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Michigan News
See also the DHWDC section and
News around the State
June 2009 News
DETROIT:
"AIDS Is a Highlight of Baptist Meeting’s First Day"
Detroit Free Press , (06.23.2009)
Niraj Warikoo
The annual Congress of Christian Education of the National Baptist Convention
USA - the oldest and largest African-American religious group - got underway
Monday in Detroit, and HIV/AIDS received special attention. “Black folk, we got
to get rid of the stigma,” Simone Phillips of the St. Louis chapter of the Red
Cross told luncheon attendees. “Why is there such a fear in the black community
to get tested?” asked the Rev. Michael Brown of Lake Charles, La. In addition to
deep distrust of the government stemming from the notorious Tuskegee syphilis
study, speakers said culture plays a role. “We are so deeply rooted in the Lord
waiting to take care of me that we sometimes overlook those things the Lord is
waiting for us to take care of,” said Evelyn Mason of New Jersey, who
coordinated the AIDS forum. Up to 40,000 people from across the United States
were expected at the five-day conference.
State Offices - Dates to be Closed
Due to Executive Order 2009-22 that reduces state spending, the Michigan
Department of Community Health will be closed on the dates listed below. The
department will reopen on the next regularly scheduled business day. Please
visit
www.michigan.gov
for additional information. HIV-specific information can be found at
www.michgan.gov/hivstd.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Monday, July 6, 2009
Friday, July 24, 2009
Friday, August 7, 2009
Friday, August 21, 2009
Friday, September 4, 2009
14th Annual National HIV Testing Day Planning
Still planning your NTD events? HAPIS is providing in-kind supplies including HIV testing
supplies and condoms for agencies that submited (by fax) a
Plan of Action by June 1. National Testing
Day materials are available for free. Note: testing supplies were only
available for testing sites in Michigan that are funded by the Michigan
Department of Community Health. Contact Lisa Taton-Murphy at (517)241-5932, or e-mail:TatonL@michigan.gov.
See May Archived News
Around the State
Same Agency - New Name
HIV/AIDS Services in Grand Rapids has changed their name to Grand
Rapids Red Project. The website is
www.redproject.org
Benton Harbor Benefits from Unique Local, State and
Regional Partnership
CARES hosts Three AmeriCorps Teams on “Super 5th Day”
On June 5th, 2009, Benton Harbor’s Union Park was spruced up by
AmeriCorps volunteers from Indianapolis, Chicago and Detroit. This project,
called “super 5th day,” was a collaborative effort by Community AIDS Resource
and Education Services (CARES) of Benton Harbor, and three teams from the
Indiana AIDS Fund, AIDS Foundation of Chicago, and Michigan AIDS Coalition. The
teams are part of the National AIDS Fund’s AmeriCorps/Caring Counts program.
The 5th day is one day a week each team selects a local project that may or may
not be AIDS related. The regional effort began several years ago with a project
in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. The effort is designed to bring volunteer resources to
bear on a local level, to enable resource poor communities to stretch their
resources for the greater good. Benton Harbor was chosen for this year’s 5th day
because it is fairly centrally located to all three teams.
The National AIDS Fund, which funds all three AmeriCorps teams, is one of
America’s largest organizations dedicated to eliminating HIV/AIDS as a major
health and social problem. NAF’s primary purpose is channeling critical
resources to community-based organizations to fight HIV/AIDS at the local level.
NAF provides grants and other support to over 400 CBOs annually, principally for
prevention efforts. For more information, go to
www.aidsfund.org.
DETROIT HEALTH DEPARTMENT TO CELEBRATE THE 14TH
ANNUAL PANCAKE BREAKFAST ON JUNE 6
Oftentimes people are more conscious of the needs of the homeless during the
frigid temperatures of the winter. However, the homeless community has special
needs throughout the year. The Partnership for a Drug Free Detroit--an
initiative of the Detroit City Council, Department of Health and Wellness
Promotion, and Bureau of Substance Abuse Prevention, Treatment and Recovery--is
hosting the 14th Annual Pancake Breakfast in Cass Park, Saturday, June 6, from 9
a.m. to 1 p.m., in Cass Park on Temple St. between 2nd and 3rd St. near downtown
Detroit.
The event will feature games and a clown for adults and children, free food,
live music and resources for the homeless and community citizens encouraging
everyone to take advantage of the Department of Health and Wellness Promotion’s
free testing and other essentials to assist the homeless. Approximately 1,000
people are expected to attend.
"The partnership's goal is to reduce the use and abuse of alcohol, tobacco and
other drugs by 50 percent in the city of Detroit," said Dr. Calvin Trent,
Director of the City of Detroit Department of Health and Wellness Promotion and
the Partnership for a Drug Free Detroit.
Participants include local and state legislators, representatives from the
Mayor’s Office, Detroit Public Schools, the Detroit Police Department, the 36th
District Court, the faith based community, youth organizations, and prevention,
treatment and recovery providers. Free substance abuse assessment and referral
services will be available, as well as free HIV/AIDS testing.
For more information, please call Denice Nixon at (313) 876 0769, or visit the
Partnership Web site at
www.drugfreedetroit.org
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