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Red Cross Youth Group Fighting County's AIDS Epidemic
Written by Ray Steen, Staff Writer, RedCross.org
January 17, 2002 — AIDS has reached epidemic proportions in Alameda County, Calif. Since 1998, the county has been operating under a state of emergency because of the rapidly rising number of HIV/AIDS victims who reside in the county.
One of the many messages PASS peer educators pass on to nearby schools and community centers.
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An AIDS epidemiology report released in 2000 by the Alameda County Public Health Department indicates that Oakland residents represent the largest proportion of reported HIV/AIDS cases in Alameda County at 58 percent. This astonishing figure exceeds both the state and national AIDS case rates. The American Red Cross Bay Area Chapter is committed in the fight against AIDS/HIV by increasing visibility for its HIV/AIDS program, Peers Advocating Safer Sex (PASS), throughout Alameda County.
Studies revealed that in 1985, 18.5 percent of all new AIDS cases in Alameda County were African American, and 67 percent were white. By 1998, 52 percent of all new cases were African American and 32 percent were white. The drastic rise in AIDS among African Americans prompted Alameda County's Board of Supervisors to declare a state of emergency. Now, an increase of infection among heterosexuals — from 1 percent in 1985 to 25 percent in 1998 — has led health officials to classify heterosexual sex as the fasting growing mode of HIV transmission in the county.
"I was stunned to know that my community is rapidly acquiring a deadly disease," said Kristy Higares, American Red Cross youth coordinator for the Red Cross Bay Area Chapter.
Higares's role in PASS has been to help organize and draw support for the program by recruiting confident and energetic youth throughout the community. Since its inception, 22 Red Cross PASS youth program volunteers have helped educate more than 1,100 Alameda County middle and high school students about the deadly disease. This year, the American Red Cross awarded PASS with the 2002 Golden Bear Award of Excellence in Health and Safety.
PASS's tireless efforts has gained the attention of local media as Vicki Chan, a new peer volunteer, is interviewed by NBC3.
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The program allows youth throughout the community to participate. "We are a community-based organization versus a school-based setting," Higares said. PASS has formed partnerships with such organizations as Planned Parenthood and Catholic Charities, along with role models in the area to help educate the area's youth about the epidemic plaguing their community.
PASS encourages youth to examine their own personal risk behaviors and choices related to drug use and sexual activity, and to make positive decisions about their health.
"We never assume youth have any base knowledge about HIV/AIDS," Higares said. "We teach HIV/AIDS education through interactive games and lectures. Our peer educators facilitate the most important point, and that is that the disease is acquired through risky behavior, such as unprotected sex and IV drug use. We also work on attitudes and behaviors through games such as "condom comebacks." The game allows youth to role-play difficult sexual scenarios and to learn how to control the situation. By knowing the facts about AIDS/HIV, students are made to feel more comfortable when handling challenging, and sometimes awkward, confrontations.
May Cooc, one of the first volunteer educators of the PASS program, remembers how she first became involved with the program that has changed her life. "Something that really motivated me was listening to a person living with AIDS," Cooc said. "I remember sitting in the same room, listening to the guy's story of how he was affected with the virus. I remember tears came rolling down my cheeks as he said how he takes 73 pills a day."
Inspired by their own experiences, PASS peer educators have spoken at 215 schools since December 2000.
PASS has reached more than 1,100 youth in area schools and community centers.
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"It's very rewarding to know that when they [other kids] go out and teach other students, I was there to help them be able to help others," said Porsche Smith, a PASS youth educator.
PASS conducts intensive training twice a year, typically in December and July.
"This is a 'train the trainer' sort of thing," Higares said. "I think this program not only educates youth, but inspires them to make a difference within their community."
At local high schools and community centers, PASS has distributed over 2,000 flyers about local HIV/AIDS statistics and information about where people can receive free, confidential testing.
"It felt great to have shared information with those my own age, and their appreciation was a real confidence-builder," said Sandy Tesch, PASS youth educator. "By simply having a positive message and showing youth that teens just like them can talk openly about difficult subjects, we are contributing a great deal to the community. This program is one of the most rewarding volunteer experiences available."
The program was first created in the spring of 2000. Already a volunteer at her local Red Cross, Karla Salazar met with Youth Services Coordinator Rachel Goldstein about designing a program for student peers to reach out into their community.
"I actually wrote the grant to start the program," Salazar said. Ever since, PASS has secured over $7,000 in grants from Global Education Partnership, a peer leadership program.
Volunteers teaching future peer educators.
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The Bay Area Red Cross is recruiting teen educators who want to ensure that their peers do not become a part of the AIDS epidemic. For more information on PASS, contact Kristy Higares, Alameda Youth Coordinator, at 510-595-4475.
The Red Cross, working in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, educates people on how to stop the transmission of HIV, encourages people to respond in informed ways to people who have HIV, and helps people apply the facts about HIV to their own behavior. These goals are accomplished through a variety of educational programs. Contact your local chapter for more details on programs available in your area.
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