AS we empower, heal, and advocate, let's not forget to celebrate!

One Voice

by Sherri Lewis

Saturday night? I'm dressed just as the invitation has stated. Attire: 'Dazzling, Diamonds, or Daring.'

I did all three....

In the early eighties I unknowingly was infected with HIV when AIDS wasn't on the radar yet. I was living in New York, and performing with my band GET WET with my bisexual boyfriend. Bowiesque days! The music ended, we broke up and moved on. I wanted to begin a new life. I met a man, fell in love, got engaged and started planning a family with my fiance.

It was 1987, the same year my friend Laurie died of AIDS. Because she was a female, AIDS was not considered a diagnosis. Witness to Laurie wasting away in her hospital bed with dementia, I knew I needed to get tested. I was in shock when the doctor told me I was HIV-positive. My fiance tested negative, we were married, and divorced. With no children, no career, and a death sentence, I did the only thing left to do, got active in AIDS work. (And there was plenty of it!) I scheduled appointments for testing, did pre- and post-test counseling, gave results, ran peer-led support groups, and joined speakers' bureaus. I shared my experience and information about nutrition and alternative medicine.

We needed hope. I needed hope and the possibility of a future. I rarely met another woman who was HIV-positive. AIDS organizations, informational pamphlets, and healthcare were targeted at the gay community, where there was a sense of urgency. I returned to my roots as an entertainer and wrote a one-woman show about "living with HIV."

Sixteen years later, picking up my own HIV meds at the Jeffrey Goodman Care Clinic Pharmacy at the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center's McDonald/Wright Building, I came across some information regarding Women's Night 2003. Who: Lesbian, bisexual, queer, transgender women, and supporters. (The latter would be me.) Why: To support women's services at the Gay & Lesbian Center. But who would be my guest? My friend Kira, fellow New York transplant.

Kira arrives in a skintight black zebra full-length dress with marabou-cuffed sleeves that clings to her hourglass figure. Fabulous! I wear a sheer black cocktail dress with wire swirls extending out from the hem, and chandelier earrings. Dare I say it? Why not? We both looked fabulous!

Tonight stirs memories of my grandmother, Gertrude Krichman, a social worker in an era that did not welcome women in the work force, let alone honor them. After years of suffering poor health and her doctor's constant dismissal of her complaints as hypochondria, her breast cancer had spread throughout her body. It took her life at the age of sixty-three. Now her HIV-positive granddaughter is part of a generation of women being honored and celebrated for their accomplishments.

First up is an executive photo shoot and then, after an extensive silent auction, co-chairs Pamela Clifford and Stella Theodolou introduce a video presentation of the organization's earliest years. Incorporated in 1971, The Center added The Jeffrey Goodman Special Care Clinic in 1996. The Clinic's on-site pharmacy dispenses approximately $1 million worth of HIV/AIDS drugs per month through ADAP. The Center is home to a spectrum of free and low-cost health, mental, and educational services. Its mission statement: To empower, heal, advocate, and lead by example. To empower women by being of service to each other. To heal the damage caused by shame and isolation by identification with other HIV-positive women. To advocate for women, to teach self-esteem building behaviors, to further women's own HIV/AIDS education, and to lead by example by continuing outreach in the community.

Kathy Griffin is the first award recipient and is hysterically funny, especially when advocating for lesbians to adopt, poking fun at who's monitoring Liza and David's adoption! She is genuine and gracious when accepting her Special Comedic Award. Following is a calvacade of impressive women, from Susan Feniger, who was honored with a Community Role Model Award, to grass-roots activist and L.A.C.E. Award Winner Ivy Bottini, who founded one of the nation's first AIDS information clearinghouses, AIDS Network LA, and who sat on the first board of directors of AIDS Project Los Angeles. Cynthia Harrison, director of nursing at the Center, is honored for her instrumental work in developing the Center's Women's Health Program and overseeing the Alternative Insemination Program (eleven pregnancies to date) since its inception in 1998. Premier sponsor, Wells Fargo, wins the Corporate Leadership Award.

In an emotional closing, the Creative Integrity Award, the evening's final award, is presented to Jennifer Lewis by her adopted daughter. Jennifer ends the night with her soulful a cappella singing, filling the ballroom with the strength of one woman's voice. A voice that vibrates with dignity, courage, and beauty.

One voice can make a difference.

Sherri Lewis, aka Beachfront, is an HIV-positive actress/singer, writer, and nationally known AIDS educator. Along with her one-woman show Life Is a Beach, she is a public speaker for UCLA AIDS Institute and Being Alive, and serves on Women At Risk's board of directors. Reach her by e-mail at Beach412@aol.com.