December 2005

In this issue:

1. Intro
2. Special Section: We need your input!
3. What's new at MAP
4. Current volunteer opportunities
5. Upcoming volunteer opportunities
6. Did you know?
7. MAP Staff Recommends

Intro

November was full of MAP happenings! Thanks to everyone who attended or volunteered at the Esther Kaplan Forum and Big Hair Mania. At our forum, author Esther Kaplan talked about the Bush administration’s alliance with right-wing Christian fundamentalists, and how this has replaced science with ideology in so many areas of the government. We have a limited number of signed copies of Ms. Kaplan’s book, With God on their Side: George W. Bush and the Christian Right, here at MAP for sale to volunteers for $18. Let me know if you would like one.

Close to 800 guests joined us at the Convention Center for Big Hair Mania on the 12th. It was a great night, with lots of big hair! If you attended the event and have any feedback for us, we would love to hear your thoughts. You can send them to me and I will share them with the rest of the MAP special events team.

Special Section: We need your input!

Hopefully you know that all of us here at MAP think you volunteers are fantastic! We couldn’t do what we do without your help. So, we want to make sure your volunteer experiences are the best they can be. Please help us out by taking the super-quick Online Volunteer Survey. Even if you’ve only volunteered with us once or twice, please consider letting us know your thoughts! It will only take a few minutes, and it will provide us with absolutely invaluable feedback: yours.

What’s new at MAP

Frederick Smith Forum at MAP

Mark your calendars for January 10! Author Frederick Smith will be presenting a forum entitled “Down for Whatever: True love and the clash of family, community, ethnicity and class” at 7 p.m. Described as a cross between “Sex and the City” and “Queer as Folk,” novelist Frederick Smith’s Down for Whatever weaves together the lives of a group of African American and Latino guy-loving men. Underlying the story is a smart explanation of the socioeconomic and class issues facing gay and bi men of color and how they play out in dating, friendship and family dynamics. Smith sheds light on why standard terms used in the media dealing with sexual orientation just don’t work for many African American and Latino men. He explores the myth that African American and Latino communities are more homophobic and less accepting than other communities. Perhaps the media hype about these men being “on the down low” is too simplistic. Their lives are much more interesting, lively and complex. It’s more like being “down for whatever.”

Wildflowers Walk Team Pancake Breakfast

On Saturday, December 3 from 8:30 - 10:30 a.m., one of the Minnesota AIDS Walk top ten fundraising teams is having a pancake breakfast at Applebee's Calhoun. All proceeds benefit the Wildflowers team. Please join the Wildflowers for some great food in support of the 2006 Minnesota AIDS Walk.

African World AIDS Day Commemoration

African individuals representing multiple African nations are gathering to raise awareness about the impact of HIV on Africans here and in their respective countries. Come and see African performers, dancers, musicians, community leaders, HIV experts, exhibits, free HIV testing and great food. The event is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Sabathani Community Center, 310 E 38th St, Minneapolis. For more information, contact Neville Ansley at 612-252-1018, or Dori Makundi at 612-373-9175.

Current volunteer opportunities

Tuesday Niters December 13

Join us on December 13 from 4:30 – 7 p.m. (come when you can, leave when you need to) for Tuesday Niters! Take a break from end-of-the-year stress and spend a couple hours with fellow volunteers, helping to support MAP. If you can make it, RSVP to me.

Media packets

Are you looking for a way to get involved at the MAP office? We have a great once- or twice-a month opportunity. We are looking for someone to help us assemble our monthly media packets. This involves clipping articles that mention MAP and putting together packets with summaries. All necessary training/instructions will be provided. Let me know if you would like more information on being part of our team here in the office!

Desktop Advocate

Do you get the MAP Advocate? If your answer to this question is no then you are missing out. The MAP Advocate is the hottest State legislative update being circulated today. When you are out on the town do you feel like everyone but you is discussing the most recent blunder by our elected officials? Do you want an inside edge to what is happening in HIV policy around the state? Well, by signing up to receive the MAP Advocate you can have all this and more. Impress your friends and family with your knowledge of the goings on at the State Capitol. Sign up today and receive a free public policy foam hand.

Note: Public Policy has never and will never give out free public policy foam hands.

Upcoming volunteer opportunities

Tuesday Niters

Set aside these Tuesday evenings in 2006 for Tuesday Niters!

• January 24
• February 7 & 21
• March 14 & 28
• April 11 & 25
• May 9

2006 Core Training Dates

Core Training is a three-hour class for volunteers that covers HIV 101, prevention and testing, and MAP history. It will be held from 6 – 9 p.m. at MAP on the following dates:

• Thursday, March 23
• Monday, July 10
• Wednesday, October 18

Did you know?

PrideAlive

MAP’s PrideAlive program distributes an average of 76,143 condoms, 46,244 packets of lube and 2161 dental dams each year through its outreach and prevention programs!

MAP Staff Recommends

Ty Richardson, our Network Administrator, has the sizeable job of keeping the MAP computer and phone systems running for our 60 employees. Here's what he recommends:

Book

The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner. It’s rare for a book to, for a time, replace one’s interior syntax with its own. This one does and it’s quite an experience.

Movie

Band of Brothers on DVD. It is a human relationship oriented look at World War II soldiers’ experiences.

Spread the holiday joy by donating to MAP before 2006. Time is running out to make a year-end donation to MAP. Your donation is greatly appreciated and will help with HIV prevention and services in Minnesota. It's the gift that keeps on giving!

Donate Now

Last Updated: Tuesday, April 3, 2007
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