Soon, many of us will be receiving a $300-$600 per person "economic stimulus" rebate check from the government. Some will spend it; some will save it; and some will donate it to charity, stimulating the crucial programs and services designed to help people on the margins of our society.

If you join us and donate all or part of your stimulus check to TIHAN, you will help a woman living with HIV who needs help with her rent; or a man who's having trouble paying for his increasing utility bills. Your stimulus check will help feed TIHAN's CarePartners; assist someone in getting to their medical appointment; provide a care package stocked with toiletry items; or help a struggling family who needs financial assistance to cover the burial costs of their loved one who has died as a result of HIV/AIDS.

Offering the money from your economic stimulus rebate will directly impact the lives of those living with HIV right here in Tucson. AND it's tax-deductible for you on next year's tax return! Consider donating to TIHAN all or part of the stimulus rebate check that you and your family will receive.

Check out this editorial from The Fresno Bee newspaper (http://www.fresnobee.com/ 274/story/ 511303.html).

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5. "Study: Giving to Others Boosts Donors' Happiness Level"

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6. Be a blessing!

In 1983, a group of people living with HIV came together to write the Denver Principles. Among the suggestions and rights, they asked everyone to: "Support us in our struggle against those who would fire us from our jobs, evict us from our homes, refuse to touch us, separate us from our loved ones, our community or our peers, since there is no evidence that AIDS can be spread by casual, social contact."

The struggle continues today, 25 years later. People living with HIV in our community are waiting for a TIHAN CareTeam. Attend TIHAN CarePartner Support Training to become a CareTeam volunteer, Link Specialist, Poz Cafe volunteer, or Holiday Program volunteer. If you cannot attend, you can contribute to our training program by greeting volunteers, providing refreshments, and providing scholarship funds.

CarePartner Support Training will be held Saturday, May 17, 9:00am to 5:00pm at TIHAN. Cost of training is $22 and includes lunch, snacks, and your very own manual. Training will also be held on Saturday, June 7. Call 299-6647 to sign up. Questions? Contact Ari Kelly, ari@tihan.org.

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7. A Celebration of Life: Remembering Jim Valiton—Saturday, May 10

Please join us for a memorial service in remembrance of Jim Valiton on Saturday, May 10 at 2:00pm at St. Francis in the Foothills United Methodist Church, 4625 East River Road (corner of Swan and River Roads). The service will be followed at 3:30pm by a reception at Woody's (3710 North Oracle Road).

Jim devoted many years of his life to TIHAN, serving as our Administrative Assistant for three years, and continuing to volunteer right up until his passing in March. Jim was a longtime survivor of HIV (more than 20 years), and an inspiration to all who knew him. Please join Jim's longtime partner Dave Fredricks, his sister Mary Emerson, friends Kitty Tobin and Mary Beth Barone, and many others as we gather together to celebrate Jim and his life. Dave has requested that gifts in memory of Jim be made to TIHAN, 1011 North Craycroft #301, Tucson, Arizona 85711 (www.tihan.org) so that the important work of AIDS awareness and support services can live on in memory of Jim.

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8. Discover how much your heart can hold: Volunteer with TIHAN

Get Involved!

To learn more about becoming a volunteer, about the many volunteer opportunities available and to find out the dates of our next volunteer orientation please contact our Volunteer Coordinator, Kim Talerico, by calling 299-6647 or email kim@tihan.org.

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9. Volunteer Spotlight: Aimee Graves

"Walk in the door, get a hug and meet someone generous enough to make space for you to get down to work." That is how Aimee Graves describes the experience of volunteering at TIHAN. She says being a part of TIHAN has been rewarding. She's met people she otherwise would not have met because they usually are not employed by a behavioral health agency like the one for which Aimee works. TIHAN attracts people who are warm, openly accepting and loving, which also describes Aimee to a T!

A transplant from Georgia, Aimee came to Tucson in January 1992 in a Pontiac that her father said would never get past Alabama. We are so glad his prediction was wrong. Aimee chose Tucson because her grandmother lived here and, as a new graduate from the School for International Training in Vermont, Aimee wanted to work in a border state to address issues of health and social justice, and to practice her Spanish. Aimee is married to Michael Harris, a Service Manager at ACS-Midas+ Healthcare, a gardener, a hobbyist blacksmith and a lover of languages and books.

Aimee currently is the Senior Director of Child and Family Services at CODAC. She and her colleagues seek to promote health and to prevent violence, drug use, HIV/AIDS and STDs in the community through prevention education, treatment and community mobilization services. Rather than having people come into a center, teams go out into the community to meet folks where they live, work and play.

Aimee was drawn to TIHAN through Clyde Kunz, who recommended that Aimee take his place on the board of directors. After interviewing with Scott Blades and several TIHAN volunteers, Aimee is happily ensconced on the board, where she presently sits on the nominating committee. Her duties are varied and take 5-10 hours of her time in an average month, but can reach 20 or more—such as when her responsibilities as liaison between TIHAN and her church (Grace Saint Paul's Episcopal) pick up for Poz Cafe, Poz Market Place and setting up space and people for other TIHAN volunteers to provide education and outreach.

