HPLS

Had a great day at the HIV Prevention Leadership Summit. A great day of networking with our friends at UCAN, workshops on HIV Prevention in Rural Populations and The Role of Faith Based Organizations in the CDC's Expanded Testing Initiative.
I was fortunate to be able to meet with staffers in the office of Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana and discuss our partnership with the state of Indiana in further detail. I believe more good things are in our future.

Mobile Testing Unit Blueprint

Mobile Testing Unit exteriror view (artist conception)

HPLS

It's been a while since I've last posted. I'm in Washington DC this week at the National Minority AIDS Council HIV Prevention Leadership Conference. I'm here to network with other organizations on how to respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic working with the National HIV/AIDS Strategy for the United States, recently developed by the Obama Administration.

I was very excited to run into Oliver Martin from UCAN, the United Church of Christ AIDS Network. I have been working very closely with UCAN on several projects and it looks like we may have another one coming up.

I have some very exciting news. Recently we purchased a 30 foot Blue Bird Transit Bus. In January that bus will undergo a renovation to convert it into a mobile HIV testing platform. I'm thrilled to have this new platform to use as we work to battle the HIV epidemic in this country. This bus will be used primarily to test in rural areas in Indiana, where we are based. It will also make appearances at major church functions.

We hope to take the bus on tour this Spring and show it off a bit. If you'd like to have the bus make an appearance at your congregation or function just drop me a line. I'm going to post some pictures and the blueprint to give you an idea of what we're dealing with.

Keep us in your prayers.

Jody

CTS HIV Awareness Day

I have to say that today was one of the most Spirit filled days I have ever experienced. Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry, in conjunction with the Christian Theological Seminary Student Association had an HIV Awareness Day. We provided prevention education and testing at CTS today and I felt very fortunate to be asked to provide the Good News for Worship. I'm going to attempt to post the video of the service.

Peace,

Jody

We're gonna need a bigger boat!

Every now and again I get a wild hair. My last wild hair of major significance to was provide HIV Testing at General Assembly last year in Indianapolis. I have to say the whole thing came off pretty good! If you were in Indianapolis you may have even made it to our small AIDS Healing Service on Sunday morning.

Recently I had another wild hair. I was having a meal with Patti Case and Kaye Edwards in Oklahoma City while attending the National Convocation of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). As Patti and Kaye pecked at their food (is there ANY wonder how they stay looking so good?) and I inhaled mine I managed to wonder aloud between bites who we might find to preach at this years AIDS Healing Service. A few names were tossed around the table and Kaye said, "What about Bill Lee"? I have to admit, Dr. Lee had been first on my list but I dared not speak it aloud. "Could I get that lucky?" I asked aloud and Patti deadpanned, "Why don't you ask him, he's sitting right behind you".

Now if you know Patti at all you know she loves to have a little fun every now and again so I turned around half expecting to see an empty chair and there sat Dr. Lee.
Ever so gracious, ever so kind, Dr. Lee agreed. I thanked him profusely and returned to my table thinking..... "We're gonna need a bigger boat!"

Last year my minister, Rebecca Zelensky was gracious enough with her time to preach for me in Indianapolis. She did a fantastic job and the whole service was moving and brought tears to my eyes. Our service was small, we had a room near the main entry to the Convention Center and around 40 people in attendance.

This year I have Dr. Bill Lee, Past Moderator of the Christian Church (DOC) and one of my favorite voices within the wider church.... we're gonna need a bigger boat for this fish!

After many weeks of wishing and hoping and praying I heard on Friday that the General Assembly planning team has agreed to allow us use of Plenary Hall on the Sunday morning of Assembly in Nashville!

Pray for us as we begin planning this service!

Yea for an 'A'

Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry of Indiana, now under contract with the Indiana State Department of Health, scored 46 out of 50 points on our recent review, the first of our contract. This 'A' grade, following an inspection and visit my ISDH staff in July, notes that Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry "significantly exceeds standards" as laid down by the state contract, which began in January of 2010.

Congratulations to all of our volunteers, friends, and especially our advocates who work so hard to make this ministry viable

The photo that brought AIDS home

This is from LIFE magazine online:

A Picture That Changed the Face of AIDS
In November, 1990, LIFE magazine published a photograph of a young man, David Kirby -- his body wasted by AIDS, his gaze locked on something beyond this world -- surrounded by anguished family members as he took his last breaths. The haunting image of Kirby's passing (above), taken by a journalism grad student named Therese Frare, became the one photograph most identified with the HIV/AIDS epidemic that, by then, had seen as many as 12 million people infected. Now, 20 years after her photograph helped transform public perception of the disease, LIFE spoke with Frare about that picture; the international controversy it sparked when United Colors of Benetton used it in a 1992 ad; and the never-before-published photographs she took before and after David Kirby's death -- photos that reveal the untold story behind one of the 20th century's most heart-breaking, indelible images.

