Beyond the 5K Walk

Photo Courtesy of Latinos Salud

Beyond the 5K Walk

Last month, under a postcard-worthy blue sky, hundreds marched along Fort Lauderdale beach for the annual 5K Florida AIDS Walk.

Latinos Salud brought the biggest team—and the loudest cheers—to the Walk. Today, the tents are packed up; the Walk is over. But the fundraising continues . . . just through the end of this month.

The annual fundraising season is a critical support for Latinos Salud. The non-profit is laser-focused on serving the community, by creating more welcoming and supportive spaces, adding more free services to meet community needs, and staging engaging events not just for gay Latinos, but for the entire South Florida LGBTQ community.

Last month, OutClique Magazine previewed the agency’s massively upgraded location in SW Miami. Bright, spacious, and convenient, the Bird Road location has the capacity to meet the community’s needs far better than Latinos Salud’s prior, small rental ever could.

This month, the agency brought on another Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner, to keep up with the increasing number of clients seeking PrEP, STD treatment, HIV care and other health services in their Miami Beach location. Also, this month Latinos Salud added two more test counseling rooms to its Wilton Manors location. These are significant investments in our community’s health.

The Florida AIDS Walk fundraiser matches every dollar donated to Latinos Salud’s team, through April 30, 2024. So far, the agency has raised $375,000, toward a stretch goal of $500,000.

In these final few weeks, an “angel donor” has stepped up offering to match any donations made to Latinos Salud, and then the Florida AIDS Walk will match again, meaning that a $100 donation will become $400, and a $1,000 donation becomes $4,000. Latinos Salud’s co-founder Rafaelé Narváez said, “Think of how many people you are helping with this leveraged giving.”

Dr. Stephen Fallon, Latinos Salud’s Executive Director, said that now is the best time to support the agency. He asked, “If you’ve never supported Latinos Salud, could you make this the year? Give the amount you’d spend on a lunch out, or on an evening of dinner and drinks. You’ll find that your generosity is even more fulfilling, and you’ll know that your impact matters, with the double match.”