3 cities' walks to benefit AIDS, HIV patients

AIKEN --- Seeking to raise awareness and money to help people with AIDS and HIV in South Carolina, supporters will gather in Aiken, Orangeburg and Florence today for the HopeHealth AIDS Walk.

The 12th annual event will take place at 10 a.m., with Aiken's walk at Osbon Park on Columbia Avenue, said Christine Gordon, the regional director for Aiken, Barnwell and Allendale counties. Last year, the walk helped raise nearly $14,000 for medical care and other services for AIDS and HIV patients in the three-county area.

"It will be the largest AIDS walk in South Carolina," Ms. Gordon said. "We'll all be walking at the same time, and hoping to do more for the growing number of people we serve."

The state ranks eighth in the nation for AIDS cases, according to the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control. As of Dec. 31, 9,719 people were living with AIDS or HIV in the state, and 835 of those cases were diagnosed in the Lower Savannah region, according to the state statistics.

Ms. Gordon said she hopes the organization surpasses last year's fundraising.

"We are seeing an increase in youths between 15 and 19 years old being infected. There's also a rise in African-American, heterosexual females being diagnosed," Ms. Gordon said.

David Thompson, the community outreach specialist for MCG's Ryan White Outreach group, said his group conducts free, rapid HIV tests on Aiken residents weekly. He sees the need for raising awareness and advocating for those who have been diagnosed, he said.

"When that awareness is there, people get tested, and we can get them into the care they need," he said. "People who live with it can live normal lives, and it's important to give them the respect they deserve."

Reach Stephanie Toone at (803) 648-1395, ext. 110, or stephanie.toone@augustachronicle.com.