They tied up their shoelaces, hydrated and did the proper stretches and then, with the blast of the air horn, more than 3,500 Chicago runners and walkers took action in the fight against HIV/AIDS with the 12th annual AIDS Run and Walk Chicago at Soldier Field on Sept. 28.
More than 4,500 people were in attendance at AIDS Foundation of Chicago's (AFC) fundraiser, which included friends and family and 328 event volunteers helping to run the event. Approximately 169 teams participated along with individual runners and walkers who followed a 5K or 10K course winding along the lakeshore.
The event's end saw a total of $404,362.72 raised in funds. Fundraising will continue through October with the goal amount being half a million dollars. AFC was not the only organization to benefit from the day's activities. With the CommunityDirect program, the event's flagship partnership program, 35 other Chicago-based HIV organizations were also able to raise funds for their own programs and services.
"We're thrilled that the AIDS Run & Walk is in its 12th year," said Lindsay in a previous statement. "At the heart of this event is raising awareness and erasing stigma. Everybody is connected to HIV/AIDS somehow, through someone. The AIDS Run & Walk brings people together to participate in a healthy activity, raise money for a life-giving cause, and actively fight this epidemic."
This year's event arrived at a pertinent time, as open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act was slated to begin Oct. 1. AIDS Foundation of Chicago President/CEO David Ernesto Munar said AFC is one of the state grantees to enroll people in the new health care option.
"Without ready access to prevention, care services and treatment, people have not received the testing they need, the prevention education, or the medical care if they're living with HIV and that's why the epidemic continues to perpetuate," said Munar. "More than half the people with HIV are not receiving ongoing medical care to meet their healthcare needs, which is a tragedy because we have state of the art powerful medications."
Munar adds there are 17,000 deaths a year in the United States, 50,000 new infections and thousands of new infections in Illinois due to more than half the people with HIV not having care and therefore not controlling viral replication.
"It's bad for them, it's bad for their partners, and we also have about 20 percent of people living with HIV are estimated to not know they're infected and inadvertently spreading it to others," Munar said. "The epidemic is far from over. We have better options to control it and better tools, but we have to deliver those tools. We've made great strides in 30 years, but this epidemic is still with us. It is a different day. We are helping tens of thousands of people in the Chicago region live well and live healthy, better, longer rewarding lives with HIV. That also wasn't available in the '80s and '90s."
AIDS Memorial Quilt panels were on display in an area of the campus and free HIV testing was available among other information offered at various tents.
Illinois Department of Public Health HIV/AIDS Section Chief Dr. Mildred Williamson, Chicago Department of Public Health First Deputy Commissioner Joe Hollendoner and Illinois House Representative of the 13th District Greg Harris were also in attendance. WGN film critic, entertainment reporter and radio host Dean Richards also assisted Munar with kicking things off at the starting line. Post-race entertainment included '90s singing icon CeCe Peniston, who sang her famous dance hit "Finally."
"Chicago's coming together to show its support for the fights against AIDS and we couldn't be more trilled," said Munar. "It's rewarding to be out on a glorious day, on a nice walk and a good run. We can celebrate we are doing good work and we are helping people improve the quality of their lives. We are rallying visibility for this cause."
This year was AFC's Director of Donor Engagements Rachael Marusarz seventh AIDS Run and Walk Cfhicago. As a volunteer, she said the event is one of the few opportunities she gets to see this many grantees and organizations AFC supports from the community.
"For me, it's a chance to see people doing the work and people who are personally affected who just care a lot about helping others," said Marusarz. "I get to connect with people who are affected today who are now advocating for themselves and I get to be reminded of some of the legacy from when I was a teenager when we didn't have the medication. So, I love this event. There's a lot of energy in the air because we have new opportunities to get people linked into healthcare this year that we haven't had before and there's a lot of anticipation."
The event also unites Chicago residents as they team up to run or walk for various personal reasons. Most runners sported red shirts, while others wore team T-shirts or personal style.
Gil Zamora, a Chicago resident, ran the 10K course. Tired and hot by the end, this marked his fourth year with the Team to End AIDS (T2), an AFC endurance training program. Zamora originally took part in AIDS Run and Walk Chicago to prepare for the Chicago Half Marathon and eventually the Chicago Marathon. He said the race is about finishing and having fun. He said he continues to do the event with T2 each year as there is a variety of people and different organizations participating all supporting AFC and its work.
"The Chicago AIDS foundation does a lot of really great work and really helping people struggling with AIDS," said Zamora. "I've been with Team to End AIDS program for a few years now and it's a wonderful experience. You meet great people, the run the exercise, there are so many great reasons to do it, I can't think of one reason not to. This is all about finishing and having fun."
Chicago resident Marissa Panganiban signed up independently with her friend, Mike. Explaining they were starting their bucket lists by running various races, this 10K was a logical next step.
"It's a great cause and it's a nice day and a lot of people are really positive at this race and you get a big turnout," said Panganiban. "It was quite hot, but because of the energy we were able to keep going."
For more information or to donate, visit AIDSrunwalk.org .
