Would you adopt a child who is HIV-positive?

My husband and I discuss adoption frequently. The beauty and courage involved is alluring. It’s a dream we both share. But we’ve never considered this:

Would we be willing to adopt a child who is HIV-positive?

My gut reaction is,

“Of course! I wouldn’t even give it a second thought!”

But I’ve had the privilege of spending a week with a group of Ugandan children, all of whom were HIV-positive. I would have happily taken home one of those precious children.

But then, the follow-up questions arise.

• What ramifications, both financially and medically, would we have to consider?
• How might it affect any other children we may have?
• Are we prepared to deal with the social stigma, fear and ignorance surrounding HIV, possibly for many years to come?

We never reached a decision, mostly because it was a question that arose from a book I had finished reading rather than a desire to adopt a child here and now.

But it was good to discuss and prayerfully consider, because arguably an orphan who is HIV-positive has a more recognizable need for the love of a family and the hope of Jesus Christ.

So, what do you think? Would you be willing to adopt a child who is HIV-positive?

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At night when no one was watching and the guard had been bribed, Rose, her four children and her husband would huddle together in one of the stalls of the local market to sleep. Rose and her husband were HIV-positive, and their health was getting worse and worse.

With no jobs and no rent money, they spent a year homeless in the chilly Rwandan nights.

“We lived in the market for a year while bribing the market guard not to send us out until a friend of my husband rented a tiny house for us. The house was so tiny that later my husband’s coffin could not fit.”

Rose’s husband passed away in 2004 from HIV-related illnesses, leaving her and her children in an even more desperate situation.

“I did not have even 100 Rwandan francs (U.S. $0.17) with children to feed and no source of income. My biggest concern was where we would leave our children as I watched my and my husband’s health waste away.”

But at this lowest point in their lives, a local church, a Compassion partner, intervened. The church was sponsoring children in need, and Aliane, one of Rose’s four children, was sponsored.

According to center staff member Sebazima, Aliane’s health was in critical condition when she was first registered.

“She was very weak and sick. She had a big swelling on her face, which was later diagnosed as tuberculosis of the jaw. Almost all of her teeth were decayed.”

The child development center helped Aliane get medical attention, including a test to find out if she was suffering from the same virus that killed her father. She was.

“It is from such biting poverty and nakedness that Compassion gathered my life and restored hope, not only for Aliane, but for my entire family,” says Rose.

Aliane and her mother were able to receive antiretroviral drugs, along with nutritional supplements such as milk, fish and rice to keep them strong while taking the medicine.

Once Rose’s health had improved, she received money to start a small business. She had experience in embroidering, so she bought an embroidering machine to start a sewing business.

Rose was skilled, and she received many requests to make school sweaters for children, including a contract to make sweaters for Compassion-sponsored children.

Since that time, Rose’s business has blossomed. With her profits, she has bought four more sewing machines and employs workers to meet the increasing demand for her sweaters.

Rose has also been able to buy a four-room house for her family and business, along with a piece of land where she is planning to plant a vegetable garden.

Young Aliane is now 15 years old and in her first year of secondary school. She is one of the brightest students in her class and likes chemistry and math.

“Compassion got me when I was very, very poor. They registered me and took me to school. They paid my fees, gave me shoes, and blessed me with a wonderful sponsor. We didn’t have a house but now we are in our own home. My mum had one sewing machine, but now we have many. I used to be very sick, but now I am okay. I know I shall live long like everyone else who is not HIV-positive.”

Aliane’s siblings also now have hope for their future. Rose has managed to send her other three children to school with the profits from her sewing business.

With tears, Rose says, “Compassion added days to my life and enabled me to have a home for my children. They have stood by me, comforted me, and given me spiritual and moral support. I can only pray a blessing to the entire family of Compassion.”

Rose, who once slept in a cold market stall with no hope other than death, is now able to provide for her family, bring jobs to her community, and a message of hope to all she encounters.

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Nineteen-year-old Andrew grew up knowing many sorrows. Neither of his parents were there for him. He saw his father beat and throw insults at his mother in a drunken stupor. He watched his mother withdraw and disappear from their home for days on end, leaving him and his younger sister Rose on their own.

“Sometimes both Dad and Mom would go away and leave us alone, so we would go to the street to beg friends for food. After getting food we would go to our grandparents’ home. But when Dad didn’t find us home, he’d beat Mom and demand for us so she always took us back.”

