Jello Wrestling Event Benefits the HIV Working Group

Mr. and Ms. Capital Pride Leather and Guest Cohost Regina Jozet Adams invite you to join them for Jello Wrestling at the EFN Lounge Tuesday, July 14th. Proceeds from the night will support Brother Help Thyself and our HIV Working Group Toolkit! & Fukit! safer sex campaign. Sign up to wrestle by 9:30 PM. The contest starts at 10:00 PM. $2 cover, $1 jello-shots, and $2 kick the keg drafts. Join us! EFN Lounge is located at 1318 9th St NW.

Are You HIV Positive? Tell Us What You Think!

Are you HIV positive? Have opinions about how services for people living with HIV can be improved in the District of Columbia. Then tell us what you think! Stop by The DC Center (1111 14th St NW Suite 350) between Monday July 6th between 4:30 and 7:00 PM and fill out the Ryan White Planning Council Needs Assesment Survey. This survey is one of the tools that will be used by the District to plan HIV/AIDS services in the next fiscal year. The mission of the Ryan White Planning Council is to plan for the comprehensive delivery of HIV/AIDS services and allocation of resources for the Eligible Metropolitan Area (EMA), as mandated by the Ryan White Title I legislation. For more information, click here to visit the Ryan White Planning Council Website.

National Minority AIDS Council Hosts Women of Color Leadership Institute

The National Minority AIDS Council will be hosting a Women of Color leadership institute July 29-31. The Women of Color Leadership Institute (WOCLI) Training, designed by the Division of Government Relations and Public Policy (GRPP) at the National Minority AIDS Council (NMAC) in Washington, D.C., is aimed at achieving greater and more meaningful participation of women of color in decision-making at all levels to ensure programs, policies and funding respond to the unique impact of chronic diseases such as HIV/AIDS, Diabetes, Heart Disease, Cancer and others on women. The training consists of five modules implemented by the division of Government Relations and Public Policy at the National Minority AIDS Council. Training modules will equip and empower a cadre of confident, knowledgeable and skilled women leaders to 1) advocate at all levels for effective women’s health policies and increased funding to address the unique impact of chronic disease such as HIV/AIDS, Diabetes, Heart Disease, Cancer and others on women and girls, and 2) prevent the spread and mitigate the effects of chronic diseases through high quality, gender sensitive, community-based women’s health programs and services. Major activities carried out under each training component include a needs assessment on women’s leadership, management, advocacy and women’s health knowledge and skills. NMAC seeks to recruit 25 - 30 women of color for each training site, on a “first come first serve” basis. NMAC will be happy to work with the local health departments, other public health entities, community- and faith-based organizations as well as local academic institutions to recruit the participants for training. Although criteria are not static, we intend to recruit a group of women of color from various health care and other backgrounds, committed to leadership in women’s health. As such, NMAC screens applicants and selects participants in a way that creates a balance of experience during the training. The training is free of charge, however, NMAC does not provide transportation and lodging to and from the training. During the training provided under NMAC funding, NMAC will provide both breakfast and lunch for the three days of training. Visit www.nmac.org/index/wocli for more information.

HIV Working Group Meeting July 22nd

The next meeting of The DC Center HIV Prevention Working Group will take place Wednesday July 22nd at 7:00 PM at The DC Center, 1111 14th St. NW Suite 350. We will continue the discussion on HIV Prevention and HIV Positive Guys. The HIV Working group safer-sex kit campaign is operating with three distribution points: The DC Center, Town Dance Boutique, and Ziegfelds/Secrets. The group also finished up working on a coordinated National HIV Testing Day Event.

