One of my personal favorite songs was written and performed by Tim McGraw, “Live Like You Were Dying.” This album also titled “Live Like You Were Dying” was released in August of 2004 and the heart wrenching song tells the story of a man in his early forties, with an unspecified, life-threatening disease, and how getting that kind of news can turn your life upside down.
Much like the situations that many of our clients find themselves in. “I asked him when it sank in, that this might really be the real end? How’s it hit you when you get that kind of news?” (‘Live Like You Were Dying’ verse)
Death is scary for anyone to deal with; now imagine if you knew you were going to die but you have no support system to be there with you. It’s a fact of life; we will all die one day. From the moment we are born, we know that we will one day die. We cannot stop it, we cannot postpone it, we have no control of when it will be, but one thing is for sure, it will happen, to everyone. No matter what walk of life, creed, color or sexual orientation, we will all face our mortality.
Have you thought about it? Thought about how you would like to go? For me, if I had the power to choose, I would like to go in my sleep, peacefully, after spending a wonderful evening with my loved ones celebrating life, laughing and telling stories from the past. Sounds wonderful doesn’t it? Well, what if there was no one there to celebrate with me? What if there was no one who even checked in on me, and I went to bed each night wondering, ‘if I died tonight how long would it take for someone to find me?’
We here at AIDS Community Services of Western New York, Inc. believe that no one should have that fear, the fear of being alone in their darkest hour. Sadly, that is the case for many of our clients as of late. The cold, hard truth about our current situation in the HIV/AIDS community is that the death rate of our clients is scarily starting to creep upward again. In response ACS has chosen to restart our Buddy Program.
It’s been a long time since this program has been active so I am going to take a moment to refresh everyone on how the program works.
The mission of The Buddy Program at AIDS Community Services of Western New York, Inc. is to enhance the lives of people living with HIV/AIDS by providing opportunities for one-to-one friendships and a social support network.
The vision of The Buddy Program: People with HIV/AIDS are often excluded from society because of their status as a HIV/AIDS patient. The Buddy Program is determined to end the social isolation of people with HIV/AIDS by establishing meaningful, lasting one-to-one friendships with their peers who are not HIV positive. These friendships help increase self-esteem and confidence. As well as help the positive Buddy find support in their time of need.
The Buddy Program envisions a world where people with HIV/AIDS will not be societal outcasts and will be accepted and supported through all stages of life and that our current efforts and services will be unnecessary. Until that vision becomes a reality, we will continue to educate students, community members, corporations, and employers about the emotional, functional and natural needs and abilities of people with HIV/AIDS.
The Goals of The Buddy Program: By 2010, The Buddy Program will continue to build on its successful volunteer base in Western New York, further expand its efforts to reach all seven counties of Western New York, and annually engage more than 50 people in the program each year.
The choice is yours; you can make a huge difference in someone’s life with just a simple gesture.
“Like tomorrow was a gift,
And you got eternity,
To think about what you’d do with it.
An' what did you do with it?
An' what can I do with it?
An' what would I do with it?”
If you are interested in finding out more about ACS’s Buddy Program please contact Eugene Abrahamson at 716.332.2286 ext 335 or acsvolunteer@yahoo.com and together we can help change lives.