Going home was the most painful thing for Andrew and Rose. They hated the violence. Andrew soon got fed up and went to live with his grandparents. But Rose stayed at home.

They believed that their mother often went to work in distant places, but the children learned that she was having an affair.

In 1997, Andrew’s father died of AIDS. His mother had just given birth to a baby girl who was HIV-positive, but his mother was not aware of because she did not know that she was HIV-positive. The family was living in a rented house at the time and hardly had money for survival.

Andrew’s mom earned very little from selling secondhand clothes. His father had been a mechanic who had spent most of his hard-earned money in bars.

A ray of hope shined on them a year later when the church near their home began a partnership with Compassion. Luckily for Andrew, his mother took him to the church and he was registered. This changed his life.

He learned that God had a big plan for his life and many other life-changing lessons. For example, he used to bathe once a week until he learned the importance of bathing. The center staff also gave him soap and vaseline, which he never had at home.

More importantly, they gave him love and helped him see his potential. The center staff helped him discover and develop his talent in art. Their influence paid off, and today Andrew has a small business making and selling sculptures.

“The child development center has helped me to have a positive attitude towards work. I didn’t only study fine art but also learned to use it to get income. For example, during holidays, I make artistic designs on wood. I started this business in 2007 when we had little income at home.”

One sculpture goes for about $1.30. Andrew also learned how to use a computer and as such earns income typing work for university students.

Since Andrew’s father passed on, his mother had not checked her HIV status. One day staff from the church’s Child Survival Program organized HIV/AIDS sensitization training for caregivers and encouraged them to learn their status.

Andrew’s mother went for the test and, alas, she had the disease. When she tested her last born, the child was also HIV- positive.

The situation back home was difficult. The mother did not have enough money to look after the family. Consequently, she left home to stay with the man with whom she had an affair. She sent both her daughters to stay with their father’s family, a decision Andrew was against because those relatives were not supportive.

Shortly afterward, Andrew’s mother came home. Her health had deteriorated. Andrew pleaded with her to let his sister come back from their father’s family home. Sadly, by the time his mother agreed to this, Rose was pregnant and said she had been raped!

Andrew’s mother developed low blood pressure. Andrew turned to the center staff, who had now become his friends. They helped take his mother to hospital, where she stayed until she passed away in October 2009.

“I felt overwhelmed and went and talked to the staff at the center, and they assured me that they would stand by me.

“They started giving my pregnant sister nutritional foods like eggs and milk. They also gave our youngest sister supplementary foods. I knew I was not alone in this.”

Rose later gave birth to a healthy baby boy.

Andrew has become compassionate to others.

“In my culture, if the man doesn’t bring dowry to the woman’s parents, the children don’t count. But the way the center staff and my grandparents have treated me made me want to be compassionate.”

Andrew is now looking ahead with hope. His dream is to become a lawyer so that he can help the poor. Having given his life to Christ on his 12th birthday, he is passionate about the Lord and also wants to start a Christian foundation to help children realize their potential.

He also hopes to revive an abstinence club, which he is part of but which has been on the decline. He believes that one day he is going to make a better father and husband than his father ever was.

Compassion has changed his life and he is very grateful for all the love, care and support he has received.

“Sponsors have had a great impact into our lives and have supported us in many ways. Really, we could have died. I urge them not to feel tired when they are helping us. I know that God will bless them. I’d like to give the sponsors this verse — Lamentations 3:22-24. It inspires me a lot.”

Andrew grins as he looks into the distance, as if peering into a brilliant future that is his for the taking.

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“You have been tested positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the micro-organism that causes the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).”

When the doctor announced the results, a mood of gloom and despair descended on Zainabu. She did not know where to go or what to do.

“It seemed like my life and the livelihood of my children had been cut, since they all depended on me.”

Looking for a shoulder to cry on, Zainabu wondered whom to inform or talk to. Her family and the community had no place for HIV-positive people. “I am an abomination,” Zainabu thought to herself.

Zainabu has had a difficult life. Harsh living conditions and extreme poverty left her trying to sell fried cassava and sometimes exchanging sex for money to support her family. This is how she contracted HIV, all in the name of providing for her young family.

Sadly, Zainabu’s story is not an uncommon one in Kenya. The prevalence of HIV among Kenyans ages 15-64 is 7.1 percent, which means about 1.4 million people live with HIV (Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation – Kenya World AIDS Day Address,  Dec. 1, 2009).

