Aids Walk Organization

He was the kid in junior high who campaigned for liberal politicians, who worried about supersonic transport planes and collected signatures to halt the clubbing of baby seals. More than two decades later, Craig Miller is still at it. And AIDS sufferers across the United States have come to appreciate his activist inclinations.

Don Foley made his first AIDS Walk Los Angeles 25 years ago, when the annual event first started. And he hasn't missed a one. On Sunday, Foley, 79, joined 30,000 others who walked the 6.2-mile route through West Hollywood to raise money and awareness to fight AIDS. While some marchers hoisted signs high into the air and chanted, Foley, moving with the others along Melrose Avenue, reflected on how much has changed over the years. Decades ago, there "wasn't much to do those days except watch your friends die," Foley said.

The young team members who gathered Sunday morning before the annual AIDS Walk did not wear matching T-shirts bearing logos of corporations such as Hilton, Starbucks or DreamWorks SKG. They did not have Hollywood connections or the backing of a public relations campaign.

The young team members who gathered Sunday morning before the annual AIDS Walk did not wear matching T-shirts bearing logos of corporations such as Hilton, Starbucks or DreamWorks SKG. They did not have Hollywood connections or the backing of a public relations campaign.

As usual, some heavy hitters will participate Sunday in AIDS Walk Los Angeles: GTE, The Gap and DreamWorks SKG will all sponsor walkers. But in sheer numbers, a modest, second-floor beauty shop is beating out these world-famous corporations. Salon Paul/Florent, with only five employees, has registered more participants for the walk benefiting AIDS Project Los Angeles than any of the corporations named. During this final week of registration, the salon ranks fifth out of more than 800 teams.

Thousands of people are expected to participate in a benefit walk today to raise money to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS. Organizers said AIDS Walk Orange County is expected to attract 15,000 people and raise $1 million. The walk will begin at the UC Irvine Chancellor's Rose Garden, near Campus and West Peltason drives. Last year, 15,000 walkers raised $884,000. Participants can take either a 5K or 10K route. Ceremonies begin at 8:45 a.m., and the walk begins at 9:30.

AIDS Walk leaders reacted angrily Thursday to suggestions that politics plays a part in how their organization distributes funds to AIDS service organizations, including Laguna Shanti, which is in financial peril after being denied money from the fund-raising group this year. "It was not an easy decision to not fund Shanti," said Mitch Cherness, an AIDS Walk board member. "That pained all of us."

Following the most successful fund-raising effort in its seven-year history, AIDS Walk Orange County has announced it will award $421,500 to service agencies in the county this week. "I'm so excited about giving out this money," director JoAnn Ruden said Wednesday. "It's hard work getting it in, but, boy, is it fun giving it away." The money was generated during a June 12 walk that drew a record-breaking 9,000 participants, according to a statement released by AIDS Walk.

Bobbie Dunn and her sister, Beverly Henry, wore matching pink T-shirts during Sunday's 10th annual AIDS Walk Orange County. Emblazoned in bold letters on each of their chests were the words, "In Memory of David." "We're walking so that no other parents will have to hold their children while they're dying of AIDS," said Dunn, a Stanton resident whose son, David, died of the disease two years ago at age 31. "It makes me feel good that we're helping other people with AIDS."

Richard Riordan, Los Angeles' multimillionaire mayor, is once again pulling out his checkbook for a cause important to him--and this time he has added a twist aimed at boosting city employees' participation in the project. In a memo to drum up support for this year's AIDS Walk Los Angeles, Riordan promised that for each department head who participates in the walkathon, he will contribute $1,000 to the cause.

He had been to Manhattan only once before, as a child, and when Craig Miller returned years later as a man in his 20s, the California AIDS activist embarked on what he thought would be a simple mission. Fresh on the heels of the first AIDS Walk in Los Angeles, a 1985 fundraiser he organized that collected $673,000, Miller wanted to hold a similar event in Central Park. He hoped to draw thousands of people and raise more money.

They walked with aching feet, some with tears in their eyes, others wearing T-shirts bearing the names of loved ones who had died from AIDS. Thousands of people participated in the 20th annual AIDS Walk Los Angeles on Sunday, trekking more than six miles through West Los Angeles to raise more than $3 million for HIV and AIDS programs in Los Angeles County.

Rossy Jones can be very persuasive. "This has become my mission, almost like my own ministry," said Jones, close to tears as she talked about her son Eliot, who died of AIDS 10 years ago. He was 33. "I did a lot of begging." The retired Laguna Beach resident was one of the top individual fund-raisers for the 17th AIDS Walk Orange County, calling on friends, family and neighbors. They contributed almost $13,000.

For the third year in a row, Rancho Alamitos High School, home to just 1,600 students, raised more money than any other school in the 16th AIDS Walk Orange County. "We consider this a very good project," said Julie Le of Rancho Alamitos, who was joined on Sunday's walk at UC Irvine by more than 50 of her classmates. "This issue is something we take very seriously." AIDS has killed more than 3,100 people in Orange County, according to health department figures.

Robin Keeble stood out against a sea of white. Instead of the largely colorless T-shirts handed out Sunday to most of the walkers in the 15th annual AIDS Walk Orange County, the 45-year-old Anaheim resident wore a red shirt to denote her HIV-positive status. Keeble said she has learned to live comfortably with the disease. But she also sometimes is "mistrustful of people."

Thousands of people are expected to participate in a benefit walk today to raise money to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS. Organizers said AIDS Walk Orange County is expected to attract 15,000 people and raise $1 million. The walk will begin at the UC Irvine Chancellor's Rose Garden, near Campus and West Peltason drives. Last year, 15,000 walkers raised $884,000. Participants can take either a 5K or 10K route. Ceremonies begin at 8:45 a.m., and the walk begins at 9:30.

It's back to plain speech in the title this year for the annual Riverside dance concert to benefit the Inland AIDS Project: "Dancers for Life 5." Last year, the organizers tried to put a little Hollywood spin in the title: "Dancers for Life III . . . The Journey Continues." But the spin is off. The organizers are facing up to a long, lingering reality.

Robin Keeble stood out against a sea of white. Instead of the largely colorless T-shirts handed out Sunday to most of the walkers in the 15th annual AIDS Walk Orange County, the 45-year-old Anaheim resident wore a red shirt to denote her HIV-positive status. Keeble said she has learned to live comfortably with the disease. But she also sometimes is "mistrustful of people."

Polka dots and slippers are welcome as the Salon Paul/Florent kicks off its annual fund-raising drive for AIDS Walk Los Angeles with a pajama party Saturday. Six PJ-wearing stylists plan to see about 90 clients at $38 a haircut to raise money for the 14th annual AIDS Walk on Sept. 27, salon owner Paul McKay said. Customers are also encouraged to wear their pajamas.

A record-setting crowd of more than 26,000 walkers--including a sizable contingent from Cal State Northridge--converged on Hollywood Sunday for the 13th annual AIDS Walk Los Angeles, which raised at least $3 million to fund AIDS services and educational programs.