This guy was my partner Peggy’s best friend, Ivan. Ivan had HIV and died in 1998 from his first opportunistic infection. He was a beautiful man, inside and out. He volunteered in soup kitchens, was active at Dignity/Boston and was adored by all who knew him. I don’t want any more of my friends to be infected or to die from HIV/AIDS. That is why I volunteer year-round on the planning committee for this ride and why on Ride Day I will be out of my house at 2:30 AM and will continue to volunteer until 8PM that night.
I raise funds on behalf of AIDS Action Committee. Back in the 1980’s I lived in Oklahoma and watched this disease kill my friends. We looked to AIDS Action Committee for guidance. At the age I should have been attending weddings, I was going to funerals. Through OKC’s AIDS Support Program, I handed out condoms, answered helpline calls and worked at fundraising events. This is my way of thanking them for their leadership then and now.
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