When Zainabu learned she was HIV-positive, she stayed in denial for some time. She came to grips with her situation when Compassion child development center staff members visited her home during their routine home visits and noticed her ill health. She then had the opportunity to disclose her HIV status.

The staff came to her help and encouraged her to think about life, and began to help her develop goals for living positively. It was during this period that she was given access to health facilities and connected to a doctor who advised her to join support groups and disclose her status.

“After long soul searching and prayer, I joined a local support group and disclosed my status publicly. After disclosing my status, I felt relieved. It was the best medicine for my disease. A new sense of hope arose in my spirit. A dawn of a better future emerged with high determination and commitment to face the disease head on. My anguish and fear were all gone, I could now break the silence, all because Compassion cared for me through the church and the access to health facilities.”

Zainabu joined Jipe Moyo Support Group, an initiative supported by the child development center which educates its members on HIV and AIDS. It also empowers family and community members with knowledge of long-term support and care, and raises acceptability of People Living With HIV/AIDS (PLWHAS) by family and community for stigma reduction. Jipe Moyo in Swahili means “take heart, take courage”

As a leader in the group, Zainabu has been very resourceful in the startup of a unique approach to helping PLWHAS. Through community education and meetings, she has helped ensure that other members of the community protect and give support to PLWHAS.

Zainabu’s CD4 count has improved significantly, and she has discovered hope and inspires hope in others suffering from the same condition. She now earns her living as a counselor helping other women and families to protect themselves against HIV and AIDS. She also has a small-scale business selling planting seeds and cereals.

Zainabu thanks the pastor and Compassion for allowing her to be the beneficiary of a revolving loan fund, where she got Kshs 5,000 to start the business.

“Since I joined Jipe Moyo Support group, I have gained a lot of knowledge and experience on new strategies for education on HIV/AIDS and therapeutic nutrition for People Living With HIV/AIDS. I have also acquired a lot of spiritual, psychological, emotional and economic support from the group.”

Zainabu admits that she has sometimes wondered whether proclaiming her status has put her at risk of ridicule and discrimination. However, she takes it in stride and still commits herself to protecting children and caregivers against HIV and AIDS in the center. And she says that her experience with HIV has increased her faith in God.

“I was running a race moving full speed, when suddenly, Wham! I hit a wall of HIV/AIDS. I was tempted to quit, turn back in defeat, perhaps fall down and die. But I didn’t.

“I have learned a lifelong lesson that when you feel the worst, when failure is breathing down your neck, look up and reach out to hope as never before. Believe in God and like dawn in the morning, light will come pouring in. You will see a breakthrough by breaking the silence. All you have to do to speak the Word is to have faith in the Word of God and in your God-given potentials.

“Breaking the silence and disclosing one’s status is the greatest challenge. I am not going to tell you it’s easy. The truth is, it is tough. Nevertheless, pushing on through the tough times is inevitable if one is to have a breakthrough.

“Once that happens, you will never be the same. You only need to take a step of courage and break the silence to make a never dying, never-quitting champion out of you.”

In her situation, through the assistance of church staff, Zainabu has brought light to the community. The development center offers free medical camp and voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) services. It also invites people in the community who are HIV-positive and are happy to speak to encourage others about their status.

Staff members raise awareness about the need for antiretroviral therapy medicines for people with HIV, raise awareness about the need to accept people with HIV or AIDS, and raise support for children whose family members have HIV- or AIDS-related illnesses.

Zainabu also encouraged her mother to go for a test, and she turned out to be HIV-positive.

“As a family, we have committed ourselves to helping other people. Our advice: Eat good food, be faithful in your marriage, go to hospital immediately when you have an infection, plan your family, keep your mind on good thoughts, and share your problems – do not hide them. I can now work hard and focus on my health and that of my family.

“I am determined to see all my children finish school, go to university and even get married. I am determined to make the most of my new life. HIV should not stop anyone from achieving his/her goals in life.”

Zainabu was able to avoid transmitting HIV to her youngest daughter during childbirth. Zainabu is a happy mother because the baby was HIV-negative.

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Every year Soroti district is listed as a statistic for emergency help. It is said to be one of the districts with the highest levels of poverty in the country, with a very low education level and inhabitants ignorant of cultivation skills. Many have painful memories of war.

