FORT LAUDERDALE, FL (Top40 Charts) Multi Grammy award-winning, reggae artist
Shaggy and the
Queen of bounce music, Big Freedia will join an array of performers over the spring break holiday for the 2019 Florida AIDS Walk and
Music Festival. Scheduled for tomorrow, Saturday, March 23rd at Fort Lauderdale's South Beach Park, this annual event kicks off with a 5K walk culminating in a day-long music festival to raise awareness and funds for HIV/AIDS services throughout South Florida, the epicenter of HIV in the U.S.
Florida AIDS Walk raises both awareness about the HIV epidemic AND significant funds to support ten respected local non-profit organizations embedded in the community and working tirelessly to address this devastating epidemic throughout South Florida.
WHAT:
2019 Florida AIDS Walk &
Music Festival
WHO:
Mayor Dean Trantalis, City of Fort Lauderdale
Michael Weinstein, President, AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF)
Michael Kahane, AHF Southern Bureau Chief
Leadership of 10 non-profit benefiting organizations
Shaggy, Grammy award-winning artist
Big Freedia, award-winning artist
Thousands of local attendees
WHEN:
TOMORROW, Saturday, March 23, 2019
Registration Starts at 9:00am
Walk Starts at 10:00am
Concert starts at 11:00am
•
Shaggy performs 12noon - 1:00pm
• The
Struts performs 3:00pm - 4:00pm
• Big Freedia performs 4:35pm - 5:35pm
WHY:
Nationally South Florida ranks #1 in regards to new HIV diagnosis. Funds raised from this event annually raises over $1 million to benefit 10 local non-profit organizations that are leading the fight against the local HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Presented by AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest non-profit, global HIV/AIDS organization, the annual event attracts thousands of attendees from across the region. Supported by an array of corporate partners including AHF Pharmacy, a national chain of pharmacies supporting U.S. & global HIV care, and Wells Fargo, the Florida AIDS Walk annually raises over $1 million in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Now in its 14th year, Florida AIDS Walk &
Music Festival has become a highly anticipated event aimed at increasing South Florida's awareness, prevention, and treatment efforts against the spread of HIV.
Traditionally taking place as a Sunday morning 5K walk and concert, the 2019 event has been expanded to a full-day multi-faceted, music festival experience that will kick-off as walkers return back to the beach. Joining the line-up with
Shaggy and Big Freedia are a diverse array of performers including rock-and-roll sensation, The Struts, Grammy-nominated duo, Coastcity, and South Florida's own Deep Fried Funk Band. The event will be hosted by celebrity DJs
Tracy Young and Alex Ferbeyre.
"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."
The event helps to remind the community that HIV/AIDS is still impacting our community by increasing the community's awareness, education, and prevention efforts all with the objective of reducing the spread of HIV. Organizations benefiting from the 2019 event include:
AQUA
SAVE
SUNSERVE
POVERELLO
THE PRIDE CENTER AT EQUALITY PARK
LATINOS SALUD
THE WORLD AIDS MUSEUM AND EDUCATIONAL CENTER
PRIDELINES
URBAN LEAGUE OF BROWARD COUNTY
Registration for the walk & music festival is available at www.floridaaidswalk.org.
Other event sponsors include: Cardinal Health, Ameritech Solutions, All In One Electric, Macy's, TCGRx, Quest Diagnostics, CDW, iHeart Media and South Florida Gay News.
