July 2006

In this issue:

1. Intro – Volunteers in the news
2. What’s new at MAP – Red Ribbon Ride, African Children’s Choir performance
3. This month’s volunteer opportunities – Core Training, Tuesday Niters
4. Upcoming volunteer opportunities – Taking Tickets for the Vikings?
5. Did you know? – MAP’s mission statement
6. MAP staff recommends – recommendations from Ann Seguin

Intro

Volunteers in the news

Kellie Murphy-Ringate

MAP volunteers have really been popping up in the news lately! The June 9 issue of Lavender Magazine featured photos from the Minnesota AIDS Walk, including a couple of our hardworking volunteers. The June 8 edition of the Spokesman-Recorder profiled Nangah Tabah, who in addition to being Miss Cameroon Minnesota has volunteered for many MAP events and in our office. She even gave an AIDS awareness presentation during the pageant! Also, in the July issue of Minnesota Monthly, longtime MAP volunteer Kellie Murphy-Ringate was highlighted as one of the Heart of the Event Award Recipients for her work on the Minnesota AIDS Walk. Our volunteers definitely deserve the recognition of the community, and we’re glad they’re getting it! If you or other MAP volunteers you know are featured in the news, be sure to let us know.

What’s new at MAP

Red Ribbon Ride

July is the hottest month of the year here in Minnesota, and you know what that means: time for 300 dedicated bikers to travel 300 miles around southern Minnesota in 4 days.  That’s right, the Red Ribbon Ride is almost here!  This annual bike ride is July 13-16, and benefits nine Minnesota AIDS service organizations, including MAP.  Visit the Web site to find out how you can cheer on the bikers and crew at the opening and closing ceremonies. 

African Children’s Choir Concert

MAP is co-sponsoring this event, which will be held at the Basilica of Saint Mary on Wednesday, July 12 at 7 pm.  The African Children’s Choir, delivers a powerful blend of singing, dancing, and storytelling to bridge cultural differences and spread hope and joy to audiences throughout the world.  The internationally acclaimed choir has performed before numerous dignitaries and has appeared at some of the world’s most prestigious halls including the London Palladium, The International Club of Berlin, and the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. The choir is selected annually from thousands of orphans and disadvantaged children in Africa.  Many have lost one or both parents through the devastation of war, famine and disease.  The African Children’s Choir is creating real, meaningful long-term solutions for children who are the victims of AIDS.  For over 20 years, the Choir has been hard at work- changing the lives of African children, one child at a time. For more information, call 612-333-1381.

This month’s volunteer opportunities

Core Training

Education is our best weapon against HIV.  The more you know about HIV, the better equipped you will be to fight it.  Come to MAP to get the facts on Monday, July 10 from 6 –9 pm.  Core Training is an HIV 101 training geared toward volunteers, and all volunteers – new to MAP and those with quite a few years under your belts – are encouraged to come.  RSVP here.

Tuesday Niters

Our next drop-in volunteer night will be on July 11, here at MAP.  It runs from 4:30 – 7 pm, come when you can and leave when you need to.  We will be stuffing envelopes, eating pizza, and meeting new people.  Let me know if you can attend.

Upcoming volunteer opportunities

Taking tickets at a Vikings game?

I’m trying to gauge the interest of our volunteer base in being ticket takers at a Vikings game sometime this season.  We’d need a group of at least 30 for the four and a half hour shift, and MAP would receive money for the time our volunteers spend helping out.  If this sounds like something you’d like to do, or even if it doesn’t, let me know your thoughts.  We’ll make a decision based on the input we receive from you. 

Did you know?

MAP’s mission statement

MAP has recently rewritten our mission statement to reflect our core values and what is driving us into the future.  The mission of the Minnesota AIDS Project is to lead Minnesota’s fight to stop HIV through advocacy, education and service.  How are we using advocacy to lead the fight?  Some examples include lobbying, community mobilization, voter registration, and media advocacy.  And education?  We lead trainings, hold community forums, and teach risk reduction to the populations most impacted by HIV.  What about service?  A few examples are referral and connection services like the MAP AIDSLine, case management, and basic needs programs like housing and transportation assistance.  If you have questions about MAP’s mission, browse our Web site, or email me.

MAP staff recommends

This month, we have some special summer recommendations for you from Ann Seguin, MAP benefits counselor.  She provides education, assistance and advocacy to individuals or service providers who have HIV-related concerns or questions about social security, Medicare, Medical Assistance, or private disability and health insurance.

Movie

Out of Sight (1998)
directed by Steven Soderbergh, with Jennifer Lopez & George Clooney

This film version of an Elmore Leonard novel is about a prison escapee (Clooney) who falls for a US Marshall (Lopez) and is a perfect summer rental.  I love it for a couple of reasons—it oozes style, the excellent cast includes Catherine Keener, Ving Rhames and Minnesota native Steve Zahn, and surprisingly, George Clooney & Jennifer Lopez actually share spicy chemistry.

Book

The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

The Time Traveler's Wife is an unusual love story about a couple whose lives are not in sync: the wife's life moves along at a normal pace, while the husband spends his life time-traveling back and forth, without control or pattern.  This book was recommended to me last summer, and I pass the recommendation along because of what a very pleasant (and sometimes puzzling) surprise I found this story to be.  Enjoy!

Last Updated: Tuesday, April 3, 2007
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