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Technorati“The opportunity to change our world has never been greater,” she claimed.
According to World Vision, about 33 million people globally are living with HIV or AIDS (nearly the population of Canada) and more than 28 million have already died of AIDS. Last year, more than 2.5 million people were newly infected with HIV.
Furthermore, those most affected by HIV/AIDS are the children. More than 15 million have been orphaned (lost one or both parents) to AIDS. And by 2010, the number of children orphaned by AIDS will be more than 20 million, according to United Nations estimates. Among those will be a staggering 10 million in sub-Saharan Africa who have lost both parents.
“World Vision, unfortunately, cannot take thousands of Americans to Africa to witness the tragedy of the AIDS pandemic personally," said Richard E. Stearns, president and CEO of World Vision, U.S., in a released statement. "So we've created this exhibit to enable people to 'step into Africa' and learn more about effects of the greatest humanitarian disaster of our time and how they can help.”
“No one can do everything, but each of us can to something to help turn the tide against AIDS," he added.
As has been done in other cities across America, visitors to the 2,340 square foot exhibit at Holman United Methodist Church will walk though a replica of an African village while listening on headsets to a story of a child whose life has been affected by AIDS. The stories profiled in the exhibit are those of four real children touched by the work of World Vision, and are inspired by true events.
About 3,000 to 4,000 visitors are expected to tour the free exhibit in each city during a typical five-day stay. The exhibit is slated to reach 20 more U.S. cities before the end of this year after having already reached around 50 since last year.
Christian Post editor Kenneth Chan in Los Angeles contributed to this report.
