December 1 is World AIDS Day

a day to show support for the millions of people who are living with HIV/AIDS, and to renew our commitment to prevent the spread of HIV and find a cure.

The Foundation is involved in a variety of World AIDS Day activities, seeking to raise awareness and advance the fight against pediatric AIDS. But we can't do it alone. Fourteen-year-old Rose Mbiriire lives with her aunt and uncle in Lwanda, a village in central Uganda. Rose is a strong student at Jinja Secondary School with aspirations to become a doctor. But life has not always been easy for Rose.

Rose’s birth mother learned she was HIV-positive when Rose was a baby, and Rose’s father left the family. Her mother died when Rose was one year old. After her mother’s death, Rose’s 16-year-old maternal aunt, Milly, took Rose to the family home in a nearby village, where they still live. Rose grew up believing Milly was her mother.

While Milly was away studying at university, she got word from her brother that Rose was extremely sick with malaria. Milly rushed to Rose’s side, and although Rose survived the bout of malaria, she continued to get sicker. After repeatedly being turned away from local organizations for HIV testing, Milly took Rose to Mulago Hospital in Kampala, Uganda’s capital, for testing. Rose was indeed HIV-positive and she was immediately put on treatment.

For the first time in months, Rose was able to sleep through the night without crying in pain. Milly felt a wave of relief, but she still had a large hurdle to jump — disclosing to Rose that not only was Rose HIV-positive, but also that Milly was not her real mother.

Milly registered Rose in the Ariel Children’s Club, a club for HIV-positive children formed by the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, but Rose had to know her HIV status in order to attend the club meetings. Milly was still hesitant to tell Rose the truth, even though Rose and her classmates at school already suspected. Rose suffered daily tormenting by her classmates, who called her “slim” — the local word for AIDS.

The turning point came when Rose was invited to be a participant in the Foundation’s first Ariel Children’s Camp — a three-day camp for HIV-positive children — in December 2006. Knowing that Rose could not participate in the camp unless she was aware of her HIV status, Milly finally found the courage to tell Rose the truth. Rose accepted the news very well and was a camper at the Ariel Children’s Camp three weeks later.

After meeting other children at the camp who were HIV-positive, Rose felt relieved that she was not the only child with the disease. She was able to laugh and make friends again. She came home from the camp a much happier child.

The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation pays for Rose’s secondary school fees with funds from the Lloyd Foundation. Rose looks forward to a career as the Ariel Children’s Camp doctor.