National AIDS
Memorial seeks remembrances

To commemorate this year's World AIDS Day observance on December 1 at the National AIDS Memorial in San Francisco, the memorial's board of directors is asking the public for personal testimonies, remembrances, and reflections on the effects of the AIDS pandemic. In keeping with the event's theme, "AIDS at 25," the memorial is asking people to identify a single year since 1981 and explain how the pandemic affected them during that year.

"This could be a recollection of your own or a loved one's experiences in dealing with AIDS, or remembering the wide swath the disease made in those early years when there were no medications," said Jack Porter, co-chairman of the World AIDS Day observance, in a press statement. "Or it could be related to learning of your own diagnosis or that of a loved one in the last couple years; a visit to an AIDS-stricken African village; or a poignant moment in your work with a client of an AIDS service agency."

Submissions should be submitted by September 15 via e-mail to mystory@aidsmemorial.org or by standard mail to the National AIDS Memorial, 856 Stanyan St., San Francisco, CA, 94117.

The remembrance service will be held December 1 at the memorial in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. (The Advocate)