Countywide : AIDS Fund-Raising Campaign Carries On

Michael Anthony directed the fund-raising campaigns of the Orange County Design Alliance to Combat AIDS with such flair and enthusiasm that the group seemed almost to be an extension of his personality.

So when the disease claimed the gregarious 28-year-old man one year ago this month, it was not surprising that many observers assumed that DACA, founded in 1989, would wither away without him.

“I remember as he got worse he would break down and cry because he was so upset that the group might disband without him,” said Bart Story, Anthony’s longtime companion. “I couldn’t let that happen.”

So Story, 30, who works for a publishing company, took the reins of the group, being elected its president a month after Anthony’s death. And a year later, instead of slipping into oblivion, DACA has reached new heights.

This month, the group--which has raised more than $140,000 for local AIDS outreach and clinical programs--debuted the new name it earned by being accepted into an established national AIDS group’s network.

Story’s organization is now known as the Orange County chapter of the New York-based Design Industries Foundation for AIDS, and the change is expected to increase both its profile and productivity.

“We now have a national board with very influential, powerful people with major connections that can bring in corporate sponsors,” Story said. “People know this name better and that means more acceptance.”

Art gallery owner Carol Westervelt, a longtime DACA supporter, said the Orange County group’s promising future is especially pleasing considering the days of despair after Anthony’s death.

“I thought Michael was really the lifeblood of the group, the one that could hold us together,” Westervelt said. “Without him, I thought our survival was questionable. But Bart has done a great job. An amazing job.”

The group will continue to use black-tie affairs, theatrical productions and auctions to generate funds, which are channeled into such area outreach programs as the AIDS Services Foundation, Laguna Shanti and Stop AIDS Now Orange County.

But now those efforts will be augmented by the decade-old national group’s programs, which include touring stage productions featuring fashion and entertainment. Shows such as “The DIFFA Collection” visit the 15 chapter cities and send the proceeds into the local group’s coffers.

“And that could mean millions of dollars for Orange County’s efforts,” Story said.

The money is desperately needed to help clinical and support efforts keep pace with the epidemic, Story said. As of March, 1993, 2,557 AIDS cases had been documented countywide, and officials estimate that HIV-positive cases may total 10,000.

Beyond the benefit to people with AIDS, the group’s success has helped Story overcome his own tragic loss, he said.

While he will never forget the grim nights sleeping on the floor next to his ailing companion’s hospital bed, or trying to communicate with Anthony after an AIDS-related ailment robbed him of his voice, Story said new memories balance the sadness.

“When I got the news that we were accepted and were going to be part of DIFFA, I heard it on my voice mail,” he said. “As I listened to it, I looked up at a picture I have here of Michael, and it felt like he was smiling at me again. And more than that, I could sense him being proud.”