FULLERTON : AIDS Quilt to Be Displayed at CSUF

Ed Miller locked himself away for five days recently to put together a quilt panel for a friend who had died of AIDS. During that time he fluctuated between being angry and sad while remembering the good times they had shared.

Making the quilt was a cathartic experience, said Miller, 31, of Stanton. It also gave him the chance to create a memorial for his friend.

“I wanted everyone to know that he was here and made contributions,” Miller said.

The quilt panel Miller made will be included in a display of 800 panels from the AIDS Memorial Quilt at Cal State Fullerton. The panels will be on display from Sunday through Tuesday.

The quilt will be unveiled during the World AIDS Day observance at Cal State Fullerton from 4 to 9 p.m. Sunday. The observance is sponsored by AIDS Ministry Ecumenical Network of Orange County.

Although portions of the 25,000-panel AIDS Memorial Quilt have been displayed before in Orange County, organizers of the Fullerton event said Sunday’s display will be the largest ever in North County.

The 3-by-6-foot quilt panels are as diverse as the people they commemorate. Some are as simple as felt-pen drawings on muslin, while others feature fabric swatches from favorite clothing and patchwork symbols of the person’s interests.

What the panels have in common, Miller said, is that they tell a story.

“The panels tell stories about these individuals who are taken too soon,” he said. “They make names and numbers into people.”

As logistics coordinator for the Orange County NAMES Project, which coordinates local displays of the quilt, Miller has had several opportunities to witness the quilt’s effect on those who come to view it.

“Their reactions are ones of amazement, sadness, warmth--a whole variety of emotions,” Miller said.

The observance Sunday will begin with an interfaith service at 4 p.m. with ministers from several different churches. Episcopal Bishop Chester Talton of the Diocese of Los Angeles will preside over the service. Singer Paige O’Hara, who was the voice of Belle in the Disney movie “Beauty and the Beast,” will perform two songs during the service, including one from the movie.

A reception from 5 to 6 p.m. will include an awards presentation to winners of the Red Cross AIDS poster contest and entertainment by the Kids Next Door, a singing group from the Orange County School for the Performing Arts.

New panels will be dedicated to the quilt in a ceremony at 6 p.m., with the unveiling of the entire quilt at 7 p.m.

All events will be held in the student center. Parking in college lots is $1.50. The university is at State College Boulevard and Nutwood Avenue.