Newspaper Page Text
10A
JANUARY 1, 1998
Organization assists black
churcheswith HIV/AIDS resources
BThe Balm in Gilead
mobilizes black
churches as AIDS crisis
worsens among African
Americans.
The Balm In Gilead, a national
non-profit organization headquar
tered in New York City, is intensi
fying its efforts to mobilize Afri
can-American churches to respond
to the AIDS epidemic in Black
communities. To forward its mis
sion of working through Black
churches to stop the spread of HIV/
AIIDS in the African-American
community and to support people
infected with, and affected by HIV/
AIDS, The Balm In Gilead is re
leasing new educational materi
als, producing a national radio
program and organizing The Black
Church Week of Prayer for the
Healing of AIDS, March 1-7, 1998.
The AIDS epidemic, although
slowing in the general U.S. popu
lation, is increasing among Afri
can Americans, Federal statistics
show that Black Americans, who
comprise 12 percent of the U. S.
population, account for 40 percent
of all AIDS cases. By the year
2000, that figure will rise to 50
percent. AlDSistheleadingcause
of death for African Americans
under age 55, before homicide,
cancer and heart disease. Addi
tionally, more African-American
children are infected with HIV
than children of all other races
and ethnicities combined and
Black women are nearly 20 times
more likely to have AIDS than are
non-Black women.
Even as newlife-extending treat
ments have becpme available,
many African-Américafi familics
facing HIV/AIDS rémain without
access to the information, re
sources or spiritual support that
would enable them to benefit from
new drug therapies.
Internationally
The Riverwalk Series’ third con
cert of the season will be held on
January 11, 1998, Sunday, at 4
p.m. at St. Paul’s Church located
at 6th and Reynolds at the
Riverwalk. It is co-sponsored by
the Augusta Chapter of the Ameri
can Guild of Organists. Featured
will be Matt Curlee, concert or
ganist, whoisonly the sixth Ameri
can to win the prestigious Grand
Prixde Chartres, theequivalent of
the Tchaikovsky Piano Competi
tion for organists. He will play the
recently rebuilt Casavant pipe or
gan in St. Paul’s Church, an in
strument valued at more than
$600,000 and whose console can
be turned to enable the audience
to watch the performer as he plays.
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P.O. Box 1454
Augusta, Georgia 30903
AUGUSTA FOCUS
“Despite the fact that HIV/AIDS
is 100 percent preventable, it is
entirely out of control in the Black
community,” says Pernessa C.
Seele, the founder and CEO of Thie
Balm In Gilead. “We are striving
ever harder to assist every Black
church to start or intensify its
efforts to become a community
center for AIDS education and
compassionate care. Churches are
the most influential institutions
owned and operated by African
Americans. Their active and vis
ible involvement is essential to
alleviating the devastating impact
of the disease in Black communi
ties,” says Ms. Seele.
The Balm In Gilead, founded by
Ms. Seele in 1989, is endorsed by
every major Black church denomi
nation and caucus and has the
potential to reach over 20 million
African Americans through their
houses of worship. Itisrecognized
as one of the most effective and
inspiring AIDS initiatives aimed
at faith communities and success
fully has mobilized thousands of
congregations across the country.
Additionally, it is working with
numerous community-based orga
nizations and government agen
cies that wish to collaborate with
Black churches on HIV/AIDS ac
tivities,
The Black Church Week of
Prayer for the Healing of AIDS
The Black Church Week of
Prayer for the Healing of AIDS,
taking place March 1-7, 1998, is a
national initiative to bring HIV/
AIDS education and spiritual re
newal to Black churches that rec
ognize theimpact of AIDS on their
congregations and communities.
This national event is effective
because African Americansregard
prayer, education and social ac
tion in close proximity.
The Balm In Gilead has pro
vided training to church coalitions
trained concert organist to perform in Augusta
Presently an undergraduate stu
dent at the Eastman School of
Music at the University of Roches
ter, Mr. Curlee has also studied
improvisation with Gerre Hancock
and Richard Erickson and piano
with Douglas Humphries. Mr.
Curlee concertizes widely in the
U.S. and Europe and due to the
Chartres prize, has a recording
contract with the French firm
Naxos. He was also the 1996 win
ner of Eastman’s Harold Gleason
Emerging Artist Award.
