Issue date: 4/28/08 Section: Page 1 of 1

 

The University's Children's AIDS Network raised $856 Thursday at "Notes of Hope," a charity concert benefiting a scholarship program for higher education students in the Robert Wood Johnson Pediatric AIDS Program.

Group members hosted the concert at the Busch campus center in an effort to increase awareness of the AIDS epidemic.

"AIDS isn't just a thing that the media portrays … in other countries," said Children's AIDS Network Vice President Debosree Samanta, a Rutgers College junior. "There are people in your local communities that have these issues, and they're living with them. So if someone could just go home and think about that, then we've done something."

An estimated 46,000 adults and children were newly infected with HIV during 2007, according to the UNAIDS 2007 AIDS epidemic update.

Event Coordinator Justine Kim, a Douglass College sophomore, said it is important as a college student to help local youth with AIDS in any way possible.

"A lot of kids have a lot of potential to excel in their school work and education, but they don't have the financial stability that would support that," she said. "Because we are students, we have every facility available to us to do anything we possibly can, so we really want to take advantage of that."

Event coordinators chose artists who emulated this call to humanitarianism, such as singer/songwriter Shauna Park and the group Miss Vintage, to perform at the concert, Kim said.

People need to be more selfless and take the time to help other people who are in need, Park said.

"I feel like there are so many crazy things going on right now that people just really need to wake up and see what's going on and try to do something to make a difference," she said.

Jason Min, the singer and guitarist of Miss Vintage, said he was happy to perform at the event because it was an ideal medium to raise awareness.

"I think it's awesome when artists and musicians can partner with various organizations and various causes and do things together," he said.

Samanta said she was pleased to have the opportunity to get the Children's AIDS Network's name out there.

"I feel like this a chance for people who might not know who we are to come out, have a good time and at the same time learn a little bit about who we are and why we do what we are doing," Samanta said.