FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information, contact:
Matthew Vlahos, 267-886-8923 or matthew@vlahospr.com
Michael Byrne, 215-981-3352 or mbyrne@actionaids.org
New Campaign from ActionAIDS Urges Philadelphians to “Take Action”
Pennsylvania’s largest AIDS service organization is launching its biggest campaign since the early-90s. 6-month effort includes nearly two dozen ads featuring locals affected by the disease
John Wind AIDS Jewelry Project also selects ActionAIDS as one of two organizations to benefit from limited edition line of jewelry to launch early next year
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (Dec. 1, 2009) – Every 9.5 minutes, someone in the United States is infected with HIV/AIDS. The disease is not curable, but it is treatable and manageable. It’s also 100 percent preventable.
Today, those messages become the focus of a new advertising campaign by ActionAIDS, Pennsylvania’s largest AIDS service organization. The Philadelphia-based nonprofit is rolling out the campaign – its largest since the early-90s – on World AIDS Day, Tuesday, Dec. 1.
“The World Health Organization recently announced that AIDS is now the No. 1 killer of women between the ages of 18 and 44. That’s alarming enough, but then you look at how the disease is destroying the lives of our neighbors right here in Philadelphia. The HIV infection rate in Philadelphia is five times the national infection rate,” said Kevin Burns, LCSW, ActionAIDS’ executive director.
Burns and his team realized it was time to take action. And in a big way.
So over the last few months, they worked with a team of volunteers, patients (or clients) and their families to create the organization’s largest advertising campaign since “Friends for Life” was introduced in the early-90s.
The result is an effort slated to run at least six months, built around the tagline “Take Action.” ActionAIDS will unveil the new campaign to the public on Tuesday afternoon using social media tool Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/ActionAIDS). A link to a new poster will be sent every 15 minutes beginning at Noon EST. The final tweet, at 5:15 pm, will coincide with the organization’s press conference and reception at SumoLounge in Center City Philadelphia.
“Someone dies from AIDS-related complications every 15 minutes in the United States,” said Burns. “It will take us just over five hours to release the entire campaign online – and during that time, more than 20 men, women and children will lose their battle with the disease. This is one way for us to remember them.”
The Campaign
The campaign centers on real people like Dolly, who lost her two sons to AIDS. A compassionate, Grandmother-next-door-type, she is pictured on ads with actionable messages like “Share the facts” and “Learn to talk about it.”
Initially, there are a total of 22 posters, each incorporating the campaign’s “Take Action” tagline followed by one of six messages.
“Each of the messages addresses a core issue with AIDS education or treatment,” said Michael Byrne, director of business development and communications for ActionAIDS. “The posters are simple, yet they speak to you on an emotional level. It’s hard to ignore the people, like Dolly, and ultimately the action she’s asking you to take. She makes it personal.”
The artwork was created by two long-time ActionAIDS volunteers: photographer Sarah Miller and graphic designer Mike Spangler, Byrne said.
Select posters from the campaign will start appearing around Philadelphia today. The posters will be rotated for approximately six months, in boutiques, churches, community centers, gyms and schools, as well as in restaurants participating in Dine Out for Life in April.
The effort is supported by a redesigned Web site, http://www.actionaids.org, which will also launch this week.
John Wind AIDS Jewelry Project
Philadelphia-based jewelry designer John Wind is among those galvanized by the alarming new numbers, and will announce his renewed support for local AIDS organizations at today’s press conference.
ActionAIDS and the Mazzoni Center – an LGBT health organization in Center City Philadelphia – will be the beneficiaries of the new John Wind AIDS Jewelry Project, which will raise money for local AIDS research, education and services through sales of limited-edition jewelry designed by Wind’s Maximal Art studios.
Beginning in the late-80s, John Wind’s Maximal Art released a new pin annually for five consecutive years, the proceeds of which went directly to AIDS organizations. Now, with the number of Philadelphians infected five times higher than the national average, Wind is reviving the project. The first two pieces (a charm bracelet and keychain) will be available in limited quantities between Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day in 2010. The pieces will be sold at select retailers, including Joan Shepp and Scarlett Alley. “WHERE” magazine is the project’s media sponsor.
Wind will unveil the designs and prices early next year, but they are expected to pay tribute to the AIDS pieces he designed earlier in his career and will incorporate the color red. Projected price points are in the $80-90 range for the charm bracelet and $40-50 for the keychain.
50 percent of the proceeds from the project will go to ActionAIDS and the Mazzoni Center.