November,1995 |
Dave Gordon Carries on Spirit of
Quilt Project in Fight Against AIDS
By Melissa Desautels
"Lots of people are ignorant to the fact that AIDS and HIV are part of our lives. People need to open their eyes and realize that this can happen to anyone," said senior Marcella Lawson.
Lawson helped social worker Dave Gordon coordinate last year's AIDS Quilt project, which featured speakers battling the deadly virus. "There are three main ways of contracting HIV or AIDS. They are by sharing needles, unprotected sex, and blood to blood or mother to child transmission," explained Gordon.
"Many teenagers contract HIV due to high risk behavior which includes drinking, taking drugs, and having unprotected sex. Some may be asking the question how can drinking, or taking drugs increase my chances of contracting AIDS? The answer is simple. When people are under the influence they are not capable of making important decisions. So if someone is under the influence it can sometimes lead up to things like having unprotected sex, or sharing someone else's needle," added Gordon.
"People know a lot of facts but they carry the attitude that it can never happen to them. People need to understand that it can happen to anyone," cautioned Gordon.
Reflecting on the Quilt project, Gordon and Lawson were both hopeful. " It encouraged students and staff to talk about AIDS more freely," said Gordon. His goal is to continue to talk about this issue and get more people to understand it completely.
"I feel the Quilt program was a success. The students were exposed to the facts about AIDS. I think we learned a lot," said Lawson. She also thinks that more people should get involved with AIDS projects. She hopes to follow up last year's project by joining with other students to make panels for people who have died from AIDS.
