LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--On Saturday, October 22, 2011 from 8:00 PM to 11:00 PM, please join Sheryl Lee Ralph and AIDS Healthcare Foundation for the 21st anniversary of ‘DIVAS Simply Singing!’—a star-studded, magical evening of song and entertainment created to raise funds for HIV/AIDS awareness, allowing The DIVA Foundation to continue to help and support those in need. Throughout the evening, AHF will offer free rapid HIV testing on the ‘Health Spot’ state-of-the-art mobile testing van. The gala will take place at the historic Wilshire Ebell Theatre (743 S. Lucerne Blvd., 90005) in the City of Los Angeles.
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WHAT: |
21st annual ‘DIVAS Simply Singing!’ HIV/AIDS fundraising gala |
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| Also: free HIV testing on AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s ‘Health Spot’ mobile testing van | ||||||
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WHEN: |
Saturday, Oct. 22nd 2011 8pm—11pm | |||||
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WHERE: |
Wilshire Ebell Theatre | |||||
| 743 S. Lucerne Blvd. (cross street: Wilshire Blvd.) | ||||||
| Los Angeles CA 90005-3853 | ||||||
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CONTACTS: |
Thelma Mc Clinton, AHF Public Health Division (213) 454-2275 cell |
In addition to the free HIV rapid testing offered throughout the evening, there will be an opportunity for celebrities and performers to take pictures exclaiming that, “It Is No Big Deal To Take An HIV Test.” Sheryl Lee Ralph, who has previously publicly taken an HIV test, will encourage some of her fellow ‘DIVAS Simply Singing!’ performers, who include Kelly Price, Brandy, Freddie Jackson, Jennifer Holiday, Loretta Devine and Glee star Amber Pry, to take an HIV test. The ‘No Big Deal’ initiative was created by Thelma Mc Clinton, Program Supervisor of the AHF ‘Health Spot’ mobile van. This is a new mobile testing van program being spearheaded by Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas as well as other providers in the community to address and stem the high rates of gonorrhea, chlamydia and HIV in South Los Angeles. Those tested will be able to obtain their HIV test results on site within 20 minutes after using a finger prick or an oral swab device for testing. Anyone 13 years of age or older can come out and get a free HIV rapid test on the ‘Health Spot’ van outside the Ebell Theatre.
“We need to demonstrate to the world and the public that we have the power to make healthier choices and take charge of our own health care as well as the health of our communities,” said Sheryl Lee Ralph, founder of ‘DIVAS Simply Singing!’.
“We are committed to stopping the spread of HIV and other STDs in our community and we can only accomplish this by partnering with local testing and community outreach providers programs,” said Thelma Mc Clinton. AHF looks forward to this annual event because we're able to help save lives by identifying individuals who do not know their HIV status and immediately referring and linking those in need to treatment and follow-up.” So come on out and join us for ‘DIVAS Simply Singing!’ and stop by to test as well as to encourage your friends and partners to come out and test.
For additional information about the “No Big Deal Testing Event at ‘DIVAS Simply Singing!,’ please contact: Thelma Mc Clinton at (213) 405-5802.
The DIVA Foundation is an international 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded by Sheryl Lee Ralph in 1990 as a memorial to the many friends she lost to AIDS. The organization focuses on generating resources and producing events that raise awareness and educate millions of people around the world affected and infected by HIV/AIDS. The DIVA Foundation utilizes music, entertainment and voice as a vehicle to inform, educate and reduce the stigma attached to this deadly disease that affects us ALL.
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and services to more than 182,000 individuals in 26 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America/Caribbean, the Asia/Pacific region and Eastern Europe. www.aidshealth.org