Tag Archives: HIV/AIDS

The Give a Day Campaign at Borden Ladner Gervais LLP

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Sean Murtha, Associate at BLG writes…On November 26, 2012 Dr. Adrienne Chan of Dignitas International spoke at the Toronto office of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (“BLG”).  Dr. Chan has spent much of the past 5 years working at an HIV/AIDS clinic in Malawi, and she spoke at length about the tangible effects that donations made during the Give a Day campaign have in saving lives throughout Africa.

Dr. Chan highlighted the progress that has been made through the use of anti-retroviral treatments in sub-Saharan Africa.  She spoke glowingly about the essential role that Malawian health-care providers play in the struggle against HIV/AIDS, and relayed heartfelt stories and pictures from her time working on the ground in Malawi.

The presentation also included a video in which a Grandmother supported by the Stephen Lewis Foundation Grandmother’s Campaign personally thanked BLG lawyers and staff for its continued strong support.  As we all know, African Grandmothers are central to the life of their communities, as they have stepped into the breach to care for millions orphaned by AIDS.  This personalized message was very warmly received by all who heard it!

Following her talk, Dr. Chan stayed behind to answer questions from audience members. Her presentation was the perfect way to kick off the final fundraising push at BLG, leading up to World AIDS Day.

Give a Night 2012 – Students Show Commitment to Justice and Health for All

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On Thursday, November 29, the fifth annual Give a Night was held at Cube Nightclub in Toronto. Organized each year by articling students  to show their support for the Give a Day legal campaign, Give a Night brings together students from many Bay Street firms who work collectively to plan and execute the evening.

Tickets for this year’s event  sold out more than a week prior and over $23,000 was raised for the two excellent Canadian recipient organizations – Dignitas International and the Stephen Lewis Foundation, each with its own focus and excellent record of success in responding to HIV. We salute the students for the strong message they have given about their commitment to justice and good health for all, and thank them for their tremendous efforts.

For more details and photos please see this article by Chioma Ume in Precedent Magazine.

“Remarkable Transformations” by Dr. Lorna Adams

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"I am HIV POSITIVE and I am on treatment"

Dr. Lorna Adams writes…Very soon it will be December 1, World Aids Day.  A time to once again think about the pandemic in Africa, the management of it and the devastation of it.  We can think about the ways that we in this amazing country of Canada can help those that are working to support people living with HIV/AIDS, to decrease the new infection rate and to treat adults and children already infected.

I have worked with both organizations that Give a Day supports, both directly in Malawi with Dignitas International, and indirectly with the Stephen Lewis Foundation.  I have seen the remarkable transformation that occurs when people are able to be treated with the appropriate medications, and when grandmothers are assisted in raising their grandchildren who have been orphaned by the illness of their parents. I have seen when people are able to overcome the stigma of an AIDS diagnosis, and go out in public to openly assist those currently trapped with the shame and stigma of the diagnosis.

I met this woman on a bus in Zimbabwe, a country thoroughly traumatized by an ineffectual government, and the AIDS pandemic.  The stigma of the disease is reinforced by the limited access to effective treatment.  Once people are on treatment, have put on some weight, have returned to work, and have regained a sense of dignity and control of their lives, they are much more comfortable letting others know of their diagnosis, and encouraging others to come forward to be tested and treated.  I asked her if I could take her picture, and use it to assist in raising awareness and funds to fight the pandemic.  I told her that it meant that this picture would be public, for all to see.  She looked at me, and smiled, and said, “I am already advertising my HIV positive status with my shirt, Madam”.  Yes, I said, and thank you.

Please, consider the amazing change that your donation of just one day’s pay could effect for so many of those affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa.

This guest post is contributed by Dr. Lorna Adams. She is a physician currently working at Southlake Regional Health Centre and a volunteer with Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres/MSF).  She recently returned from working with MSF in South Sudan.

Welcome to New President and CEO of Dignitas International

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In 2004 Dr. Jane Philpott founded Give a Day by inviting colleagues to donate one day’s pay to great organizations working in response to HIV.  To date, Give a Day has raised over $3 million to assist the people and places most affected by HIV.

