AIDS battle still essential

Lauren Vane

Underneath a cold sky on Wednesday night, a small group of people

holding candles huddled together on the cobblestone area of Main

Beach to honor World AIDS day and those who have been lost to the

disease.

The candlelight illuminated the tears on the faces of people in

the gathering, as they spoke out loud the names of loved ones who had

died.

Some voices were shaky and others were strong. The names

overlapped, but the voices spoke one message of awareness and a

commitment to change the course of a deadly disease.

“I lost more than half my friends before I hit 35,” said Ric

Uggen, a volunteer with the AIDS Services Foundation.

“People need to be aware and people need to participate and people

need to take care of one another,” Uggen said.

The candlelight vigil followed a day of remembrance that began

with free HIV testing provided by the Laguna Beach Community Clinic.

Earlier, red ribbons with the names of victims -- Jim B., Bill M.,

John E. and many others -- were fastened to trees throughout

Downtown.

“We are utilizing this very special day to re-educate the public,”

said Jim Spreine, Laguna Beach chief of police. Spreine said the goal

was to show the community that AIDS is still a disease that deserves

attention.

“It’s still here, it’s still as bad as it was and we don’t want

people to lose sight of that,” Spreine said.

Mary Wood said she came to the candlelight vigil to celebrate

those who lost their lives to AIDS. Wood works as a volunteer with

AIDS Care Team In Our Neighborhoods, a faith-based group from St.

Mary’s Episcopal church that maintains friendships with those who are

living with AIDS.

“I’m here to celebrate the lives that have been lost to HIV/AIDS

and to serve notice to the community that AIDS hasn’t gone away,”

Wood said.

Korey Jorgensen, an HIV specialist and a doctor at the Community

Clinic, said he thought it was especially important to increase

awareness about HIV testing.

“Unfortunately, there is a growing perception that HIV is not a

serious problem because we’ve been so successful at treating it,”

Jorgensen said.

Free HIV testing throughout the day at Main Beach was made

possible by a grant awarded by to the Community Clinic by the City

Council. Spreine said that the test offered on Wednesday was a new

test that provides faster results, requiring only 20 minutes for the

entire process.

Jorgensen called the free testing “a 20 minute chance of undivided

attention when we can try to educate people about HIV.”

After the testing had concluded for the day, clinic staff closed

the doors on the mobile clinic and the community gathered for the

vigil. Standing close to one another, the small crowd formed a tight

circle and blocked the wind, allowing the flame of each candle to

burn strong.