Donations have been trickling in at a slower pace than normal in advance of Saturday's Scotiabank AIDS Walk for Life and organizers are putting out a call for help to meet their goal.
"There are so many worthwhile causes and HIV is one that's very difficult for people to relate to," Positive Living North executive director Vanessa West said. "But they just need to know that every day you probably come in contact with someone who has HIV."
Last year the walk, which serves as the primary annual fundraiser for Positive Living North, took in$19,000 - but with only days remaining in this year's campaign the total raised so far sits around $6,500. West said the group has usually banked about $10,000 prior to the event itself, with the rest of the money coming in on the day of the walk.
Among the programs the AIDS walk supports locally are nutritional supports for people living with HIV. Positive Living North provides food and other nutritional supplements to people living with the disease, especially those who are economically disadvantaged.
Positive Living North also receives money from the Public Health Agency of Canada and Northern Health, but most of those funds are dedicated to programs around prevention. The fundraising dollars the group brings allows it to support the needs of people living with the virus, such as outings or seasonal gatherings.
"If we show that there's worth in them, they see the worth in themselves," West said.
All the funds raised through the event stay in Prince George for services provided locally.
Donations can be made online at www.positivelivingnorth.org or visiting the Positive Living North office at 1563 Second Avenue.
The walk will begin with registration at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday at Masich Place Stadium.
