BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — Community members gathered Monday night for a candlelight vigil honoring those who have lost their lives to HIV and AIDS as part of World AIDS Day observance in Bakersfield.
The Bakersfield's AIDS Project invited the community to gather in remembrance and solidarity, with many attendees holding pictures of loved ones lost to the disease.
Following a commemoration ceremony, participants marched from the Liberty Bell to the Arts Council of Kern, where the exhibit of the National AIDS Quilt hangs.
"It is an amazing opportunity to hear the voices of loved ones lost to AIDS. Each of them was painstakingly sewn by friends and family members, partners, schoolmates," Audrey Chavez said.
Chavez, the founder of Bakersfield's AIDS Project, started the non-profit after her brother, Ricky Montoya, passed away from an AIDS-defining illness in 1992.
"Ricky is missed terribly by all of our family. And I know my brother had dreams and hopes, and goals, and he was saddened that he was not going to be around to care for my parents in their old age," Chavez said.
The National AIDS Quilt will be on display free to the public on Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Arts Council of Kern at 1020 18th Street. New panels will be dedicated before being sent to the National AIDS Memorial.
"And here, we asked for local quilt blocks so that we can help bring the youth to understand that this happens in Kern County," Chavez said.
According to the Kern County Public Health Department, the county has seen a dramatic rise in HIV cases, going up 80% in the last 10 years and 114% higher than 20 years ago.
Chavez says she wants the exhibit to break down the stigma behind the disease and educate people on the importance of practicing safe sex and getting tested.
"Because if we know our status, then we can keep ourselves HIV negative, and we can learn about PrEP, and or if we're positive, we can become connected to a resource," Chavez said.
Organizers say both events are about remembrance and raising awareness about those still impacted by HIV and AIDS.
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