Foundation Ambassador, Joey DiPaolo, speaks out about HIV/AIDS. Take Action

Dear Friend,

Next week marks the historic inauguration of a new president, and a new opportunity to help women, children, and families in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Help kick off 2009 by urging President-elect Obama to make women and children living with HIV/AIDS a priority.

This issue is extremely personal to me.

When I was four years old, I had open-heart surgery to correct a heart defect. While the operation on my heart was successful, the blood used during surgery was contaminated with HIV. I am 29 years old now and I've been living with the virus ever since.

I know first-hand the unique challenges children face in the fight against HIV/AIDS. When I was younger, I suffered discrimination from my classmates, friends, and community because I was HIV-positive. My doctors thought I wouldn't survive. But instead of giving up, I decided to speak up!

Today, I'm healthy and committed to helping other children with HIV/AIDS. We've made tremendous progress, but there are still about 2 million kids around the world living with the disease.

And they need our help.

Together, we can create a voice for children and families with HIV/AIDS. If we combine our efforts, we can ensure policymakers give children with HIV/AIDS the attention they deserve.

Join me in telling President-elect Obama to support lifesaving HIV/AIDS programs for women, children, and families around the world.

Children must be a top priority in our efforts to fight HIV/AIDS worldwide. Services to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV must be expanded, and lifesaving AIDS medications must be made more available and affordable to children around the world who need them. It's equally important to improve HIV/AIDS programs here at home so that kids don't have to grow up with HIV like I did.

Help me lead the way to a generation free of HIV.

Thanks for your support!


Joey DiPaolo