On Saturday, October 4th, an unspoken air of purpose hung over Freedom Plaza as the 17th annual AIDS Walk in Washington DC got underway. Each year, thousands of people walk to support the cause of finding a cure for AIDS. Though the dream of finding a completely effective cure has yet to come true, the millions of dollars raised in support of the cause have been essential to the remarkable progress made in the field of AIDS research and treatment. This year, nearly seven hundred thousand dollars have been raised at the DC event alone, a small portion of the millions raised at numerous other AIDS Walk events in almost every major metropolitan area in the United States.

Not to be outdone by any other body of participants, GW was present in full force, boasting the largest team of walkers at the event. Not surprisingly, the AIDS Walk has been a long standing tradition for several GW students, and their continued presence does not go unrecognized.

“GW had the biggest team at the event. It’s great to see so many of them each year,” said Tim Turnham, Director of Development for the Whitman-Walker Clinic. Turnham also noted important statistics: 1 out of every 20 adults in the United States has AIDS, and 1 out of every 3 adults who has AIDS does not know or is in denial of his or her contraction of the HIV virus. Furthermore, he was excited that this has been the “best walk in several years,” as the event appealed to a larger crowd, which meant raising more money for the cause.

The walk began at Freedom Plaza, where the hundreds of volunteers passed out water bottles, yogurt, and bananas to fuel the thousands of walkers as they prepared to walk for the cause. On this particular year, somewhere between six and seven thousand people were at the event. In addition to the volunteer staff and walkers present, the workers of the Whitman-Walker clinic were on hand to oversee the smooth execution of the event. At ten o’clock, the event got started with a pre-walk welcoming ceremony and rally, immediately followed by the walk itself. Between eleven and noon, the walkers circled the national mall attracting a myriad of onlookers who cheered them on. After the walk, the participants returned to Freedom Plaza for a closing awards ceremony where several key participants were honored for their contributions to the event’s success.

“I really enjoyed walking with other people for the same cause. It feels good because you know you’re saving people’s lives,” said junior David Benson. From the student’s perspective, the walk is just a natural way to be involved in the community, but there is always the cause to keep in mind.

Though the scourge of AIDS is relevant to every major metropolitan area in the country, Washington D.C. has a special awareness of the problem. Carol Schwartz of the D.C. City Council said that D.C. has the highest per-capita rate of infection in the United States.

“This is my 15th year doing AIDS Walk. I think it sends a message to everyone about awareness. You’ll definitely see me here next year,” said Schwartz.

All money raised from the walk goes to the Whitman-Walker clinic here in Washington, to ensure that high-quality healthcare and AIDS treatment services are available to those who are most in need. For more information go to www.aidswalkwashington.org.