With unpredictable weather, from hot and dry conditions that lead to drought and famine, to strong winds and rain that destroy homes and crops, the inhabitants of the land never know what to expect of fickle nature and how to overcome the damage left behind.

To the local inhabitants, the hunger and famine that come with the changing seasons is a leopard looking for the helpless and hopeless to devour. But for a few people in the community, it is time to fight back.

For the beneficiaries of the Asuret and Victory Outreach Orwadai Child Development Centers, it is time to hunt down and chase the “leopard,” and banish it for good.

Mary has watched three of her children die of disease, neglect and ignorance. Her family has been brought to its knees with no hope. Being HIV-positive with no money for treatment, both she and her husband Emmanuel had no strength to work for a living, and even then no one to take a chance on them. Life was hard with hardly enough food to eat. Most nights the family went to bed with empty bellies.

Despairing and wracked with disease in 2004 when her husband lost his eyesight, Mary set aside her pride and dignity and resorted to begging on the streets and public buses coming in from outside of town. Her husband stayed at home with their remaining two children.

For four years this was the life she knew. She woke up every morning praying to God to touch the heart of one person whose generosity would extend to her, so her family would have something to eat that night.

In 2008, the Victory Outreach Orwadai Child Development Center opened a few meters from Mary’s home. Mary and her family were one of the first families whose children were identified to benefit from the sponsorship program.

As part of the assistance the family received, Mary and Emmanuel were given 50,000 Uganda shillings (about $27) to start up a business that they could manage. With this money they bought one pig and firewood, and started to sell fried pork to the community members in the town center.

As demand for their food has grown, the duo’s business has moved from selling one pig in two days to currently two pigs a day.

Whereas before they had no food and depended on the mercy of good Samaritans, the family now is able to have three meals a day as well as a variety of food in their diet.

Out of the profits of the business, Mary and Emmanuel bought a bed, a goat and a sheep. They also joined a ”savings” group of people like them benefiting from the program, and were able to save enough money to buy a second sheep. The family hopes the sheep and goats will reproduce, and that they will sell them and expand their business.

“We have so many plans. We are planning to expand the huts in the eating place and add Irish potatoes and cabbage with tomatoes,” says Mary, who is excited at her future prospects. “We have great hope in the future.”

Life was not so different for the community of Asuret village, located about an hour away from Soroti town. They too experienced the harsh weather and stalking hunger and famine. When the Asuret Child Development Center opened, the prayers of many were answered.

When given the 50,000 shillings to start up their individual income-generating activities, the beneficiaries of Asuret Child Development Center decided instead to pool their money and start up a group activity. This helps also take care of the elderly and weak, who would not be able to maintain their own individual projects.

The group started a chicken and piggery farm, and the members each take turns tending to them daily.

All the beneficiaries in the group are HIV-positive, and being a part of this has given them a lifeline to hold onto.

For many, the profits from the project have enabled them to start their own individual income-generating activities like tailoring, selling charcoal, and small-scale agriculture.

“My children are now happy because I can now go home with something for them every day, unlike before,” says Naome, a widow with seven children, the youngest of whom is HIV-positive and also in the Asuret Child Development Center. Naome started a tailoring business that is now thriving.

The success of the group income-generating activity as well as each person’s individual activities are helping many group members pay for their other children’s needs, even those who are not registered in the sponsorship program. Most of the group members have also returned the initial investment given to them by the church.

The group’s success has filtered into the community, and the association had had requests from people who are not HIV-positive to join in the investment.

With the weather erratic and difficult to predict in this region, a more sustainable solution found in the income-generating activity programs seems to be the answer for the beneficiaries of both these development centers. They are determined not to remain a statistic, but to be the exception when the “leopard” comes calling next year.

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Florence Sena Amponsah is a Partnership Facilitator for 12 Compassion-assisted child development centers. She has been with Compassion Ghana for one year now. She is involved with a pilot program to train youths to educate their peers about HIV and AIDS.

“When children get to a certain age, around the teenage years, they tend to relate more to their peers and their siblings who are closer to them in age than they would from their parents or teachers or adults in general.

“Parents and adults have the inclination to be uncommunicative on issues concerning sex, but children get to an age where they need answers to many things happening to their bodies. When they do not get the responses they require, they turn to their peers for information.