A native of Greensbors, N.C.,
Mr. Curlee has studied at the
Oundle Festival in Great Britain
and the Salem Organ Academy.
His vigorous performing schedule
Spirit
and community organizations to
implement The Black Church
Week of Prayer for the Healing of
AIDS in most major cities.
Churches may participate in a va
riety of ways, from a single wor
ship service focusingon HIV/AIDS
issues to daily community-wide
educational and prayer programs
through the week.
HIV/AIDS Resource Center
The Balm In Gilead is home to
the nation’s only resource center
that develops and disseminates
HIV/AIDS materials that are spiri
tually and culturally appropriate
for use by Black churches. The
Center publishes works by such
noted ministers and theologians
as the Rev. Dr. James A. Forbes
Jr. of The Riverside Church in
New York City and the Rev. Dr.
Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. of Trinity
United Church of Christ in Chi
cago. It also publishes works by
noted educators, including Dr.
Cornell West of Harvard Univer
sity and Dr. Mindy Thompson
Fullilove and Dr. Robert Fullilove
of Columbia University.
Among the Center’s offerings
are: Who Will Break the Silence?
Liturgical Resources for the Heal
ing of AIDS; The Black Church
HIV/AIDS Education & Preven
tion Guide; The Heart of the Mat
ter Video and Handbook; Though
I Stand At the Door and Knock:
Discussions on the Black Church
Struggle with Homosexuality and
AIDS and Jessye Norman Sings
for the Healing AIDS, a video fea
turing Maya Angelou, Whoopi
Goldberg, Elton John, Bill T,
Jones, Toni Morrison, Max Roach,
Anna Deavere Smith, the Opera
Ebony Singers and the Harlem
Spiritual Ensemble.
Effective Partnerships
Recognizing that mobilizing
churches to respond effectively to
has recently taken him to the
French cathedrals in Chartres,
Nice and Montpellier and to the
international music festivals in
Calgary, Canada, St. Bertrand du
Comminges, France and Davos,
Switzerland. Recent appearances
in Great Britain include Chichester
Cathedral, King’s College, Cam
bridgeand Westminster Abbey. He
has also appeared in Italy in the
cathedrals in Ravenna, Bergamo,
and the Abbey at Chiusi della
Verna. His most recent American
appearances included concerts in
New York, Chicago, Pittsburgh,
Birmingham, and Atlanta. He has
performed for the illustrious Visit
ing Committee of the Eastman
School, and in 1996 was invited to
HIV/AIDS takes knowledge, cre
ativity and collaboration, The
Balm In Gilead has entered into
several partnerships which in
crease its reach and effectiveness.
With the Names Project Foun
dation, based in San Francisco,
The Balm In Gilead implements a
program entitled “And Their Liv
ing, Shall Not Have Been in Vain. ”
This program assists Black
churchesin displaying panels from
the AIDS Quilt and in creating
new panéls commemorating the
lives of African Americans who
have died from AIDS.
The Balm In Gilead is also in
partnership with several pharma
ceutical companies that produce
HIV/AIDS drugs. Agouron Phar
maceuticals, Inc. is the under
writer of two new publications
available from The Balm In Gilead
in 1998, The first is a resource
booklet for Black women with HIV
and the second is a periodical pro
viding a forum for Black voices
addressing HIV/AIDS issues.
With Bristol-Myers Squibb, The
Balm In Gilead is producing a se
ries of “town meetings” about HIV/
AIDS during 1998. These events
will bring together multiple seg
ments of the Black community to
raise awareness and intensify HIV/
AIDS efforts.
Glaxo Wellcome is the sponsor
of The Balm In Gilead’s new radio
program entitled A Message of
Hope In This Time of AIDS and
airing weekly in several major cit
ies. The program delivers HIV/
AIDS prevention and treatment
information in a context that rec
ognizes Black church traditions.
For mare infofmhation about The
Balm In Gilead, write to 130 West
42nd Street, Suite 1300, New York,
N.Y. 10036 or contact the organi
zation at (212) 730-7381 or
BalmGilead@aol.com.
perform a memorial concert for
Margaret Nelson Hanson, wife of
the late composer and director of
the Eastman School, Howard
Hanson.
