Hot Springs native Ruth Coker Burks will be among the individuals honored today for having made a difference in the fight against AIDS as part of a commemoration of World AIDS Day at the National AIDS Memorial in San Francisco.
This year's World AIDS Day commemoration events at the National AIDS Memorial are built around the theme "Bending the Arc Toward Justice," honoring people who have made a difference in the fight against AIDS and celebrating the next generation of leaders who will help ensure the story of AIDS is never forgotten, according to a news release.
Former President Bill Clinton will also be honored and deliver the memorial's keynote address during the ceremony.
Burks, also known as the "Cemetery Angel," will receive the Thom Weyand Unsung Hero Award for her work in the darkest days of the epidemic in Arkansas, where she cared for hundreds of young gay men abandoned by their families, the release said.
During the onslaught of the AIDS epidemic in the late 1980s, Burks gave up her career as a successful real estate agent to help AIDS patients who had no one to care for them. Because of prejudices, fears and the stigma surrounding the disease, she was often the only one who would look after them until they died, it said.
When a funeral home returned the ashes of a young man to Burks in a cardboard box rather than an urn, she obtained a chipped cookie jar from a local pottery studio and buried the ashes in her family's cemetery. She went on to bury this way the ashes of over 40 people who had died of AIDS, most of them gay men whose families refused to claim them. She cared for over 1,000 AIDS patients, taking them to appointments, helping them obtain financial assistance and medication, and providing emotional support, the release said.
"The leadership and actions of President Clinton helped ensure that the nation and world would never forget the loved ones lost and was an important way to honor their legacy by caring for the sick and committing to solve the AIDS crisis" by signing legislation in 1996 designating the National AIDS Memorial, the release said.
"At a time when many national leaders paid little attention to the AIDS epidemic, President Bill Clinton courageously brought the issue to the forefront and through his compassion and leadership created a national memorial to forever honor the lives lost to AIDS," said John Cunningham, executive director of the National AIDS Memorial. "We are so proud to have President Clinton be such an important part of our World AIDS Day commemoration and honor his global commitment to provide care and help find a cure for this devastating disease."
David McMurry, retired Global Health Public Manager at Chevron, who led their worldwide AIDS programs and services for people in need, will receive the Humanitarian Leadership Award. Underscoring the next generation of leaders in the AIDS movement, awardees of the 2017 Pedro Zamora Young Leaders Scholarship will be announced and will share their personal stories in the fight against AIDS.
"One of the greatest lessons of the AIDS epidemic is that when one segment of society is discriminated against it affects the society as a whole," said Mike Shriver, National AIDS Memorial board chairman. "Out of injustice during the AIDS crisis rose action by citizens to tell their stories in pursuit of justice and equality."
Local on 12/01/2017