AIDS Project L.A. Honors ‘Extraordinary’ Volunteer

Ed Belew, the first winner of the AIDS Project Los Angeles “Volunteer of the Year Award,” traveled to elementary schools, colleges, prisons, hospitals and anywhere else he was invited last year to dispel myths and fallacies about the disease.

In all, Belew gave 213 speeches on AIDS awareness. But Sunday afternoon, hours before the “Friends In Deed” awards ceremony at The Palace, Belew was still pondering what he would say when he accepted his award.

“And for the first time,” he said, “I don’t know what I’m going to say.”

Belew has lost nine friends to AIDS. What prompted him to volunteer at APLA was a recruitment poster he saw in 1985, around the time one of his close friends died. “I watched him die, just a little bit, every day,” he said.

Dan Morin, director of volunteers for AIDS Project Los Angeles, said Belew is one of the best volunteers APLA has.

“I felt it was important that we had a unique, once-a-year special event for very special people. Ed’s contributions have really been extraordinary, he’s willing to do anything at a moment’s notice and that’s why he’s getting this award,” Morin said. Twelve other APLA volunteers also were scheduled to be honored at The Palace, Morin said.

Since it was founded by four people in 1982, the APLA volunteer network has swelled to include 1,200 men and women. Belew said he gets a lot of satisfaction from his speeches. He never liked public speaking, but he enjoys educating the public about AIDS.

“I want people to know about this disease, we can’t ignore it,” he said. “Laying the blame of this terrible epidemic on one person or one or two socially unpopular groups isn’t the answer.”

Belew, 45, has had to be flexible with his speeches and adjust them accordingly to his audience. “You can’t hit grade school students with the same thing you can graduate students,” he said.

Speech Recalled

He remembered well one speech he gave to a group of fifth and sixth graders. “There were about 60 parents lining the back wall of the room, arms folded, scrutinizing me.” He said he did not get into too much detail about the sexual aspects of AIDS, but did say it is sexually transmitted.

Belew is no longer surprised at some of the questions he is asked about AIDS.

“This whole country is in trouble because people think they can’t get AIDS,” he said. “They’re just not aware that this bug doesn’t care who you sleep with. . . . People are aware of AIDS because of the media, but what they know is only cursory, they need more details.”

As well as working on the telephone hot lines, doing shopping for PWAs (person with AIDS) and giving speeches, Belew has also worked with APLA walk-ins seeking help in coping with their infection.

‘Started to Cry’

“There was this one young kid,” Belew reflected, “it was about a month ago. He was so skinny, so emaciated. I gave him a hug and he started to cry and I thought maybe I hurt him, but he said he was crying because that was the first time someone had hugged him in about a year.”

In April, Belew will take the exam that will allow him to privately practice as a substance abuse counselor. Until then, and after then, he said, his face will remain a familiar sight at APLA. “I’ll be there until I probably burn out, or until they find a cure.”