IRVINE, CA--(Marketwired - Jun 20, 2017) - In an effort to raise awareness, eliminate stigma and end the HIV/AIDS epidemic, AIDS Services Foundation Orange County (ASF) is putting a face to its transformational work through its new #ImPositive social media campaign. Social media posts tagged with #ImPositive will feature ASF staff, volunteers, donors and general community members, who see themselves as allies to people living with HIV/AIDS in Orange County. Holding pre-made white board signs that say "#ImPositive..." participants can either identify themselves as being HIV-positive or simply write down something that makes them a positive ally to those affected by HIV/AIDS. Photos are then tagged and shared across ASF's social media channels as well as with personal networks to show how an entire community is rallying around ending the epidemic in Orange County.
"We're working to ensure this campaign promotes awareness and helps demonstrate that you can't tell someone's status just by looking at them," said Philip Yaeger, ASF's executive director and CEO. "That is why it is imperative that everyone get tested and that the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS needs to be eliminated."
Having launched a soft introduction last month in tandem with ASF's 31st Annual AIDS Walk Orange County, several ASF staff and volunteers, including Yaeger, have already been featured holding #ImPositive signs on ASF social media posts. Yaeger, with a huge smile, holds a white board that reads: #ImPositive ... we can end the HIV epidemic in Orange County. ASF board member and 2017 AIDS Walk chair Wesley Sasser-Brandt, who was diagnosed with HIV in 2004, displays his board that says: #ImPositive...ASF cares and shows me I'm not alone.
Everyone that participates in #ImPositive will receive an invitation to ASF's Triumph Tuesday (a monthly informational event at ASF's headquarters that includes wine and hors d'oeuvres) as well as more information on how to become involved with ASF, and its many services, which include food, transportation, housing, emergency financial assistance, kids and family programs, mental health counseling, support groups and HIV education and prevention services.
For more information about the #ImPositive campaign, please visit ASF's social media channels: Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. You can also visit http://www.ocasf.org/triumphtuesday.html.
To learn more about ASF, please contact Leslie Licano at 949.733.8679 ext. 101, or visit the ASF website at www.ocasf.org.
AIDS Services Foundation Orange County (ASF) is a nonprofit AIDS service organization that has helped more than 8,000 people living with HIV disease in Orange County since 1985. ASF serves the local community impacted by HIV and AIDS by providing food, transportation, housing, emergency financial assistance, counseling, education and preventative services. You can learn more about the organization by visiting www.ocasf.org.