A mother in a panic called the AIDS Walk San Diego hotline last year – she couldn’t find her son’s quilt and wanted to be sure organizers had it for display in an area of the walk where families and friends honor people whose lives were cut short by HIV/AIDS.

Jennifer Jones, the director of development for The San Diego LGBT Community Center, assured the woman that her son’s quilt was safe, and that it would be on display at the walk. During the festivities the day of the walk, the mother and a team of participants approached Jones. They wore matching shirts with the son’s picture on them.

“Until I saw them, it hadn’t hit home,” Jones said. “The emotional impact of a mom coming to honor her son’s memory is very, very touching to see.”

AIDS Walk San Diego is San Diego’s largest one-day HIV/AIDS fund-raiser and the biggest non-governmental financial provider for HIV/AIDS in San Diego County. For the last 17 years, AIDS Walk San Diego has helped to unite the community as it collectively fights HIV and raises funds for San Diego-area HIV/AIDS organizations that serve those affected by the disease. Last year alone, more than 34 organizations received vital funding from the walk.

AIDS Walk San Diego is able to increase the impact of the dollars raised at the event through a funding partnership with the San Diego HIV Funding Collaborative. Funds from the Walk are combined with donations from other philanthropists and foundations to qualify for matching funds. Since 1989, AIDS Walk San Diego has raised more than $6.5 million. In partnership with the San Diego HIV Funding Collaborative, more than $400,000 was distributed last year to community-based HIV/AIDS service organizations in San Diego County.

People living with HIV/AIDS are living longer than when the first cases of the disease were documented in the United States, but it doesn’t mean the walk is irrelevant, Jones said.

“You hear people ask, ‘Is AIDS Walk still relevant? People aren’t dying at the rate they used to,’” Jones said. “It’s nonsense.”

“We’re 25, 26 years into this disease and there is still no cure,” she said. “One person is diagnosed with full blown AIDS in San Diego County every day. There are rising incidents of HIV/AIDS in communities of color and in the 18-24-year-old age range of men who have sex with men. To ask, ‘Is there a need for the walk? Is it still relevant?’ is ludicrous to me.”

In fact, the walk’s relevance is measured in the support the 30-plus organizations receive from the fund-raiser, Jones said. The organizations the walk supports enhance the quality of life of those living with the disease.

“For some agencies in the county, the funds raised at AIDS Walk are still their largest donation of the year,” Jones said. “This is the bulk of their funds. Talk about the importance, a lot of agencies depend on this grant to provide services to our community members who need them most.”

From meal delivery to medical support and social services, the agencies that receive funds from AIDS Walk work to meet the needs of people living with HIV/AIDS. These are just a few of the organizations funds will benefit.

AIDS Walk participants make a tremendous difference to local HIV/AIDS service organizations and the people they serve. AIDS WALK San Diego has been one of Mama’s Kitchen’s most faithful supporters since its founding in 1990.

According to Mama’s Kitchen’s oldest records, the organization received its first grant from AIDS Walk 15 years ago. That initial gift was followed by many others, each representing thousands of nutritional meals for clients struggling with severe poverty and AIDS.

“The early gifts from AIDS Walk San Diego helped give us credibility when we asked for other grants throughout the community,” said Alberto Cortés, executive director of Mama’s Kitchen. “So it would not be an overstatement to say that those grants helped Mama’s Kitchen grow into the organization that we are today.”

Funds from AIDS Walk San Diego have helped supply many thousands of life-extending meals to local residents. Most of these meals would not have been possible without this support.

“The assistance of AIDS Walk San Diego and the San Diego HIV Funding Collaborative help provide a base of support that is vital for Mama’s Kitchen when we make budget assumptions for the coming year,” Cortés said. “And these grants have helped to convince many other foundations to lend their support, knowing that we had already raised a significant sum from other sources.”

Mama’s Kitchen is still the only local meal delivery service for people with AIDS that supplies three meals a day for every day of the year. The assistance Mama’s Kitchen receives from AIDS Walk San Diego through the San Diego HIV Funding Collaborative is a critical ingredient in the recipe for its success.

The mission of CASA (Coordinated Assistance Services and Advocacy) South Bay is to “provide a continuum of culturally sensitive medical, social and supportive services that enhance the health status and quality of life of people living with HIV/AIDS.” To that end, CASA offers a warm, supportive, home-like setting that encourages social interaction and the development of peer-based support networks among the clients.

According to Rosana Scolari, San Ysidro Health Center’s Director of HIV Services, “CASA is a one-stop-shop for HIV services offered in a warm, friendly and caring environment. Our clients often comment that they feel at home and among family at CASA. We know we’re accomplishing our mission and touching the lives of clients when we hear this.”

