‘HIV is not going away; there’s still not any cure for it’

Nonprofits have weathered some difficult challenges inthe past decade, and the Lansing Area AIDS Network is no exception.Jacob Distel, executive director of LAAN, says the annual Red RibbonGala is an important cornerstone in maintaining funding and support forhis organization’s mission.

“Nonprofits over the past five to 10 years have realized significant funding cuts across the board,” Distel explained.

Distel sees this as a symptom of the ailing economy, butalso as a problem related to reduced awareness about the seriousness ofAIDS.

“That’s the reason we have the Red Ribbon Gala,” he said.

“It’s dual purpose. It’s fundraising, but it’s also to increase community awareness about what’s going on with HIV and AIDS.”

The seventh annual Red Ribbon Gala andAuction raises funds for LAAN programs that provides care services toindividuals living with HIV, as well as educational outreach programs.

Awards will be presented at the gala,including the Hero Award, which will be given to Child and FamilyCharities, a LAAN partner for over 15 years, providing mental healthservices to LAAN’s clients.

Distel said there have been significant changes since the late 1980s and early 1990s, when greater attention was paid to AIDS.

“When agencies like LAAN were just coming about, themajority of those agencies were grassroots agencies primarily driven bylocal volunteers and local community members,” he said. “There weren’ta lot of resources available during those very early days.” 

Not until later in the 1990s did LAAN and similaragencies begin to receive support from government institutions andNGOs. But government spending on AIDS programs like LAAN has dwindledover the years. 

“I don’t see the picture getting any better,” Distel said.  That’s why events like the Red Ribbon Gala and Auction are so important to the organization.

World AIDS Day is Dec. 1.

“It’s the one time of year, quite honestly, that you canexpect to see some reference to HIV on both local and national news,”Distel said.

“HIV is not going away; there’s still not any cure forit. Too often when you ask a young person about various risk factors,they’re not that concerned with HIV and AIDS. They don’t see it as thedeath sentence experienced in the late 1980s and early 1990s.”  That mentality is what Distel and LAAN want to change.

Red Ribbon Gala

Saturday, Nov. 12

Radisson Hotel,

111 N. Grand Ave., Lansing

Registration begins at 6 p.m; program begins at 7 p.m., with a live auction and dinner following. 

$100 per ticket

laanonline.org