Dear Family and Friends,
I am writing to you once again to ask for your support for the Hawai`i Health and Harm Reduction (HHHRC) [formerly the Life Foundation). Thanks so much to all of you who have supported me and the HHHRC in the years past with your generous giving for the AIDS Walk.
This year’s 35th Honolulu AIDS Walk is being held on Saturday, June 27, and once again I am raising money and volunteering as part of this signature fundraiser for the HHHRC. I am not able to walk this year as I will be on the mainland attending a family gathering with Maureen’s 2 “kids” and their families in Eugene OR that weekend, but I will be there in spirit and support, and hopefully with financial support thanks to all of you.
I am hoping you may be able and willing to make a tax-deductible contribution of whatever amount to the HHHRC via my AIDS Walk page again this year.
I continue to serve on the HHHRC Board of Directors (I have been a member of the Board for many years now, going back to our Life Foundation days) and remain as committed as ever to the mission, services, activities and accomplishments of the HHHRC. Our mission: “Reducing harm, promoting health, creating wellness, and fighting stigma in Hawai‘i and the Pacific.”
Since my starting on the Board when the organization was the Life Foundation, HHHRC has maintained its primary focus on providing HIV prevention and education, HIV testing, and HIV care and support services. However, since becoming the HHHRC we have been able to expand our services to include reducing the harm, providing services, and fighting the stigma of hepatitis, homelessness, substance abuse, mental illness and poverty in our community.
The Honolulu AIDS Walk, established in 1991, was created to meet the urgent needs of Hawaii's LGBTQIA+ community and those living with HIV. This event was founded at a time when the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS was at its peak, creating a critical platform for raising awareness and rallying support. Today, the walk remains just as relevant, with still no cure for AIDS and a current Federal political climate of funding cuts and discrimination against those with differing sexual identities. It has grown to become the largest fundraiser in Hawai‘i dedicated to supporting individuals living with HIV, with all proceeds benefiting the programming at the Hawai'i Health & Harm Reduction Center.
Thanks so much for whatever support you can give—your contribution makes a huge difference in what HHHRC is able to do and provide.
Aloha,
Clifford