CASA South Bay provides, or coordinates, more than15 social support services, including case management, outreach, HIV testing, peer advocacy, food services, mental health counseling, legal services, substance abuse counseling, housing information, hygiene products, as well as a variety of groups including prevention with positives, a Spanish support group and an art therapy group. CASA also coordinates access to SYHC’s HIV specialty medical care, HIV nutrition counseling and treatment adherence counseling.

“Each month, CASA receives over 600 visits from clients and family members and, on average, eight newly-diagnosed HIV-positive clients access CASA services each month,” Scolari said. “This level of service would not be possible without the on-going support CASA South Bay receives from AIDS Walk San Diego.”

Since 1999, SYHC’s CASA South Bay has received more than $98,360 from AIDS Walk San Diego. AIDS Walk funding has supported the development of Amigos de CASA, a peer-based educational and social support program that assists newly diagnosed clients to access HIV services, learn coping strategies, and increase their knowledge of HIV/AIDS. In addition, Amigos de CASA links clients to a strong social and emotional support network.

“Funding from AIDS Walk San Diego and the San Diego HIV Funding Collaborative has enabled CASA South Bay to develop creative, innovative and responsive programs that have improved the health, well-being and overall quality of life of our clients,” Scolari said.

AIDS Walk participants make a tremendous difference to local HIV/AIDS service organizations and the people they serve. AIDS WALK San Diego has been one of the most faithful supporters of FHCSD.

“Each year, we provide medical and supportive services to more than 1,400 individuals living with HIV, as well as a wide array of HIV prevention services to those at greatest risk,” said Fran Butler-Cohen, president and CEO of FHCSD. “We depend on the resources from AIDS Walk and the San Diego HIV Funding Collaborative to ensure we can provide these vital services and programs. We are grateful to all those involved in making AIDS Walk San Diego such a success – they really do make a difference in the lives of our clients.”

The mission of FHCSD is to provide comprehensive, accessible, quality health care services to residents, communities and community-based organizations in San Diego and the surrounding region. FHCSD offers affordable services to all income levels, with a special commitment to low-income and medically underserved individuals. Last year, Family Health Centers provided more than 400,000 patient visits, to more than 100,000 individuals, most of whom are living below the poverty line.

To fulfill its mission, FHCSD provides primary medical, dental, and mental healthcare services to San Diegans at more than 24 locations, including three mobile units, throughout the San Diego region.

”We are the largest comprehensive HIV/AIDS service provider in San Diego County,” Butler-Cohen said. “In addition to HIV testing and counseling, which we offer at all of our clinic sites, we also provide specialized medical and dental care, counseling services and case management for people living with HIV/AIDS, as well as a wide array of programs designed to assist those at greatest risk in building the information and skills they need to prevent the further spread of this disease.”

Over the past seven years, FHCSD has received more than $109,000 from AIDS Walk San Diego. AIDS Walk funding has helped FHCSD’s Teen Outreach Mobile Clinic to increase its HIV prevention and testing services. The Teen Outreach Mobile Clinic is a collaborative project providing outreach and primary health care services, including STI and HIV testing and counseling, to homeless, run-away and high-risk youth. Two three-hour night-time clinics are offered each week – one in Ocean Beach and one in Hillcrest.

Christie’s Place is a support and services center for women, children and families who have been affected by HIV/AIDS, which is now the fifth leading cause of death among women ages 25 - 44, and the leading cause of death among black women in this age group.

Last year, Christie’s Place received more than 8,200 visits, provided more than 1,000 counseling sessions facilitated by licensed professionals and provided more than 2,500 hours of child care. In addition to numerous support groups, Christie’s Place staff and volunteers also provided nearly 5,000 referrals to additional community resources. This level of service and support would not be possible without the funding that Christie’s Place receives from AIDS Walk San Diego.

“For over a decade Christie’s Place has been transforming lives by providing targeted and much-needed education, advocacy and social services for women, children and families living with HIV and AIDS. From our first days, AIDS Walk San Diego has played an essential role in our ability to respond to the needs of the families we serve. It literally helps keep our doors open so that we are able to deliver comprehensive care to all those who need it,” said Liz Brosnan, executive director of Christie’s Place.

Since 1996, Christie’s Place has received approximately $100,000 from AIDS Walk San Diego.

“While the rates of mother-to-child HIV transmission have been greatly reduced, we have approximately 40 HIV-positive children as part of our caseload. That is 40 children too many,” Brosnan said. “We count on the dollars raised by AIDS Walk San Diego to help us serve those children, and the rest of our clients who need a safe place to address the challenges they face, and to access the support they need.” With assistance from Corri Planck, Advocacy Marketing Group