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NEWS
WALK
Winter AIDS Walk aims to raise awareness of HIV/AIDS
Continued from page I
and services of (Triad Health Project)/' said Keeton. "We simply
could not exist without the support of our community."
After everyone had gathered inside for an opening speech,
the walk started with the band's music telling everyone it
was time to start walking. The steel drums, snare drums, and
whistle led the crowd out of the stadium. A sea of red emerged
from the entrance, above which there hung a gigantic red
ribbon.
The walkers received support from people cheering them on
throughout the walk. People stood on the sidewallG outside
their churches and homes, giving out water. "Thank you for
walking," they said.
Nearing ^e end of the march through downtown
Greensboro, one could hear the sounds of drumming and
cheering getting closer. Back at War Memorial Stadium, people
waited to greet the walkers.
"Look at all these lovely walkers," one woman said.
Cameramen filmed the happy supporters as they came to
the end with smiles on their faces. Volunteers gave out high
fives along with water.
The band, some of them Guilford students, continued to
play as the big group that had stretched out during the walk
again became a crowded mass of happy people.
Kaitlin Estill, sophomore, is a volunteer at Higher Ground, a
resource center for people affected by HIV / AIDS.
"I came out to show solidarity with the people I spend
time with at Higher Ground," Estill said. "I think AIDS and
HIV have a certain stigma surround it, and this is in large part
due to the lack of information available. World AIDS month is
important because it gets people talking about the issues and
hopefully dissolves some of the stereotypes surrounding the
virus. I'm discouraged with the treatment and isolation people
affected with the virus receive in our society."
"The Winter Aids Walk creates a space for people to stand in
support of those affected," Estill said.
Guilford had some events of its own in support of AIDS
awareness. Sophomore Daniel Raeder is the HIV and AIDS
fellow.
"World AIDS Day is important because it takes the time to
remind the public as well as governments that HIV / AIDS has
not gone away," Raeder said.
Raeder and other members of the Community Aids
Awareness Project, sophomores Rose McIntyre and Jodie
Geddes, arranged for activities like sexual health Jeopardy, a
conversation about HIV and AIDS with a Guilford professor,
and a poetry reading.
There was also a display in Boren Lounge of photographs
taken by junior David Kinchen. The photos are of students
covering their eyes, symbolizing this year's theme: "Open Your
Eyes to AIDS."
"Something about the state that HIV/ AIDS is in now is that
it has fallen off the radar ... it is something that is not talked
enough about or taught enough about," Raeder said.
However, Raeder hopes that the events of the week helped
to raise awareness.
"It has become too easy to say, 'I am not a high risk group, I
won't get AIDS, I don't need to spend my time thinking about
it, it doesn't matter,"'said Raeder. "But by putting these photos „ , , . , .
up in such a common area there is no way to ignore its message, Walkers show their support for the AIDS fight in Greensboro.
you have to stop, look and think.'
The event provides funding for the Triad Health Project.
GuilCo Sojo is a Guilfordian blog dedicated to
exploring issues of social justice in the Greensboro,
Guilford County, and Guilford College community.
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Take a peek at the blog to find our first post on
hunger ana homelessness in Greensboro, an article with
statistics and interviews that show the human side of
hunger in Greensboro.
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Justice Team
Guilford Shares open to students for first time
By Karen Turner
Staff Writer
Guilford is known to be a caring
community, but now the Guilford Shares
Giving Campaign is trying to turn that
caring into sharing.
The Guilford Shares Giving Campaign
is an annual campaign that gives faculty,
administration and staff the chance to
donate money to one of three charities:
United Way, United Arts Council or Earth
Share.
"Through this campaign, Guilford
gives back to our community and makes
a difference in the lives of countless
people and families in Greensboro, North
Carolina and beyond," according to the
official donation website. '
Kent Chabotar, president and professor
of political science, initiated the campaign
in 2001 in order to expand Guilford's
giving opportunities.
"When Kent Chabotar came on board he
really wanted to make it more, more of the
campus coming together as a community
to give back to the community we are
part of," said Information Systems Project
Manager and Support Sonya Mitchell,
one of the tri-chairs of the Guilford Shares
Committee.
The campaign has a new aspect to it
this year: For the first time, students are
allowed to participate.
"We are very excited that students are
involved," said Assistant to the President
for Planning and Management Jeff
Favolise in an email. "This year, at the
beginning of the campaign, we talked to
both student government chairs, attended
Senate and CCE SGA, and we received
their overwhelming support. They are
working to get the word out and increase
participation."
Over the years the program has
expanded drastically. Eight years ago
barely $3,000 were raised, but last year
there was 49 percent participation and
$24,619 was raised. Organizers hope that
this number will continue to increase with
the addition of the student body to the
contributors.
"This is a very special Guilford-wide
effort that puts our values to action and
compassionately serves the needs of our
community," said Favolise.
All of the participating charities are active
within the local Greensboro community.
United Way works to improve people's
quality of life through various aspects
such as education and health care. United
Arts Council supports artistic programs
and opportunities within Greensboro and
strives to transform Greensboro into a
cultural hub. Earth Share helps protect the
environment through educational, water,
land and clean-air programs.
"It's good to stand up and say what
you're not about, but this is a way to say
this is what I am about, this is what I
believe in," said Mitchell. "I don't believe
in greed and I do believe in sharing."
The campaign ends today. Students can
now be a part of this by donating into the
boxes located around campus.
"The donation boxes that we have are
dream boxes; every box that you look at
is someone's dream," said Mitchell. "There
are hundreds of people who dream of
making something happen to the world,
and when you put a dollar in that box,
you're investing in that person's dream."