Photo by Craig Passfield, Dignitas International

On December 1, World AIDS Day 2012, we will once again encourage Canadians to give one day’s pay to any organization of their choice  they know is doing good work to assist those living with HIV.  At Give a Day we are proud to recommend two excellent Canadian recipient organizations – The Stephen Lewis Foundation and Dignitas International.  Both the SLF and Dignitas have their own focus and strong record of success responding to HIV at a grassroots level.

Over the years we have been inspired both by the successes of these two organizations, and by the many individual Africans and Canadians who team up to carry out this work. Today we would like to congratulate Dignitas International on the announcement of their new President and CEO, Marilyn McHarg. Marilyn brings with her more than 20 years of medical humanitarian experience, most recently as the Executive Director of Médecins Sans Frontières – Canada. (MSF-Canada) You can read more here about Marilyn McHarg and also about the groundbreaking new HIV research that Dignitas is about to embark on in Malawi.  We congratulate Dignitas and welcome Marilyn!

Would You Give a Day to Save a Life?

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Today’s Globe and Mail features an interview with Give a Day founder, Dr. Jane Philpott. Our thanks to author Farah Mohamed for highlighting the way a simple idea can light a fire when we join together.

You can read the entire article here, but I’ll leave you with a little taste!

When asked who her heroes were, Jane responded: “In great stories of human progress, we often focus on the great leaders of these important moments in history, but we forget that behind every great name, there are usually thousands of children, women and men who have laboured to make progress possible. Their faces are unknown, their stories are untold, their voices are unheard. But they are my heroes.”

First Give a Night Ottawa a Great Success!

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Organizing Committee- Give a Night Ottawa

On Sunday, December 4, 2011, Ottawa area lawyers, articling students and other young professionals gathered at Social Restaurant and Lounge for cocktails, mingling and most importantly, to support an amazing cause.

Hosted by Ottawa articling students, and graciously supported by the Ottawa community, the FIRST ever and SOLD out Give a Night debuted outside the Toronto market. Glamorously-dressed guests were treated to a “red-carpet” experience, complete with photographer, DJ, and an incredible list of silent auction items. VIP booths were also provided to marquee sponsors Norton Rose OR LLP, Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, and Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP.

As you can see from these photographs, the young professionals in attendance certainly demonstrated how to “party with a purpose”. From the inevitable bidding wars that ensued, to the stimulating conversations that sprung around the ambient event area, the night provided several memorable experiences for all that attended.

The event was wildly successful, generating over $4, 000 for the Give a Day campaign. Due to the fantastic response garnered by Give a Night Ottawa, the organizing committee has already set its sights on a bigger and more successful event next year.

Make sure not to miss Give a Night 2012, Ottawa!

St. Aloyisius Gonzaga Secondary School Goes Red for World AIDS Day

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St. Aloysius Gonzaga school-wide ribbon of Hope. Photo by Andrew Motyliwski

Mary Schroder, teacher at St. Aloysius Gonzaga Secondary School writes…The school community of St. Aloysius Gonzaga celebrated AIDS Awareness week and World AIDS Day.

The week began with a school-wide video presentation on HIV/AIDS, and continued with daily reflections and cupcake sales in the cafeteria.

A guest speaker from “Give a Day to World AIDS”, Jacob Philpott, spoke to a packed theatre and inspired the students with his experiences in Uganda. The week culminated with a red ribbon campaign, where each classroom door was decorated with a huge red ribbon and AIDS reflection. Students and staff wore red on Dec. 1st and created a school-wide human ribbon of Hope.

Funds raised will be donated to the Stephen Lewis Foundation.
It is my hope that one day all schools will participate in World AIDS Day and raise funds for an AIDS charity of their choice.

Residents Without Borders Photography Exhibit – The Gladstone Hotel

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Thursday, December 15 will be opening night for the annual Residents Without Borders Photography Exhibit in support of World AIDS Day and Give a Day to World AIDS. Always an exciting event, this year’s show promises another fascinating and beautiful collection.

