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Roy Hayes Phiadelphila Pa I been living Hiv/Aids for over 25 years and sometime we need to take time off Hey Paul Thank you for help me all people with HIV/AIDS and any Family i was with you When we Protest and we chained our Self to the gate at White House
Hey Paul, thanks for the inspiration, truly. I also run a much-smaller HIV non-profit, but I can identify with the feelings expressed. I, too, put my years in ACT UP on Long Island. I, too, buried too many. Thursday's Child helps hundreds each year, yet each year we are threatened with closing.Such is our crazy lot in this life. One correction, the CARE Act is long gone, Paul! It was never renewed after '05, replaced with the Treatment Modernization Act of '06. No, they are NOT the same.
Welcome back Paul. I took a 2 year break from my direct work with HIV and like you could not wait to get back,and it did help my mental health..
Paul, the grieving process is long. Much longer than if we had merely lost one single loved one. The sheer magnitued of dead loved ones has compounded and exponentially increased our grief and its time. But it is that grief that has allowed so many of us to do whatever we have done in this fight. We fight for their memory as surely as we continue to fight for our lives.
Paul please know how much we love and care for you. I met you at the Atlanta Conference and I have our picture on the wall of my office. When people ask me who the "Chinese Man in the picture with you ? I say he is my spritual leader,he heals my soul. I can't imagine doing what you do everyday for all of us. You continue to make the world better one outreach worker,one social worker,one doctor at a time. We have learned love and compassion for each other and that is the lesson you taught us.
I'm delighted that you will be back, I held my breath thinking your decision would one of retirement. We are fortunate that you are rested and re-energized. Your trip down memory lane made me remember my 23 year journey in the world of HIV/AIDS, and the pain around the funerals. But I have to also remember the love that the HIV/AIDS commuity has shared with me along the way. Thank you for all you do Paul. We love you.
I like that you took a break but still feel broken - not that it is nice for you but it means you still have the passion which is needed for your work. For the cutting edge, I'd like to see some group really taking on HIV and the disabled. I work in Africa and this is a seriously underserved group of HIV infected and affected people. Maybe they are not the type of minority that you usually think of but they need your help along with children, disabled or not. Anyway, best wishes
Frederick Wrightq
Paul, I hope your rest has brought healing to your spirit. I am one that is over the angry and healing from the pain of the past, however clear that cutting edge policy must be in the future in this movement in action. For years the EU has demanded Titration of AIDS drugs to save lives and money when treating HIV PEOPLE. BIG PhRMA in the USA has rejected Titration due to MONEY. The Global Network of Positive People in the USA is Calling for AIDS Titration Policy NOW!
April 8, 2010 • Tampa