“Most times the information shared among peers is by and large wrong and detrimental.

“Considering these facts, we believe that when the capacity of children whom we call ‘Peer Educators’ is built up by equipping then with right knowledge and correct information, then these children can carry the message across to other children, their communities, their churches and even in their schools.

“What they are learning are most of the general things they need answers to at their developmental stage, which they are not able to openly talk about.

“The Peer Educators Training is in the pilot phase for 12 child development centers, presenting two children from each. So there are 24 children involved in the pilot.

“From what I have seen so far, I can confidently say that the program is going to make a great impact. The group of children here are highly intelligent, and judging from their participation, I can tell they are learning a lot as they find the topics to be relevant to them.

“We chose HIV and AIDS as the topic for the peer educators because HIV and AIDS is a disease which is threatening Africa. It has cut across many countries, and is a problem here in Ghana.

“We have orphans, we have people who have been infected with the disease, so we are building the capacity of these peer educators to carry the message.

“They are being taught how the disease is spread so that if they know, they will make informed decisions about themselves. At least they will know how to protect themselves.

“They are also being taught the need to care for other people who have the disease to help prevent discrimination, isolation and rejection.”

Comfort is a parent and the Vice Chairman of the Association of Parents. She is a trader who deals in used clothing. She is among the many parents who have had the opportunity to benefit from HIV and AIDS education as part of our AIDS Initiative.

“I have come here for the parental meeting. My son is in the child development center. His name is Wesley. We named him after John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church.

“I have benefited so much from these meetings. Through these educations, I am well informed on HIV and AIDS.

“Now I know that a person can be carrying the disease for a long time without knowing it. I now know that HIV is when the person has the virus, but is not sick with AIDS but can spread the disease.

“I have been encouraged to go for voluntary testing because it is good to know your status early, so that help can be given to you to keep you from getting sick with AIDS itself.

“We were talked to about stigmatization of AIDS patients. Now I know that I cannot catch the disease just by socializing with a person with AIDS.

“I have a different attitude toward AIDS now. I do not know my status yet, but the next time the opportunity comes, I will be the first person to go for testing. I am already encouraging my friends who did not get the chance to be in these meetings to go for counseling and testing, because that saves life.

“In fact, I am sharing all I know about the disease with anybody I get the chance to talk to.”

Nyarko is 12 years old and is a peer educator.

“I have just graduated from junior secondary school and about to enter senior high school. As a peer educator, I am learning about HIV and AIDS, teenage pregnancy and many more topics.

“I have been told that AIDS is now a major problem in Africa, and more and more people are getting it and more people are dying. I also know that even though a lot of education is going on, many more people are still ignorant about the disease and teenagers are also getting it. Ghana has to intensify education on HIV/AIDS.

“In Ghana there is an increase in orphans due to parents dying from the disease. There is also an increase in the poverty rate because many people are so sick and weak with the disease that they cannot work to support themselves and their families. The high poverty rate has also pushed the youth into prostitution, which is helping the disease to spread.

“I now know that HIV is the virus and AIDS is the disease itself. There is no cure for AIDS so it is important that we abstain from sex. We have also had lessons in sex education, the different forms of abuses and how to identify them. I have learned a lot.

“I have also learned that it is only by doing the HIV/AIDS test that you can tell your status. I know now that it does not mean that you are going to die the moment you have the virus, HIV. But if you know your status and start taking good care of yourself early by taking your drugs and eating good diet, you can live for many years without getting AIDS.

“I intend to share what I have learned with my friends at the student center. I will educate everyone my age I come into contact with. I can even educate some adult who would be willing to listen to me.

“I will tell the girls that even if they do not get AIDS from having sex, they can get pregnant and drop out of school and their life will be a mess.

“I will tell them about all the forms of abuses and let them know that rapists are not strangers alone but rather can be close relatives or well-known people. I have also learned that boys can be raped. I will share with them what to do if they find themselves in any of these bad situations.”

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We eat rice, millet pastry and beans. As we are only two, I cook once a day. After breakfast, I cook and we eat the meal at noon, and in the evening I reheat the leftovers and we eat.

We are living in an urban area. We have electricity and running water in the community, but only for those who can afford it. We also have a medical center in the neighborhood. Most people sell small items to feed their families.

I discovered my daughter was HIV-positive in 2005. She was suffering from severe chickenpox. The treating doctor suggested us to take an AIDS test. We agreed, and the child was declared HIV-positive.

