Deborah Cox & Jessie J headline Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival 2022

Internationally acclaimed recording artist, Jessie J, and award-winning vocalist, Deborah Cox will join AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the organizer for the Florida AIDS Walk & Music Festival, to headline this year’s walk.  Taking place at Fort Lauderdale’s South Beach Park, this annual event kicks off with a 5K walk culminating in a music festival to raise awareness and funds for HIV/AIDS services throughout South Florida, the epicenter of HIV in the U.S.

Presented by Wells Fargo and AHF Pharmacy, this year’s event, now in its 17th year, is set to raise over $1.5 million dollars for local AIDS service organizations, which is matched dollar-for-dollar by AHF.  The event supports 7 local non-profit organizations that are providing HIV/AIDS education, treatment, and prevention services across the metro area.  2022 benefiting organizations include AQUA, Broward House, Equality Florida, Latinos Salud, The Pride Center at Equality Park, SAVE Foundation, South Florida Afro Pride, SunServe, and the World AIDS Museum and Educational Center.

“We are so appreciative of the tremendous support of so many individuals and corporate partners who continue to rise to new heights to ensure the continued impact of the Florida AIDS Walk & Music Festival, “stated Michael Kahane, AHF Southern Bureau Chief.  “Even in the midst of our community addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, we are still seeing an increase in new HIV diagnosis.  The walk not only provides critical funds to continue the fight against HIV/AIDS, but also brings awareness around the HIV epidemic and is impact on our community.”

Registration for the walk & music festival is available at www.floridaaidswalk.org.  The schedule for the day is:

• 8:00 am registration opens
• 10:00 am walk
• 11:30 am live music starts
• 1:00 pm event ends

Other event sponsors include: Ameritech Solutions USA, Inovalon, Digital Pharmacist, and Parata

HIV/AIDS in Florida:

According to recent statistics:

• Florida ranked 3rd among the 50 states in the number of new HIV diagnoses;
• Broward and Miami-Dade counties rank highest in the state with new HIV diagnosis;
• More than 115,000 people in Florida live with HIV, representing about 13 percent of all cases in the United States