The photo exhibit opening will take place from 6 pm until 9 pm on Thursday, December 15 at the Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen Street West in Toronto. Photographs will be available for sale, with all proceeds going to Dignitas International and the Stephen Lewis Foundation. The exhibit will continue until January 2, 2012, so be sure to add a stop at the Gladstone to your calendar and to drop by to enjoy this collection before the show closes.

GLINT- Learning About HIV on World AIDS Day

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On World AIDS Day, Give a Day held the first ever GLINT Challenge.  The Give a Day Live Not-so-Trivial Challenge was a marathon for the mind – a one-hour online twitter-based contest organized by Give a Day volunteers on the topic of HIV and the people and places most affected.  Over the course of one hour, 200 questions were tweeted from GLINT headquarters, recognizing that 200 people in the world die each hour because of HIV.  Aside from gaining a lot of knowledge, and bragging rights, the winning team would be able to direct $1000 in prize money to an organization that will use the money well in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

At noon on December 1, the volunteers at GLINT headquarters were ready with 200 questions and worked as a team to systematically tweet them out.  Twelve different twitter handles were registered in the challenge, and while individuals from Canada, the U.S. and South Africa played along, the most intense competition was between the multi-person teams which ranged from high school students, to a group of seniors from Toronto.  During the hour of GLINT, 1029 tweets were exchanged, causing some accounts to go temporarily over their daily capacity!  Teams quickly switched over to alternate accounts and kept playing.

Anne Greenwood, a GLINT participant commented, “GLINT was a great event! It was a great way to get together with people on World AIDS Day.  And the questions really got the conversation started. After we finished answering the questions, we sat around for over an hour discussing HIV/AIDS here in Canada and around the world.”

After all the tweeting was complete, the answers were tallied and the winner was @StratfordNWSS, the team from Stratford Northwestern Secondary School in Stratford, Ontario.  Runners-up were @BulldogAttack, @anne_greenwood and @bethanyphilpott.  The students at Northwestern met to discuss different organizations and have decided to direct their prize to the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

The GLINT Challenge winners- Stratford Northwestern Secondary School!

Volunteers who organized this challenge report that it was an exhilarating experience. We often say that Give a Day donors are very unique. They have the ability to connect at a distance with people they will never know, and to see common ground and shared similarities.  Twitter has now given us a new way to connect with others who are concerned about HIV in the world and to work together to get people talking about HIV and how we can learn and respond. While we might not ever meet personally with those who participated in GLINT, it was remarkable to spend an hour together on World AIDS Day, and to know that so many others were using their time and energy to work towards a world without AIDS.

 

 

Winners of the GLINT Challenge – Stratford Northwestern Secondary School

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Karen Congram, Teacher at Stratford Northwestern Secondary School writes…Northwestern students are honoured to be the first-ever winners of an international research competition. The GLINT Twitter Challenge took place on World AIDS Day, December 1st. GLINT is an online contest on the topic of HIV and the people and places most affected by HIV. Recognizing that 200 people in the world die each hour because of HIV, there were 200 questions sent through the @GLINTchallenge Twitter feed between 12:00 and 1:00 p.m. Teams around the world race to send correct answers back over Twitter.

Students were nominated by teachers. The eight students chosen for the team were Ben Congram, Kenny Edwards, Sam Hall, Michelle Hicks, Jackie Laing, Amanda Pearson, Milos Tausan, and Erik Van Dijk. The three teacher coaches were Karen Congram, Morgan Kneider Patterson, and Sherry Mason, with Ms. Mason sending the tweets for the whole team.

The competition was fast, exciting, chaotic, stressful, and fun! Northwestern was the overall winner, and as such has the honour of donating $1,000 to an HIV-related charity. The team met to discuss the choice and unanimously decided the money will go to the Stephen Lewis Foundation. The Stephen Lewis Foundation supports community-based organizations in African countries that have been deeply affected by the AIDS pandemic.

The GLINT Challenge is coordinated by the Give a Day campaign to raise awareness about World AIDS Day. The mission of the Give a Day campaign is to challenge each Canadian to give one day’s pay in the fight against HIV/AIDS.