SAN ANTONIO – HIV often creates a negative stigma with negative attitudes and beliefs about people with HIV.
When we support people with HIV, we make it easier for them to lead healthy lives. The BEAT AIDS Coalition Trust has been serving the community since 1987 and has recently expanded its services to promote, prevent and respond to COVID-19.
Tyrone Darden, board chair for BEAT AIDS Coalition Trust, discusses the nonprofit’s new BEAT COVID campaign with BEAT AIDS.
Tell us about the new BEAT COVID campaign with BEAT AIDS. Why does it make sense to also do this?
“It’s impacting so many people over the greater San Antonio area,” said Darden. “And for our leadership, we are always looking for ways to help our consumers and help our community. We’ve been partnered with different agencies, different entities, and we’re trying to figure out how exactly can we make a difference. The biggest thing that we love to do is do outreach through education. We said, ‘you know what? Let’s do a campaign, a PSA campaign, letting everyone know about BEAT AIDS.’ This is what we’ve been doing for so many years -- almost four decades. Right now, the pandemic that we have in front of us is COVID. So let’s come together and beat COVID.”
How can the community help?
“For those who are dealing with the HIV and AIDS pandemic, we’ll continue our services, but the number one thing they can do is contact us,” Darden said. “Let us know if we can’t provide the service. We have other stakeholders in the community. We can make sure that you connect those services, even for other services, for example, people in situations where they can’t be there and they can’t pay their mortgage, they’ve lost their jobs. We may not be able to directly help with that, but we can connect anyone with those opportunities. So the biggest thing is just to reach out to us.”
If you would like to support BEAT AIDS, the 33rd annual BEAT AIDS Coalition Trust banquet and awards ceremony will be virtual on ZOOM on Friday, Sept. 24 at 7 p.m.
The group will be selling raffle tickets for $5 and there will be gift baskets and gift cards available to win.
If you would like to talk to someone to discuss your HIV status, BEAT AIDS offers confidential testing. The nonprofit also has recently opened a new location at 208 W. Euclid Avenue. Call BEAT AIDS at 210-212-2266 to get support today.
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