A great week

It's been an amazing week. Just this week I received an invitation to speak at the Church of the Covenant in Lynchburg, Virginia. What a treat it will be to spend a few days with Kaye and David Edwards. If I had been fortunate enough to have people such as these in my life when I was younger......

Great events this week:

A Mexican court upheld Mexico City's gay marriage law as constitutional!

A federal judge overturned Proposition 8, a California law preventing same sex marriage!

Elena Kagan was confirmed as the 112th Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court! She's only the 4th woman to serve but she's also the second woman appointed in as many years!

AND

The National Institute for health is spending 5.5 million dollars to fund research on an HIV prevention gel!

This is one of those weeks I'm really proud to be me!

A long hot summer

We had a great time in Oklahoma City. I kid you not, it was so hot on Saturday that I got a sunburn through my shirt.

Had some amazing things happen in OKC. Dr. Bill Lee, former Moderator of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) agreed to preach at the AIDS Healing Service in Nashville! We have been invited to Lexington to Transylvania University for Black HIV-AIDS day in February and have an open invitation from Jarvis College in Hawkins Texas to have an HIV focus project.

Additionally, we have almost completed our work adapting Popular Opinion Leader. This new intervention (as yet unnamed) will consist of five classes of 1 to 1.5 hours each. Our new intervention utilizes two theories, Diffusion of Innovation and Preparation for Bias, to help us begin conversations about health in human sexuality. I hope to have it available on the DHM website by early October.

Peace,

jody

Leaving for National Convocation

So I just checked in online for my trip to Oklahoma City for the National Convocation. I'm very excited about this trip. When Ron emailed me from a Board Meeting several months ago it seemed it would be forever and now the time is upon me.

My friend Allissa Williams is headed down with me. Allissa is a student at CTS in Indianapolis and we have a great program planned.

If you're in Oklahoma City, look for the large RV parked across from the Convention Center!

A New Year

Good Morning,

It's 7:28 and currently 6 degrees Fahrenheit in Terre Haute. I'm up suprisingly early for a Saturday morning. A bowl of tuna fish followed by some red tea and I'm watching the sun come up as I make final plans for our trip to Wilson, North Carolina at the end of this month. Members of the AIDS Ministry Network of Disciples Home Missions will be traveling to Barton College for an HIV/AIDS focus event. We will provide prevention education, outreach, and free anonymous testing over the course of two days February 1st and 2nd. I'm excited about this upcoming event, our first since General Assembly. Five members of the AIDS Ministry Network will be traveling with me to North Carolina and I am confident we will affect change through our ministry there.

I have high hopes for 2010 for the AIDS Ministry Network, in addition to the Barton College event, plans are in the works for Quadrennial Assembly in Greensboro, NC and just recently we received an invitation to bring the mobile HIV testing unit to the National Convocation of the Christian Church (DOC) in Oklahoma City this summer!

I pray that God will show us new direction this year, and continue to bless our ministry.

Peace,

Jody

Press Release from DHAM of Indiana

Disciples hiv-aids ministry, INC. OF INDIANA

P.O. Box 3053 Terre Haute, IN 47803 812.232.1381 X 343

Press Release

Contact: Jody Grieb Phone: 812.243.6402

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 18, 2009

DISCIPLES HIV-AIDS mINISTRY OF iNDIANA RECEIVES STATE CONTRACT, GRANT FUNDING.

terre haute, in, november 18, 2009: Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry, Inc. (DHAM) of Indiana, announced today that it has received a contract in the amount of thirty thousand dollars with the Indiana State Department of Health to provide HIV prevention education, interventional services and testing in the Wabash Valley of western central Indiana. Additionally, DHAM will receive grants totaling forty thousand dollars from private business organizations.

This partnership is a culmination of an eighteen month joint project between The AIDS Ministry Network of Disciples Home Missions and members of Central Christian Church, (Disciples of Christ) in Terre Haute, Indiana. When members of Central Christian Church noticed a gap in HIV/STD prevention education, they reached out to Wabash Valley PATH, a local not-for-profit and Disciples Home Missions. The AIDS Ministry Network worked with the group providing guidance and technical assistance. “The AIDS Ministry Network helped us realize our mission. We received help writing our mission statement and by-laws, incorporating, receiving our not-for-profit designation from the IRS, and assistance with writing our first state proposal” stated Mary Seybold, a Prevention Specialist and certified HIV Counselor and Tester.

“The state contract and private funding are examples of how faith based organizations, government entities, and private business can find synergy in combating the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States” Jody Grieb, Volunteer Director of the AIDS Ministry Network told participants at an HIV Prevention Training recently at the offices of the Christian Church in Indiana.

Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry will provide education in the form of seminars and workgroups in Clay, Parke, Putnam, Sullivan, Vermillion, and Vigo Counties in Indiana surrounding the city of Terre Haute. Staff will also conduct the ‘Popular Opinion Leader’ intervention. ‘Popular Opinion Leader’ or ‘POL’ is a community-level HIV prevention intervention designed to identify, enlist, and train peer opinion leaders to encourage safer sexual norms and behaviors within their social networks of friends and acquaintances through risk reduction conversations.

The private grants from Starbucks, Walgreens, and other donors will enable DHAM to provide testing through the six county area using their mobile HIV testing unit, a cargo van, converted for the specific use of HIV prevention and testing. DHAM is staffed by a full time program manager, and utilizes volunteers and AmeriCorps members from Indiana State University Sycamore Corps.

The AIDS Ministry Network of Disciples Home Missions is available to assist congregations with an existing HIV-AIDS Ministry realize their potential or to help grassroots organizations like Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry of Indiana with capacity building programs.

For more information contact Jody Grieb, Volunteer Director of the AIDS Ministry Network at AIDSMinistryNetwork@gmail.com or Wilma Shuffit at Disciples Home Missions 888.346.2631.

Funding Announcement for 2010

I'm very excited to announce that Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry will be fully funded for 2010!

The Indiana State Department of Health has offered Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry a $30,000 contract to provide HIV prevention services and testing in the Wabash Valley of western central Indiana. In addition to the state contract I have received additional grants notifications totaling $35,000 for a total of $65,000!

I'm very excited about the state contract. This is the first time in many years any organization in our area has been funded. While the state contract is specific for use in the Wabash Valley of Indiana, the additional grant funds are unrestricted geographically.

The first major event we will conduct will be an HIV Awareness Campaign and HIV testing drive at Barton College in Wilson, N.C. on February 1st and 2nd! I promised to get a press release out soon with all the details!

Peace,

Jody

More on the Chalice

I just became aware that my friend Verity wrote a great piece about the chalice, read about it on Disciples World Online !

Safe Place

Have you ever needed a safe place? Sure you have, we all have.

Last week I was in Indianapolis at the Indiana State Department of Health and we were debating the Universal Health Care Plan currently before Congress.

I've read the current piece of legislation in its entirety and I can tell you that it's not perfect, but it's a good start. The point I made to the people participating in my conversation was that since June 1 of this year, 5 clients in my area have died while on the waiting list for insurance. These people all previously had insurance at work but were laid off due to the current economic issues. After being laid off, they were unable to pay the costs to keep their insurance. Three of these people were back at work but, due to their pre-existing condition, they are now uninsurable.

I couldn't take it any more, so I walked out and down the road to Disciples Center. I went upstairs to see my friend Wilma and she was gracious to leave me alone in her cubicle for a few moments to cry out my anguish. When she returned, she asked me if I had seen the new chapel downstairs, I told her I had not but promised to visit it on the way out and I did.

What a wonderful place of peace. I sat in prayer and meditation for a few moments and began to look around. I was amazed to discover a communion set that was used at Cane Ridge! Having a few minutes alone in this chapel helped me to recover and re-affirm my commitment to finishing the business at hand.

If you find yourself in Indianapolis, and need a safe safe place to cry, I recommend that you stop by the chapel and Disciples Center, and if you see Wilma, tell her thanks!

Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry at the 2009 Indiana AIDS Fund Walk and Ride

Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry needs your help! The AIDS Walk & Ride is held each year to symbolize the impact HIV/AIDS has on all Hoosiers. This year's 5K Walk and 10K Ride will be held downtown Indianapolis adjacent to the Indiana War Memorial on the beautiful grounds of University Park (Vermont and Meridian Streets)on SATURDAY, October 10th, 2009. Please join us in supporting this important cause. In addition to the Walk and Ride, the Indiana AIDS Fund will host a day of entertainment for all ages and a health fair.

The proceeds from this event benefit the Gregory R. Powers Direct Emergency Financial Assistance (DEFA) Fund which provides financial assistance for food, clothing, medications, utilities and more. Funding for these types of emergency services cannot be provided by traditional government funding. The AIDS Walk is the only source for funding for the DEFA program.

Follow this link to visit the web page Disciples HIV-AIDS Ministry and Wabash Valley PATH are sharing and help us in our efforts to support the Health Foundation of Greater Indianapolis.

If you live in Indiana and are a member of a Disciples congregation, we invite you to join us, or start your own team. If you don't live in Indiana, call someone you know who does!

Peace,

Jody

Religious Leaders Absent in the Anti-AIDS Fight

August 21, 2009

Though they exert great influence in the communities in which they serve, religious leaders are not doing enough to fight HIV/AIDS, said experts at the recent ninth International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific, held in Bali, Indonesia.

