Corporations Award $9,000 to Program on AIDS, Pregnancy

A program designed to spread awareness in the Latino community about adolescent pregnancy and AIDS has received $9,000 in grants to continue operation in Santa Ana.

The program, called Comadres, is sponsored by the Coalition for Children, Adolescents and Parents and began two years ago through a grant from the March of Dimes Foundation. This year, $7,500 came from McDonnell Douglas Corp. and $1,500 was given by TRW.

Through Comadres, Latino women attend six weeks of classes in parenting, prenatal care, infant development and reproductive issues, said Patricia Gomez, project director. Once training is complete, each participant is asked to educate at least 10 more people and are provided with brochures and other materials to help reach their goal.

“They are doing a wonderful job,” said Gomez, who added that the program has created a large network in Santa Ana.

Participants in Comadres have been active as speakers in parent conferences and community forums. They hold regular meetings to disseminate information on health issues to hundreds of families.

“We learned how to talk to young girls about sex, pregnancy and the consequences,” said Lori Mora, a 29-year-old mother of two daughters. “This program has made it easier for me to talk to my own daughters about sex and AIDS, and I also talk to my daughters’ friends.”

Mora said she hopes to break a cycle in her family and other Latino families in which sex has been considered a taboo subject.

“Sometimes, the parents are afraid to talk about sex with their children,” Mora said.

Comadres is also concerned with the spread of AIDS within the Latino population, Gomez said. The group participated in the filming of the documentary “SIDA is AIDS,” a joint project of KCET and the Spanish Television Network Univision which aired last spring.