By Samantha George ’12

Inspired by his Medical Anthropology course last semester, Andrew Kamilaris ‘14 decided to take matters into his own hands.

He and Heather Bauerle ‘14 are the co-founders of Lafayette College’s FACE AIDS chapter, a group dedicated to educating “the Lafayette community on health-related issues and to provide them with opportunities to make a change,”Bauerle said.

“In the class we talked a lot about global health inequality and about some inspiring people who are working day and night to fix this problem,” Kamilaris said.

One organization Kamilaris learned about was Partners in Health, under which FACE AIDS operates.  According to FACE AIDS’ international website, the organization is “fighting the global HIV/AIDS pandemic by building a movement of young leaders dedicated to health equity and social justice, and by providing socio-economic support to HIV-affected individuals living in impoverished communities.”

Together, Kamilaris and Bauerle have worked this semester to launch the group.  They held their second meeting this past Monday.

Melissa Homsher ‘14, who is the fundraising coordinator, joined because of her interests in global health care and because she wants to go to medical school.

“FACE AIDS aims to combine aspects of youth leadership and passion to tackle the challenge facing the global society – both by combating the disease through research and raising awareness, while also aiming to improve the quality of life in communities affected by the disease,” she said.

“So many people in developing countries get infected with HIV/AIDS and have little to no access to treatment or care,” events coordinator Rachael Trupp ‘14 said.  “Our job is to get a step closer to a world without HIV/AIDS, a world in which all people have equal access to healthcare, and to show that the youth of today can make this vision a reality.”

Other officers include public relations coordinator Lela Swartz ‘14 and education coordinator Maureen Carey ‘14.

For the remainder of the semester, the group is fundraising for Partners in Health.  “We are selling beaded red and white pins made by individuals in Rwanda affected by HIV/AIDS,” Swartz said.

The pins are being sold for five dollars, and if 100 are sold by the end of April, an anonymous donor will match the funds, according to Bauerle.

Next year, the group hopes to expand their efforts.  “We will definitely have brown bag events, walks, and will expand to other healthcare issues,” Bauerle said.