I do not know how she got the disease, if it was during her birth or during the blood transfusion she got when she was very little.

My daughter does not yet know she is HIV-positive, but I will surely tell her. As I do not know how she will react, I am looking for the right moment to tell her.

I am also HIV-positive, but I do not know how and when I got infected. When the doctor discovered that my daughter was HIV-positive, he encouraged me to take the test and that was how I came to know.

I was very shocked when I found out. I was asking myself how I would live with the disease and how others would react.

Four years after being declared HIV-positive, I am still asking myself the same questions. And sometimes I even think of killing my daughter and committing suicide. I would not like to die and leave my daughter alone. Who will take care of her?

I have found no way out of this. In fact, it is because I do believe that God can make a way that I am still alive; otherwise I would have killed myself long ago.

People living with AIDS are not seen well. They are criticized and stigmatized. Whenever people know or even suspect you are HIV-positive they stop talking to you and won’t come to your house anymore.

My daughter and I are under antiretroviral drug therapy (ART) since 2005, just after the AIDS screening test.

My daughter takes lamivudine, aloe-vera and zidovudine. She takes one tablet of each drug in the morning and in the evening.

As for me, I take aloe-vera and zidovudine. I also take one tablet of each drug in the morning and in the evening.

So far we feel good and have not yet experienced any side effects. The doctor said that my daughter may start to vomit, or her eyes and hands may turn white, and he told me to bring her to him in this case. But so far everything is all right.

I would like God to give long life to my child. I am praying for God to make her succeed in life and be self-sufficient, and the Lord knows where to put her.

She has not yet told me about her dream, but she uses to say that when she grows up and gains a lot of money she will build a big house. I always tell her, “The Lord will give you long life and ability to achieve what you plan to do!”

After Azalea shared about her circumstances with me, she and her daughter took part in a sensitization campaign for caregiveres at the child development center.

People in Azalea’s community believe that they will be infected if they dare get close to HIV-positive people. Through these sensitization campaigns that Azalea’s church conducts from time to time, many people in the community have started to learn about the disease, and the stigma is decreasing.

When Azalea and her daughter returned home, the daughter asked so many questions that Azalea seized the opportunity to talk about their HIV-positive statuses.

The daughter asked many questions to understand more about HIV and AIDS. They talked positively, and there was no negativity. Praise God!

*Azalea is not the mother’s real name. Her name was changed for this blog post to protect her privacy.

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Today, World AIDS Day, we honor you and the global impact you have on behalf of our Savior and the work He is doing in the lives of children affected by this disease.

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In the global fight against AIDS, the international community has brought access to lifesaving antiretroviral therapy (ART) to many health facilities around the world, but not all. Those lifesaving tablets that travel 10,000 miles sometimes don’t make it far enough.

“Because a jar on a dusty shelf in the clinic must not be the goal of the journey. We cannot congratulate ourselves and call that jar “access”. The jar on the shelf is not “access” – it is merely inventory.

“The entire business is a bitter failure without the last mile. It is the last mile that has proven to be the most difficult. It is a mile beyond the government’s reach. It is the mile into the hurting world and broken heart of the 9-year-old orphan living in the slum.

“The jar of pills traveled ten thousand miles but it needed to travel ten thousand – and one.”

– Scott Todd, Senior Ministry Advisor at Compassion

With our AIDS Initiative, Compassion is bringing the global fight “The Last Mile,” beyond the clinic, down dusty roads, through garbage-infested slums, up hills and into valleys to our church partners and beyond to the homes of our families.

True access to care means going beyond the clinic to the families who are waiting for the hope that only this medicine can bring.

Without ART, lives would be lost and families wrecked.

Our work fills the void, closes the gap and goes the Last Mile … not only in ensuring true access to the ART, but in the holistic approach to HIV and AIDS.

Our health workers know our families well, and visit those who are HIV-positive often, finding out what they need and how they are doing.

Our workers deliver care and support through the church, with the hope of Jesus Christ, to each family.

When a child needs to go to the hospital for care or testing for blood counts, we are there, realizing that without the support to get to the health center or hospital, all of the technology in the world is useless.

The machines used to count white blood cells, the x-ray machines to look for suspicious masses and infections, the medicine to treat opportunistic infections, and the medicine to help keep those with AIDS alive … all would be rendered useless without our church partner’s health workers who work as advocates, educators, comforters and confidants to our families.

