Club UNITY and Flagler College host World AIDS Day

By Matthew Boyle | mboyle@flagler.edu

Flagler College and Club UNITY hosted World AIDS Day events on Dec. 1. Club UNITY raised funds through various forms of donation including silent auction and collection jar across campus and throughout the community as well as raising awareness through discussions and presentations.

This event marked the first time Flagler College hosted World AIDS Day on campus.

“It’s definitely a sense of achievement. For it to finally be held at Flagler College shows there have been leaps and bounds in achievement since we were fighting, just a few years ago, for Club UNITY to even be in existence,” executive director of Club UNITY Chris Lauth said.

Club UNITY also organized the placement of luminaries, small white bags with lit candles inside, throughout the campus.

“Originally, we wanted to do the luminaries and have a basket by each luminary to do names. We dismissed the idea thinking that’s a lot of baskets for 1,200 luminaries,” Club UNITY public relations representative Micah Colombo said.

“We did luminaries to show that it is going to be a peaceful memorial. Let’s just come together, walk around and enjoy your time,” Colombo said.

The Community AIDS Coalition, led by Rev. Ruth Jensen-Forbell, held a forum and discussion in the Ringhaver Student Center to educate students about AIDS and preventative measures as well as to spread awareness of the issues, both medical and social, that AIDS raises within the global community.

“You need to put education with awareness,” Colombo said.

Club UNITY showed its determination and spirit in full force at World AIDS Day, defying the adversity it faced just a short time ago.

“For us to have come this far in just a short period of time is phenomenal,” Lauth said.