Aimee also volunteers with Project Hospitality during the winter months and is a member of her church's Altar Guild. She does all of this as someone who has rheumatoid arthritis and is facing another surgery. Aimee says that, in a strange way, she considers her rheumatoid arthritis a blessing, because she says she had always felt uncomfortably removed from people who lived with chronic pain and illness. Now she feels that she can better relate to others on that front and is much more comfortable when people share their own struggles and personal victories over health-related issues.

Her personal philosophy is to only volunteer for something that captures your heart and soul, and is meaningful to her since there is so little time and only so much energy a person has. Aimee has definitely followed this course in her volunteering at TIHAN, where she says she is surrounded by inspiring people who give her hope and offer the promise of new friendships. Aimee, we'd like you to know that the same is true of you—you are an inspiration to TIHAN!

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10. Can you fulfill these wishes now?

Will you help replenish our supply closet so our daily work is not interrupted by lack of supplies? We have some empty spots (and some almost-empty spots) that need to be re-filled with essential items we use on a daily or weekly basis. If you have questions about any of these items, please contact our Administrative Assistant, Leslie Johnson, at leslie@tihan.org or by phone at 299-6647. If you want to view our complete "TIHAN Wish List," simply click here.

• Pastel-colored, multipurpose, letter-size paper, especially green, blue, and buff—to photocopy forms and sections of our training manuals, which are color-coded for ease of use.
• 3-ring view binders, 1" size—for our volunteer training manuals.
• Box-bottom, letter-size, hanging file folders, 2" bottom—for our filing systems.
• Expandable file jackets, 2" expansion—for our filing systems.
• Binder clips, small size—for our filing systems.
• CD-R printable disks in a spindle package—for copying and distributing presentations and other materials.
• Nametags—self-adhesive
• Coffee supplies—for serving coffee to our guests and volunteers:
  • Ground coffee, both regular and decaf.
  • Coffee filters for 12-cup automatic drip coffee makers (Black & Decker and Mr. Coffee).
  • Packets of artificial sweetener.

Our supplies are low on these items also...

• White, multipurpose, letter-size paper—for photocopying reports and training manuals, and for everyday printing jobs.
• Avery 5160 labels for laser printers—for mailing announcements and invitations to CarePartners and volunteers, and for mailing newsletters.
• Security Envelopes, #10 size (business-size)—for mailing to people who, because of confidentiality concerns, request that the words TIHAN, HIV, or AIDS do not appear on the outside of the envelope.
• Plastic tabs for hanging file folders, 1/3rd cut, clear and assorted colors—for our filing systems.
• Pencil-type envelope moisteners with sponge tips—for sealing envelopes.
• Post-It easel pads, unruled—for training classes and presentations.
• Card stock, 110#, white—for creating postcards and certificates.

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11. It's an Old-Fashioned Ice Cream Social—Save the Date—July 31

Please allow the TIHAN staff to say thank you to you in person and join us for this "old-fashioned" event!

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12. Keep learning! Keep growing!

Our next FREE Continuing Education workshop for volunteers and CarePartners is Thursday, May 1, at TIHAN, 1011 N Craycroft #301. The topic is Mental Health.

The next session is Thursday, June 5, with the topic of New HIV Medications, to be held at SAAF.

Please join us for an informative evening with your fellow volunteers. We ask volunteers to attend at least three workshops each year. Call the front desk, 299-6647, or email Ari Kelly, ari@tihan.org, to save your seat!

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13. First Step to Volunteering

Get passionate about a cause and do something instead of just thinking about it. You are needed now. We can help make it happen. Call us and get started.

In just one afternoon or evening, you will experience an HIV 101 presentation, be inspired by a panel discussion of persons living with HIV, and hear an overview of TIHAN's programs, services and volunteer opportunities. Six times a year, TIHAN offers Volunteer Orientations, and May 8 is your next chance.

If you are interested in volunteering at TIHAN or you just want to know more about HIV/AIDS and related issues, please join us. Your cost is only $17 and includes a light meal and printed materials. We have an evening orientation scheduled for Thursday, May 8 from 5:15-9:15pm and a daytime orientation scheduled for Tuesday, July 8 from 1:00-5:00pm. Feel free to pass this information on to your friends, family, co-workers and congregations.

For more information about volunteer opportunities or to sign up for a Volunteer Orientation contact Kim Talerico, Volunteer Coordinator, at 299-6647 or email her at kim@tihan.org. You can also get more information about TIHAN by visiting our website at www.tihan.org.

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Myron with Bonkers

14. Bonkers About Myron Morris

Dr. Myron Morris is a very dedicated, longtime TIHAN volunteer, serving as CareTeam Coordinator and also volunteering on the Program and Development Committees. He has been an active TIHAN volunteer since 1996 and served two terms on the TIHAN Board of Directors.

Myron is passionate about the continuation of programs and services provided by TIHAN, so he is extremely involved with "Treasures for TIHAN," our annual live and silent auction which is coming up on May 3. Myron solicits businesses, artists, jewelers, restaurants, furniture stores and galleries, obtaining wonderful, one-of-a-kind, hand-selected items for the auction.

His devotion and dedication to TIHAN make a difference in our lives and in the lives of all those we serve. Myron is presently in the hospital recovering from surgery, and we wish him a speedy recovery with lots of love, hugs and kisses. 

Myron, we are very grateful for your presence and contributions to TIHAN—we are BONKERS about YOU!!!!!