Free HIV Testing on June 26th and 27th Across City

On Friday, June 26, five-to-ten local HIV prevention organizations that provide mobile and remote HIV counseling, testing and referral services (CTRS) will come together to offer free testing at locations throughout the city on Friday and Saturday. Free tests will be given from12-5 in the Old Convention Center Site (City Center Parking Lot), and at least six vans will be present on Friday to offer HIV testing and counseling services. The Friday event will be located downtown at the old Convention Center site – along the Art Walk, near the intersection of H and 10th streets, NW. Then on Saturday, June 27, there will be at least one mobile unit offering CTRS located in each of the District’s eight wards. Additionally, each of the participating organizations will provide CTRS at their home locations to maximize the geographic coverage that day. Organizations participating on Friday, June 26 include: Carl Vogel Center, The DC Center, Community Education Group, PreventionWorks!, Unity HealthCare, Us Helping Us, Women’s Collective, and Whitman-Walker Clinic. Many additional organizations will be participating on Saturday, June 27 (see chart below). Carl Vogel Center 1012 14th Street NW, 20005 DC Caribbean Festival (Georgia & Kansas Aves. @ TEP Entertainment) 10AM-5PM La Clinica del Pueblo, Inc. 2815 15th Street NW, 2009 Diversity Park (Columbia Rd & Euclid St.) 10AM - 4PM (near Columbia Heights Metro) PreventionWorks! 2501 Benning Road NE, 20002 Onsite @ 2501 Benning Road NE 10AM-4PM Project Orion, Andromeda Transcultural Health 1400 Decatur Street NW, 20011 DC Caribbean Festival (Georgia Ave & Otis St.) 10AM-3PM SMYAL-Sexual Minority Youth Assistance League 410 7th Street SE, 20003 Metro Teen AIDS @ Greenleaf Rec. Center 11AM-5PM (SW at the Waterfront Metro). Transgender Health Empowerment (T.H.E.) 1414 North Capitol Street NW, 20002 Onsite @1414 North Capitol Street NW 12-4PM Us Helping Us, People Into Living 3636 Georgia Avenue NW, 20010 3636 Georgia Avenue NW Whitman-Walker Clinic 1701 14th Street NW, 20009 Artomatic (55 M Street, SE) 12PM-6PM (Navy Yard Metro) P Street Beach (23rd & P) 12-3PM DuPont Circle (20th & Mass) 3-6PM Family & Medical Counsel. Service, Inc. 2041 MLK Jr. Ave. SE, 20020 Onsite @ 2041 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE, All Day Unity HealthCare 3720 MLK Jr. Avenue SE, 20032 Onsite @ 3720 MLK Jr. Avenue SE, All Day Community Education Group 3233 Penn. Ave. SE Washington, DC 20020 With PreventionWorks! 2501 Benning Road NE Mary's Center 2333 Ontario Road NW, 20009 Diversity Park ( Columbia Rd & Euclid St .) 10AM - 4PM (near Columbia Hgts Metro) The Women's Collective 1277 Brentwood Rd, NE, 20017 Neighborhood testing (1277 Brentwood Rd, NE ) 10AM-6PM

Prevention Works Neighborhood Block Party and Health Fair for National HIV Testing Day

Saturday, June 27th 12pm-5pm Prevention Works! 2501 Benning Rd NE Free food, raffle, HIV testing, blood pressure checks, medicine management, and more! Joining us will be: American Lung Association, Center for Minority Studies, Falcon Edge, CEG, Black Nurse Association, DC Healthy Families, Center for Sickle Cell, and The Condom Project. This event is co-sponsored with the DC Department of Health with contributions from Safeway and Giant Foods. For more information, please contact Courtenay Vaughns: cvaughns@preventionworksdc.org

Update On Washington DC HIV/AIDS Epidemic

Recently I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Shannon Hader, Washington DC HIV/AIDS Administration Director, discuss the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Washington DC. I read the stories in the Washington Post and Time Magazine, but they contained only a small synopsis of the real problem. To hear the entire presentation and to see all the statistics is a real call to action. All are welcome to join us, space it limited to the first 100 people. The National Minority AIDS Council, along with the AIDS Institute, National Association of People with AIDS, and National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors invites you to a presentation by Dr. Hader on the state of the HIV/AIDS Epidemic in Washington DC. All are welcome to join us, please bring your friends and family. It is a very eye opening report that will both shock you and demand your action. Join us on Tuesday, June 30th at 10:00 AM at the Reeves Center at 14th & U St NW. Please RSVP in advance so we have enough space (RSVP @ info@nmac.org). You will need to bring a government ID to get into the building. We will meet in the Community Room on the 2nd floor. As folks who live and/or work in the District, it is critical that we understand what is happening in our own backyard. It will be up to all of us to fight back and save the District.

National HIV Testing Day Posters

Free National HIV Testing Day Posters are now available at The DC Center. The posters feature a variety of diverse pictures with simple messages about the importance of HIV Testing. Pick up your posters at the DC Center. You can also visit the CDC National HIV and STD Testing Resources website to download the pictures. And remember, while you're at The DC Center you can also pick up free condoms, lube, and dental dams. The DC Center is located at 1111 14th St NW Suite 350 and is open Monday through Friday from 2:30 to 6:30 PM and other times by appointment.

Free Testing and HIV Awareness

DC City Council Chairman Vincent Gray and Council Member David Catania will host an HIV testing and awareness event for the community and District government employees on Monday, June 29th from 10 AM to 2 PM at the Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue NW. The event will feature free HIV testing and counseling, as well as information about prevention and care. For more information, call 202-724-8170 or email tterry@dccouncil.us.

Prevention Works Enrollment Session for Safety Counts

Enrollment Session for Safety Counts Tuesday, June 23rd, 2:00pm Prevention Works! 2501 Benning Road, NE Contact person: Yvonne Green 202-588-5580 x104 Funded by the Department of Health, Safety Counts is a Risk Reduction Group Intervention. Please join us for this enrollment session to determine eligibility and willingness to enroll in Safety Counts. *Refreshments & Incentives provided* Safety Counts is an HIV prevention intervention for out-of-treatment active injection and non-injection drug users aimed at reducing both high-risk drug use and sexual behaviors. It is a behaviorally focused, seven-session intervention, which includes both structured and unstructured psycho-educational activities in group and individual settings.