"Many religious groups and leaders are unwilling to address HIV/AIDS and make it a priority. Their commitment level is quite low, particularly when compared to the size of their budget and the amount of work they do," said Donald Messer of the US-based Center of Church and Global AIDS.

"We've been talking about HIV/AIDS and the religious groups' response for three decades now. We're still talking too much even now," said Fiji's Dominica Abo. The "most powerful contribution" religious leaders can make is addressing stigma, discrimination, and biases that put groups like women at high risk for the disease.

The epidemic's impact on women and children needs to be addressed from a faith-based perspective, said the Rev. Youngsook Charlene Kang of the United Methodist Church in the United States, noting that women account for nearly half of all infections worldwide. "We need to call on religious leaders to educate and create new pathways within our churches for parishioners to learn the role that faith communities can play."

Messer noted that many conservative Muslim and Christian groups continue to preach against contraceptives, including condoms, believing they promote promiscuity. "[Yet] when used directly and consistently, condoms are humanity's best protection and weapon against HIV/AIDS," he said. "Some religious leaders are more eager to preserve the purity or correctness of theological perspectives than their task to save human lives."

From The Body Pro : http://www.thebodypro.com/content/art53360.html

Disciples pioneer HIV and AIDS testing in Indiana

By Nathan Day Wilson, DisciplesWorld contributing writer

INDIANAPOLIS (8/1/09) — There’s a new first to add to the growing list of Disciple firsts — the Disciples HIV/AIDS Ministry is the first faith-based effort fully certified by the Indiana Department of Health. If commitment and consistency are criteria, there is little doubt the honor is well deserved.

In terms of commitment, the ministry is completely organized and administered by well-trained, impassioned volunteers such as Jody Grieb, a member of Central Christian Church in Terre Haute.

In terms of consistency, every day the ministry offers testing in Terre Haute. On Saturdays the ministry tests at Roberts Avenue United Methodist Church on the corner of Massachusetts and Roberts Avenue in Indianapolis. Every third Thursday of the month, testing takes place at the Walgreens at the corner of 16th and Meridian Streets.

As of this writing, 191 people were tested during the 2009 General Assembly. The oldest was 74 and the youngest 11. The 11-year-old, suggested Grieb, convinced as many as 40 more people to be tested.

One who was tested was Sharon E. Watkins, general minister and president.

“There are assumptions made about who should be tested and who doesn’t need it,” said Watkins. “But if we are serious about stopping this pandemic, we all have to take part.”

Watkins' statement is consistent with recent reports that the fastest growing infection rate in Indiana is among heterosexual women over the age of forty.

“Plus, maybe if I’m tested, they will start allowing me to give blood again,” she said in reference to the limitation placed on her by the Indiana Blood Center since she lived in Africa.

In addition to testing, the ministry offers crisis counseling and is able to make referrals for those who receive confirmatory tests.

Each test costs $10.28. The ministry receives no official financial support from the denomination. Volunteer administration significantly reduces operating expenses. Subsidies from Starbucks and Walgreens for material costs resulted in a combined financial gift of over $17,000 since October 2008. Finally, state-certification will make the ministry eligible for state funding of testing supplies.

To learn more about the Disciples HIV/AIDS Ministry, contact Jody Grieb at Central Christian in Terre Haute.

As printed in Disciples World online:

http://www.disciplesworld.com/newsArticle.html?wsnID=15659

Getting Ready for Assembly

I'm very excited about our upcoming General Assembly. The Disciples HIV/AIDS Ministry will be in Indianapolis providing prevention education and free anonymous HIV testing via two mobile testing units.

Our primary platform, a 30 foot RV will remain at the convention center to provide on-site testing, prevention education, and harm reduction supplies while our mobile van will perform testing with our partners at Walgreens and Starbucks and at other locations throughout Indianapolis. Starbucks has graciously covered the cost of our testing supplies and Walgreens has provided us with harm reduction materials and is covering operating expenses.

I'm also excited to announce that we will bring two panels from the AIDS memorial quilt to Assembly to display. In addition, we will gather names of friends and family members to assemble our own quilt panel. After it has been created, we will bring this 'Disciples AIDS Quilt' to various venues in the future.

Our AIDS Healing Service will be Sunday morning August 2nd in room 103 of the Indianapolis Convention Center. This service will begin at 8:00 am, giving you plenty of time to worship and find healing with us, then get to late morning services at one of the local congregations should you wish.

As you are well aware these are tough economic times. We have been very lucky to establish relationships with our corporate sponsors at Starbucks and Walgreens. Please continue to pray for our ministry and these relationships.

I look forward to seeing you at Assembly.

Peace,

Jody