THE LIVING BEYOND BELIEF AWARDS 2006
|
|
|
|
At one point throughout the night during the 4th Annual Living Beyond Belief Butterfly Awards, the audience got to watch videotaped segments of five teenaged scholarship recipients, all of whom were stating their reasons on camera for becoming involved with HIV/AIDS activism. Statements like "I chose HIV/AIDS because ignorance is not bliss.","It's still widespread and affects every one of us.", and "It does not discriminate." were heard. To those of us who grew up back in the '80's during the first few AIDS cases (when the disease was a taboo subject, when it was thought to be a "gay plague", and when many believed that the virus could be transmitted through casual contact or even mosquitoes), such statements might seem rote, cliched, or tired. But the sad truth, as history has proved, is that too many of us have short memories. Yes, even those of us who lost friends, family, or lovers to the disease. Twenty-five years after we started losing a whole generation of America's youngest, most productive, and most creative citizens to AIDS, people are still becoming infected worldwide. Again, it's often the youngest and most productive members of society. We can hear statements like "The only cure we have is knowledge." over and over again, but until we start really listening-- and reacting-- then these statements will remain just platitudes. Throughout the Butterfly Awards-- as always, a night as provocative as it was celebratory-- the audience was reminded not just of the number of people who live with or died from the disease, but also the "invisible" statistics-- like the fact that about 245,000 kids in New York City are living with grandparents because they lost their parents to AIDS, as Chris Norwood of Health People pointed out. AIDS is not regarded as an automatic death sentence as it used to be, and society has at least partially changed the way it views the disease. Progress? Indeed. But progress, by its very nature, only exists if it continues to move forward. And in the forefront of moving forward are organizations like Living Beyond Belief.
Out of the many, many worthy AIDS- and HIV-awareness organizations out there, Living Beyond Belief is the one that I support completely, year-round, largely because the organization has been such a source of personal inspiration for me. Living Beyond Belief's focus on peer education, as well as their commitment to rewarding the youngest activists in our society for their hard work, is what makes the difference. As I very quickly learned, I'm far from alone. In addition to the group's dedicated staff, Living Beyond Belief has developed a large group of devoted volunteers and other supporters-- a diverse bunch ranging from high school kids to movers and shakers in the worlds of literature, music, film, and more. The success of the Butterfly Awards-- a benefit and celebration of life, in memory of the late Wayne Fischer-- is probably the most vivid example of how dedicated Living Beyond Belief and its supporters are. The number of attendees and backers grow every year. Living Beyond Belief's 4th Annual Butterfly Awards and Benefit took place on Monday, May 22nd at Slate Plus in Chelsea. Living Beyond Belief (LBB) is dedicated to carrying out the legacy of Wayne Fischer, the first New York City teacher to publicly disclose his HIV-positive status, back in 1990. LBB was co-founded in 2003 by Fischer's niece Bari Zahn, an activist and attorney who was named “New Yorker of the Week” by NY1 News in June 2005 for her AIDS awareness work. LBB is committed to saving lives by assisting schools and community-based organizations to train and effectively develop youth to educate their peers on HIV/AIDS prevention. LBB provides college grants to NYC public high school students who are working to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS through peer education and/or activism. This year, the five Teen Recipients were Benjamin Alexander-Crossan, Rashida Anthony, Dominique Mayers, Jessica Perez, and Samantha Rodriguez. Chris Norwood of Health People and Teen P.A.C.T. were also Honored. The event featured a Meet & Greet with former NY Knick All-Star John Starks, Kenneth Cole gift bags(!), and live performances by singer/songwriter Keyth Lawrence (a longtime supporter of LBB) and full-figured burlesque troupe The Glamazons. Hosted by comedienne/actress Kim Cea and well-known NYC man-about-town Scott Nevins, The Butterfly Awards also featured Special Guest presenters Jack E. Jett (TV's "Queer Edge") and actress Daphne Rubin-Vega, as well as celebrity guests Kim Stolz ("America's Next Top Model"), Zulema Griffin and Emmett McCarthy of "Project Runway", and TV personality/author Frank DeCaro.
