December 1st 2009

World AIDS Day is coming up on December 1st.
A lot of people might ask, why is that important?

I can give you many reasons. I can tell you that there is over 500,000 people currently living with AIDS, I can tell you that over 2,000 of those people are children under 13 years of age.
I can tell you that annually, there are 70,000 new infections of children under age 15. Many of these children are or will become orphans. Without treatment, approximately half of the children with perinatal infection will die by the age of 2... I can sit here and write out all of these numbers, but there is more to this disease than statistics.

Behind all the research, behind the ribbons, behind the numbers. . .There are people.
To most, the numbers mentioned above are just numbers, information gathered to raise awarness for this disease that so many don't want to talk about anymore.
In my eyes, every number is a person. . .And it does not matter who that person may be, young, old, black, white, they are people and they diserve to be treated just the same as everyone else.

I first got into HIV/AIDS awareness in 2000 when I lost my great-uncle because he contracted it from his partner, whom he trusted. I was young when he passed away, but I understood. From then on I promised myself that I would do all that I could to raise awareness and educate people about HIV/AIDS and about how to be safe. And that is exactly what I have been doing.

I am very active with my Native American heritage, I go to gatherings all over the Panhandle of Florida, lower Alabama and lower Georgia. I see all of these gatherings as a place to educate in many ways and most recently I have been helping a group of people educate about HIV/AIDS, as I will continue doing.

USA Fundraising.com is putting on a contest in honor of World AIDS day.
They will be giving away 2,300 red woven bracelets that say "Find A Cure" on them, which can raise anywhere from $2,300 (If you sell them at $1 each) or $11,500 (If you sell them $5 each).
I urge you to all enter this contest, I am.
This is the link to enter. Please do : http://www.usafundraising.com/charities/charity-fundraising/aids-awareness-bracelet-contest.html

If I do win the braclets, I would honestly love to sell them and donate the money to The Shawl Circle or to the National Native American AIDS Prevention Center.

This is important, I can't stress it enough.
If we don't educate people about HIV/AIDS, what is going to happen to our future generations?
We need to protect our children and our futures.

Love & [World] Peace,
Brandi <3