Join Us at BCAP Tonight for Candlelight Memorial Walk

Please join us later today, Sunday May 15, as BCAP and the Interfaith AIDS Coalition (IAC) host an in-person Candlelight Memorial to remember people living with HIV who have died. BCAP and IAC have been co-hosting this event since 1992.

All are welcome to attend. The evening will begin at 7 p.m. with an opportunity to gather in front of BCAP, located at 2118 14th Street, Boulder. The program will begin at 7:30 p.m. The program includes music, short reflections by Rev. Gail McDougle, retired United Church of Christ minister, and Rev. Randy Spaulding, pastor of the Boulder Mennonite Church, and the reading of names of people living with HIV who have died. Musicians for the evening are local singer-guitarist Laurie Dameron and harpist Susan Conceicao.

Join us for a silent walk along the Pearl Street Mall. We will carry signs reminding the public that until there is a cure, there is work to do to improve the lives of people living with HIV, to minimize transmission, and to end HIV-related stigma. After the last names are read aloud, participants will be invited to share names of loved ones they would like to remember.

Rev. McDougle served congregations on the west coast before moving to Colorado to retire and be near her family. She is a member of the IAC. Rev. Spaulding is the first gay male pastor to be ordained in the Mennonite tradition. He is active in social justice work. Laurie Dameron is a Billboard Magazine award recipient who performs widely and is an environmental activist. Susan Conceicao enjoys being a guest harpist at various events.

Interfaith AIDS Coalition members represent the following local faith communities: Grace Commons Church Congregation Bonai Shalom First Congregational Church UCC Boulder Islamic Center of Boulder Unitarian Universalist Church of Boulder, Colorado First United Methodist Church of Boulder Boulder Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Congregation Har HaShem St. Andrew Presbyterian Church of Boulder

Since 2011, the International AIDS Candlelight Memorial has been coordinated by Global Network of People living with HIV (GNP+) on the third Sunday in May. The International AIDS Candlelight Memorial brings together people in more than 100 countries to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS and highlight the importance of HIV prevention, treatment, and support.

This year’s theme is We Remember, We Take Action, We Live Beyond HIV. While we hold the people we have lost in our hearts, we also gather in support of and solidarity with people living with HIV.