When a child needs additional nutritional support to stay strong, our workers are there. When a distraught parent needs someone to talk to about a diagnosis of HIV, our workers are there.

When a mud hut is crumbling because a family affected by HIV and AIDS has lost its livelihood, our church partners are there to help the family regain their dignity.

One mile is not far, but for those living in poverty, with little contact with the outside world, that last mile is the difference between life and death.

“The Last Mile takes counseling, home visits, facilitating transport, payment for clinical services, lab tests and medicines including antiretroviral drugs. It takes a willingness to go the distance. It takes perseverance.

“The Last Mile takes people filled with compassion, whose faith and hope come from a deeper spring than the world has ever known. People of uncommon strength to walk the slums. People strong enough to carry joy in the dark. People with their hands busy at the work of healing today’s hurts even as their eyes remain fixed on eternity.

“Where do we find such people? They are already gathered. They are crowded into little rooms in the slums, in the city centers, and even in the forests. They gather to sing praise to Jesus Christ, to pray for each other and for their hurting world. They are His people, His Church.

“The Last Mile takes followers of Jesus Christ doing ministry the way Jesus did it – holistically. It takes His Church.”

– Scott Todd

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As the Body of Christ, caring about this disease, which is primarily spread through deviant behavior (though certainly not all the time), it is our chance to do the unexpected … to care for those infected with HIV, no matter the cause.

And with World AIDS Day next week, it’s as good a time as any to act like the person who came to save us.

What Is AIDS?

Many people know the terms HIV and AIDS, and often use them interchangeably, and as a result, incorrectly.

HIV is a virus, the human immunodeficiency virus, one of the most persistent and complicated viruses of all time.

This virus causes the body to become immunodeficient, which means that it causes the body’s immune system to be weakened, which makes the body’s defense system not work as well as it could and as a result, become more susceptible to infections.

AIDS stands for acquired immune deficiency syndrome. AIDS is a result of HIV. It is the last stage of an HIV infection.

A person first gets HIV, and then later, usually years later, will develop AIDS.

A CD4 cell is a type of white blood cell sometimes called a T cell. A person is diagnosed as having AIDS when his or her CD4 cell count drops below a certain level, around 300 cells per millimeters cubed (mm3). The normal range is between 500-1,600 CD4 cells per mm3.

Over time, a person with HIV will lose these cells through destruction by HIV. Then that person will be more vulnerable to infections … opportunistic infections.

Without treatment, the opportunistic infections will eventually claim the life of a person infected with HIV. But treatment is available and it is called ART, which stands for antiretroviral therapy.

Because of the advent of ART, those who once were hopeless and waiting to die now have a second chance. But really why should we care about AIDS?

Why Should We Care About AIDS?

Unfortunately, the world doesn’t view us, the Body of Christ, as people who respond indiscriminately to such a disease.

Jesus healed the blind and lepers and never stopped to judge them or think that they had been cursed. He cared about people … all people, and through the words of Matthew 25 or 1 John 3:16-18, encourages us to do the same.

Jesus speaks of seeing the needs of others and moving beyond this to care for others and their needs … except for those with HIV and AIDS. Right?

No. He meant that we should meet the needs of all those we encounter, whether the needs are physical, emotional or spiritual.

I see the words of these passages as a direct command to jump in, feet first, to the situations we encounter, and in this day and age, there are more than 33 million people in the world living with HIV, some with AIDS. They are battling daily to fight the emotional toll of this disease and the discrimination that comes with it.

There are plenty of opportunities for us to help. And because ART is available, the once-grim prognosis of someone with AIDS is now one of hope.

And because of how Compassion works, we fill in the gaps of care that the government is unable to commit to. By doing so we give great hope to those who a few years ago would have felt very lost and very discouraged.

People who die of AIDS often die in a similar manner as those with cancer, but without the support of loved ones, friends and the community.

AIDS is real, and though there are many more diseases in our age that are also very important to address, this one presents challenges that few can rival.

From the biochemistry and immunology of the virus to the stigma and discrimination that those infected face, HIV and AIDS need attention on all levels … but mostly in the willingness of Christians to live up to the book that we all follow.

This is our chance. The virus has been around for more than 25 years. Let’s be aware, care and dare to make a difference.

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