AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s (AHF) 14th Annual Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival on March 23, 2019 raised over $1.5 million benefitting 10 non-profits that provide HIV/AIDS services in South Florida, the nation’s epicenter for HIV.

Multi Grammy award-winning reggae artist Shaggy and the queen of bounce music Big Freedia joined a diverse lineup of performers on Saturday, March 23, 2019 for the 2019 Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival. Taking place at Fort Lauderdale’s South Beach Park as a part of the spring break festivities, this annual event kicked off with a 5K walk culminating in a day-long music festival increasing the community’s awareness, education, and prevention efforts for HIV/AIDS services throughout South Florida.

Presented by AHF, Saturday’s event attracted over 3,000 attendees from across the region, including Fort Lauderdale Mayor, Dean Trantalis. Supported by an array of corporate partners including AHF Pharmacy, a national chain of pharmacies supporting US & global HIV care, and Wells Fargo, the Florida AIDS Walk raised over $1.5 million dollars in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

Joining the line-up with Shaggy and Big Freedia were rock-and-roll sensation The Struts, Grammy-nominated duo COASTCITY, and South Florida’s own Deep Fried Funk Band. The event was hosted by two celebrity DJs, DJ Alex Ferbeyre and Tracy Young, and drag queen extraordinaire Kitty Meow.

“Given South Florida’s ranking nationally as the epicenter for HIV, we are pleased to present this annual event that both raises awareness about the HIV epidemic and significant dollars to support 10 non-profit organizations that are entrenched in the community, working to address this devastating epidemic,” stated Michael Kahane, AHF Southern Bureau Chief. “We thank all of the amazing performers, corporate partners, team captains, individuals raising funds, and the thousands of attendees for their support.”

Organizations benefiting from the 2019 event included: Aqua Foundation, SAVE, SunServe, Poverello, The Pride Center at Equality Park, Latinos Salud, The World AIDS Museum and Educational Center, Pridelines, and Urban League of Broward County. Other event sponsors included: Cardinal Health, Ameritech Solutions, All In One Electric, Macy’s, TCGRx, Quest Diagnostics, CDW, iHeartMedia, and South Florida Gay News (SFGN).

HIV/AIDS in Florida:

According to recent statistics from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC):

• Florida ranked first among the 50 states in the number of HIV diagnoses
• Three Florida cities made the top 15 cities nationally when it comes to number of people with HIV. Miami is at the top of the list, with Jacksonville and Orlando at the tenth and 11th spots, respectively
• Miami-Dade and Broward counties ranked top in the nation of new HIV diagnosis

AHF, the largest non-profit, global HIV/AIDS organization, currently provides medical care and/or services to more than 1,000,000 individuals in 42 countries worldwide in the US, Africa, Latin America, Caribbean, the Asia-Pacific Region, and Eastern Europe. To learn more about AHF, please visit our website: www.AIDSHealth.org, find us on Facebook: www.Facebook.com/AIDSHealth, and follow us on Twitter: @AIDSHealthcare.