a difference
• Meet and connect with others interested in joining us in this uphill battle to save HIV/AIDS care and prevention services in our state
• Ask questions!

Friday, January 30th
1:00 pm
Lifelong AIDS Alliance Seneca Conference Room
1002 E. Seneca St.

Space is limited, so please RSVP to Advocacy Coordinator Bonnie Lenneman (206.957.1610, bonniel@llaa.org) if you plan to attend!

Can't join us in person? Pull out your calendar and schedule us in for one of the following teleconference sessions:

Tue 02/03/09 11:30 AM
Thu 02/05/09 05:30 PM
or Sat 02/07/09 01:00 PM


Please note, to join this teleconference, you will have to dial a long-distance number 1-518-825-1400, and enter a special conference code. The call should last about 90 minutes. To RSVP, and receive the teleconference code, please contact Advocacy Coordinator Bonnie Lenneman (206.957.1610, bonniel@llaa.org). Remember - you must be registered to attend A3D to participate in this call. REGISTER HERE, if you haven't had a chance to do it yet!



Do your best to attend one teleconference if you have never been to AIDS Awareness & Action Day, or any other event of this type in Olympia. However, if you are unable to join us on the phone, don't worry! Just let us know, and we will send you a packet of information via email about one week before A3D.

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BABES Network-YWCA: a sisterhood of women facing HIV together

Working to make change in Olympia -- BABES staff at AIDS Awareness & Action Day 2007!

BABES believes that advocating for funding for all HIV/AIDS services is a critical action for justice. It is imperative that local organizations are able to provide care and support in a time of increasing financial insecurity. These services are more vital now than ever, and our legislators need to hear from us just how much we need them. We must tell our stories in Olympia on February 18th. In this fight, we recognize the importance of community mobilization, working with our allies, and open dialogue about what we need. This advocacy day is about preserving the support that sustains us, and uniting to strengthen one another.

In an effort to highlight the power of events like AIDS Awareness & Action Day, BABES has collected quotations from staff and members about advocacy:

“As a person living with HIV I find it important and empowering to advocate for myself and others living with HIV and to emphasize how crucial it is to keep funding available for much needed services.”

“Every one should go to an advocacy day at least once. I can guarantee you will want to go again!”

“If we don’t speak up, how will anyone know what we want?”

“We need to get loud!”

“Advocacy about things that matter is a way to care for ourselves, and each other.”

BABES hopes everyone reading this will “get loud” and join us at AIDS Awareness & Action Day to ensure that your legislators know the issues important to us, our families, and our communities.

BABES Network, a program of the YWCA Seattle • King County • Snohomish County, is a peer support program for women living with HIV. Founded on the concept that HIV positive women are uniquely qualified to support and encourage one another, BABES has worked to reduce isolation, promote self-empowerment, enhance quality of life, and serve the needs of women facing HIV and their families since 1989. BABES provides peer support, advocacy, education and outreach. To contact BABES Network, please call 206.720.5566, or email the_staff@babesnetwork.org.

Sign Up To Get Updates By Email - Register to attend via Facebook or LLAA - rawrGG

Welcome to Our A3D 2009 Blog!

By David Richart, Executive Director

Lifelong AIDS Alliance


It is a new day in our country and in the spirit of our new President’s inaugural speech, time to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and get to work! In 4 weeks, we will be gathering our state wide, community of communities to show our legislators in Olympia WHY they must preserve critical funding in the fight against HIV & AIDS. We need your help to recruit constituents from all of our State’s 49 districts to ensure our voices are heard!

Please invite and encourage all of your friends, family, colleagues who share our concerns, care and compassion for our united efforts, to register and attend A3D! We will be using this Blog as well as other sites including Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter to showcase our wide range of partners, as well as inform advocates on how to prepare and feel confident that they can make a difference.

Visit us again frequently to learn about:

• the critical HIV/AIDS care and prevention work conducted by AIDS service organizations,
• the devastating impact state budget cuts will have on people living with HIV/AIDS in Washington State,
• our easy-to-use tools you and other advocates can use to help our community!

Better yet, subscribe to this blog!

From here on, we will use this 21st Century tool to keep you in the loop about A3D, and throughout the entire session!

Last month, we held a kick off event to assemble our partners in this fight – check out our photos below, along with links to the sites of our sister organizations.

Please subscribe to our blog, or check back often, to stay up to date about advocacy opportunities with Lifelong!

See you soon, online and in Olympia, February 18th!

David

Senator Ed Murray 43rd Legislative District

Rep. Marko Liias. 21st Legislative District

Representatives from community based organizations POCAAN, Entre Hermanos, BABES Network YWCA, Kitsap Country HIV/AIDS Foundation, participating in the A3D kick-off event at Lifelong AIDS Alliance.


REGISTER FOR AIDS AWARENESS AND ACTION DAY!

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Pictures from AIDS Awareness & Action Day 2007

Check out these pictures from our trip to Olympia in 2007

Here is coverage from 2007 from the Seattle Gay News (link)

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AIDS Awareness & Action Day less than 2 months away

Every two years, advocates from across Washington State gather in Olympia to educate state lawmakers about the need for HIV/AIDS prevention and care services in our state. 2009 will be a critical year for HIV/AIDS advocates - Washington State Legislature will be faced with a $6 billion budget deficit- the largest in state history.

Let’s make sure our elected officials in Olympia understand why our community can’t afford to lose critical programs serving people living with and at risk for HIV/AIDS.

Join us in Olympia on February 18th 2009

Got questions about the event? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions


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