A Fun Time Aiding The Ill Annual Festive Fund-raiser In W-b Provides Money To Help Hiv/aids Sufferers.
By DAWN SHURMAITIS Times Leader Correspondent
Monday, September 13, 2004 Page: 1A
WILKES-BARRE – Granted, they were a little hard to find, what with all the
balloons and showgirls, the magic acts and the spinning roulette wheel.
But if you looked hard enough – past the guy decked out as Elvis and beyond
a wide-eyed Cleopatra – you’d see them.
The faces of AIDS.
They were everywhere on Sunday, equally scattered among the gay and the
straight gathered together in a festively decorated North End back yard to
raise money for the We Care HIV/AIDS Support Network.
The eighth annual fund-raiser attracted more than 150 people, from
gray-hairs in walkers to no-hairs in strollers.
“I think people give more when they have fun,” said organizer and We Care
president Andy Buleza of the festivities, which included belly dancers,
jugglers and magicians. “It’s a lot of work, but people really dig deep.”
We Care, a charitable nonprofit based in Wilkes-Barre, raises money to
support numerous services, including holiday food baskets, legal counsel and
prison ministry. The organization also helps with payment of utilities and
medications for those financially strapped by HIV/AIDS.
Buleza, who was diagnosed with AIDS, which stands for acquired immune
deficiency syndrome, 11 years ago, expected to raise about $6,000 through
donations, raffles and wheels of chance.
Under blue skies and balloons, invited guests noshed on donated food, beer
and wine. Some were first-timers. Others – including a table of Buleza’s
elderly neighbors – never missed the annual bash.
To a one, they commended Buleza – decked out in a top hat – for his
charitable efforts.
“When I heard he had AIDS I said, `Lots of luck.”’
“He’d do anything for you.”
“You couldn’t find a nicer neighbor.”
Anna May Hirko, who lives next door, said she didn’t care if Buleza was
gay, or has a disease many people fear. “If he can accept me, then I can
accept him,” said Hirko, 67.
Amid the oohs and ahhs over the fabulous food and prizes, partygoers
discussed the many misconceptions that stubbornly surround HIV/AIDS.
We Care board member Jane Fabiny, a graphic artist from Mountain Top, said
a man she invited refused to attend because he was afraid of sharing utensils
with people who are HIV positive.
HIV is the human immunodeficiency virus. Once a person is infected, HIV
breaks down their immune system until AIDS symptoms and conditions develop.
Although there is no cure for HIV/AIDS, new drugs are helping the infected
live longer, healthier lives.
“There’s still a lot of misconceptions,” said Fabiny, 51. “We need more
education. People are still in the dark.”
Swoyersville resident Shirley Judge brought her daughter and three
grandchildren, who enjoyed the activities in the kids tent, where Valerie
Johnson helped with face painting, puppets and balloon animals.
“It’s a good cause,” said Judge, a retired teacher who’s attended the
fund-raiser for four years. Judge said she explained to her grandchildren that
the party was for “people who need help.”
Rick Coslett, a Back Mountain-area dentist, attended with his 10-year-old
daughter and niece. “It’s always really cool. There’s lots of great acts,
lots of great entertainment. The kids love this party.”
Coslett, 46, said his daughter, like many youngsters, “doesn’t care how
somebody got AIDS, or why. They just know people are sick. Children are very
compassionate. It’s only when they get around adults and their values that
they get caustic.”
During the party’s kickoff, celebrity hosts WBRE-TV anchor Lyndall Stout
and chief meteorologist Kim Martucci – who dressed as showgirls to go along
with this year’s Las Vegas theme – asked for a moment of silence “for those
who fought the battle of HIV and lost their lives.”
This year, 17 people living in Luzerne County were diagnosed with HIV,
according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. In 2002, according to the
last available vital statistics, five people died of HIV in Luzerne County,
along with one in Wyoming and two in Lackawanna counties.
Pastor Mark Harper and the Rev. Joseph Martin offered prayers and blessings
while Joe Polito led two rousing choruses of “God Bless America.” Above the
crowd waved banners proclaiming “Anti-Stigma” and “Anti-Discrimination.”
Another banner carried the phone number for an AIDS support hot line.
“It’s not a big gay disease. There’s probably more people in this area who
get AID from drugs and prostitution,” said Karen Buttillo, 39, a
special-education teacher from Scranton.
In addition to donations at the door, We Care raised money by raffling
chances to win a $500 money tree, a kids mountain bike and scooter, a 32-inch
television and a $300 gift certificate to Bartikowsky Jewelers.
The nonprofit is run by a board of directors from all walks of life. Sherry
Huntzinger, who belongs to a number of charitable organizations, said she
hoped more people in this area educate themselves about the disease.
“There are so many drugs out there. So many young people are sexually
active. We’re all susceptible. Every one of us,” said Huntzinger, of Dallas.
Another board member, a 51-year-old homemaker who didn’t want her name
used, was diagnosed HIV positive 12 years ago. She said 33 of We Care’s
original 38 members have died.
Said the mother of four: “So many people believe that if you don’t think
about it, that it’s not there. My kids are the real victims. Not me.”
