By Kevlon, Youth Activist

"Knowledge is contagious so infect truth." The reason I am a youth activist is because I would like to try and make a difference in a world ravaged by the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

I personally lost a loved one to HIV/AIDS and that is why I think that I work so hard sometimes. I work in a collaboration between the Stamford Health Department in Connecticut, and Kids in Crisis. The two agencies believe in…awareness and prevention and being a youth activist means spreading awareness. Sometimes it seems that everyone in the world knows about the epidemic, but some individuals continue to engage in risky behavior.

The reason I work for change is because there is always room for improvement when dealing with the issue of life. It is time that everyone acknowledges that the risk of HIV/AIDS exists instead of trying to make believe that it doesn't. Parents of some children try and shelter them from the reality of it, but sometimes they don't know how to go about it the right way. That's where we come in and play our part. We have participated in many activities such as health fairs, conferences, facilitated groups with high school and middle school students, led interactive demonstrations, etc. etc. So far all of these events have been very successful—and my co-workers and I have received awards for presentations at conferences and many other things. And this is just the beginning because there is so much I want to do.

But none of the previous things mentioned are as important as an end result which would be…a world free of infection. Though that may not be accomplished in my lifetime, I can begin to pave the way for others like me to come.