Mr. Curlee has been coached by
the internationally acclaimed con
cert artists Peter Hurford, Gillian
Wier, Simon Preston, and Nicho
las Kynastonand is active not only
as an organist but also as a jazz
pianist and horn player. He ap
pears frequently as a continuo
player and accompanist as well as
a soloist. Among his current
projects is the preparation of a
lecture program on the complete
organ works of the French com
poser, Maurice Durufle.
(706) 738-9191 Business
(706) 738-0044 Request
(706) 733-0044 Request
The Amen Corner
® Tabernacle Baptist Church, 1223 Laney-Walker Blvd,, will
be holding an African-American Summit ‘9B on January 3, 1998 at
7 p.m. Hosted by the African-American Conference of the CSRA,
Inc, The summit will address the past, present and future of African-
Americans in Augusta, Richmond County. Keynote speaker will be
Martin Luther King 111. The day will begin with workshops
scheduled between the hours of 1 and 4 p.m. There is a reception
planned from 4 to 5 p.m. Members of the community will speak from
sto 7 p.m. For more information, call (706) 771-1395 or (706) 727-
73617.
M Good Hope Baptist Church, 710 East Cedar St. in Augusta,
will have a Candlelight Communion Service on Sunday, Jan. 4,
1998, at 6 p.m. Rev. Willie White, along with Hosanna and Newberry
Baptist Churches, will be the guests.
W Greater Young Zion Baptist Church, 516 Forsythe St. in
Augusta, will celebrate Family Emphasis Month in January 1998,
Special sermons and workshops will be conducted by Rev. William
B. Blount, pastor and director of the Family Enrichment Ministries.
Sermons to be conducted at 7:30 and 10:45 a.m. every Sunday in
January will be: “The Dynamics of a Christian Family,” Jan. 4; “A
Godly Husband,” Jan. 11; “A Godly Wife,” Jan. 18; and “Christian
Parenting,” Jan. 25. All Sunday sermon topics will be the same
topics during the following Thursday nights at 7 p.m. Bible study
and lunch served each Thursday at 12 noon at the church.
8 Thankful Baptist Church, 302 Walker St., will have its
Annual Watch Night Service on Wed., Dec. 31, at 10:30 p.m. The
Deaconess Board invites the public to share in the Lord’s supper
when Candlelight Communion Service is held on Sunday, Jan. 4,
1998, at 6 p.m. Rev. Gregory A. Young is pastor.
B The Children’s Missions Thrift Store, 1801 Central Ave.,
will provide free children’s clothing to needy families every Satur
day. For more information, call (706) 733-5437.
B First Providence Baptist Church has an educational out
reach ministry which goes to the home of those who cannot get to
their church service as often as they would like due to health
conditions. This ministry is available only on Tuesday evenings,
beginning at 6 p.m., for a 45-minute visit to share God’s word, songs
and prayer. For more information, call Loretta McCain at 593-4880.
'd -2 Z » ” L 9 v
Winds o e Yparaf
CONFERENCE
' January 4-6, 1998
& 7:30 PM ¢ Sun.-Tues.
\l'« with
! DR. LEROY THOMPSON
Pastor and Author of “Money Cometh,”
Speaker at Kenneth Hagin Camp Meetings
~ Whole LifemnistriEs
2621 Washington Rd.
Call (706) 737-4530 for information
Y
L abernacle
Baptist Church
1223 Laney-Walker Bivd.
Augusta, Ga. 30901
Church School 9:30 A.M. * Morning Worship 11
AM. Broadcast Hour SWTHB 155_512 * Nursery,
Kindergarten Open ¢+ Bible Study-Tues. 6 P.M.
Prayer fi:cting Tfies. 7PM.- Dai({dKindcrgartcn
Services 7 A.M. to 5 P.M.
2Rk Williams Memorial
h"?}(fi.@h illiams Memoria
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L)/ CME.Church
M&fl“’“
Rev. Alex R. King
- 1630 Fifteenth St. Augusta, Ga. 30901
(706) 733-9430
Sunday: Sunday School 9:30 a.m.
Worship Service 11:00 a.m.
Ist Sunday Evening 6:30 p.m.
Wed: Praise Bible Study 7:00 p.m.
Thurs: Senior Services 10:00
Day Care Center:
6:45 a.m. - 5:30 p.m