The attendees warmed up with hors d'oeuvres and cocktails and visited the silent auction, with Miss Candy Apple of the Glamazons reminding everyone to be generous. There were 44 silent auction packages, ranging from MAC Cosmetic boxes, designer original clothes and jewelry, and lots of sports (NY Mets! NY Knicks!), movie, TV, and theater (Wicked! Hairspray!) packages. How about an "All My Children" script signed by the cast? Or a "Transamerica" DVD and poster signed by "Desperate Housewife" Felicity Huffman herself?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dianne Toussant, who's on LBB's Youth Advisory Board and was one of the LBB Teen Grant Recipients in 2005, gave a provocative speech about Wayne Fischer, full of stark earnestness. She reminded us that when Fischer publicly disclosed his HIV status in the 1990, the atmosphere was full of fear and hostility-- residuals of which, it's no mystery, still exist today. Dianne also pointed out that while she never met Wayne, his legacy lives on and was a great source of personal inspiration for her. The event continued with the tradition of showing a moving video of Wayne Fischer speaking about living with AIDS. His personal journey was the subject of a weekly series on TV's NY1 called "AIDS: A Journal of Hope", which gave many people their first idea of what living day to day with the virus was like. The emphasis, everyone learned, was on living. Wayne believed that AIDS was something of a wakeup call. He had said that being HIV-positive made him "wake up and take a look at what life is really about... and take a look, also, at what death is really about." After the presentation, Dianne welcomed back our two easy-on-the-eyes hosts. Scott Nevins, a self-proclaimed reality TV nut, was particularly excited about the next trio of presenters. "One wore a pink leotard on national TV, one made a model do a 'You better work!' walk-off, and the other had to work with silver body paint and pigeons!" In case you other reality TV nuts out there didn't guess by now, the special guest presenters were Zulema Griffin, Emmett McCarthy, and Kim Stolz. Chris Norwood, Founder and Executive Director of Health People received the Honoree Individual Award. Health People-- a peer training, prevention, and support organization based in the South Bronx-- was started in 1990 as a women’s AIDS prevention and support program in a single room at Bronx Community College. Today, the organization has 46 staff members and serves 3,000 people per year. To present the Awards to the Teen Grant Recipients, Kim Cea welcomed NY Knicks' John Starks, who earlier in the evening posed with the excited Teen Grant Recipients-- and the even more excited Kim Cea! Starks said, "As an athlete as well as a father, you want to be in good health and see your children in good health... and, I want my children to understand the force of HIV and the effect that it takes upon us." The Honoree Organization of the night was Teen P.A.C.T. (Positive Actions and Choices for Teens), a youth development program which provides confidential health services and a weekly Teen Lounge. The program's guiding philosophy is: Help youth become productive adults capable of making life-affirming decisions. When accepting their Award, the organization's spunky young spokeswoman stated, "We are honored that our work for the Teen P.A.C.T. is being acknowledged." before pointing out that "Half of all new HIV infections are under the age of 25". If the energy and enthusiasm by this group is the indication of the commitment to the fight against the virus, there's no doubt that they'll continue to make a big difference. Next up was, in the words of Kim Cea, "The fabulous-- and VERY supportive-- Jack E. Jett!" Jett was joined by the lovely Daphne Rubin-Vega, a longtime supporter of Living Beyond Belief who stepped in as Guest Presenter at the last minute. Best known for creating the role of Mimi Marquez in "Rent", Rubin-Vega just won the coveted role of Fantine in the upcoming Broadway revival of "Les Miserables".
|
|
|
Kim Cea announced that the night was the birthday of a very special audience member: Diane Spinnelli, sister of Wayne Fischer and mother of Bari Zahn. Kim Cea asked the eternally youthful birthday gal, "Please tell the crowd what your favorite birthday wish would be at this moment!" (A date with John Starks?!) She responded, "I'm going to ask everyone to reach into your pockets. Whatever you come up with now, I have asked my daughter to match-- up to $5000 to what you will give out. If you want to make my birthday a really special birthday, have my daughter give the best gift that she can. Dig deep into your pockets!" It wasn't too long afterward that Bari Zahn herself came on stage, to chants of "Bar-i! Bar-i! Bar-i!"-- a reception worthy of any celebrity. Zahn, who declared, "I'm overwhelmed as always when it comes to this part of the evening-- with the abundance of love, support, and generosity that's in this room!", then acknowledged the Teen Grant Recipients, LBB's Youth Advisory Board, and the many, many individuals who helped her make the Awards one of the most inspirational nights of the year.
After Frank DeCaro announced a young studly guy as winner of the night's raffle, The Annual Living Beyond Belief Awards ended with a runway-style fashion show featuring sexy, original designs by Zulema Griffin. What kind of clothes does Zulema Griffin design? Let's just say that she knows how to display the female form to its best, with a touch (OK, more than a touch!) of vintage, old Hollywood-style glam. And love those big sequins! Just superb... The night continued with the afterparty, featuring the sounds of DJ Drew G.
|
|
|
The fight against HIV and AIDS has always been a challenge. But as we continue 25 years into the epidemic, one of the greatest challenges may be turning rhetoric into action. So, as I leave you with the advice "Anyone can do their part in the fight against HIV and AIDS.", the first step is realizing that these aren't just words. Any of us can make a difference-- if we desire.
Check out www.LivingBeyondBelief.org for more info!
See more pictures at http://jedryan.com/photos/photos27.html.