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News Release

February 06, 2007

U of G Continues Support to Fight AIDS in Africa

The University of Guelph continues to help raise funds in support of the fight against AIDS and poverty in Africa with “Masai Groove,” a benefit concert Feb. 13 at 8:30 p.m. at the E-Bar, located at 41 Quebec St. in Guelph. U of G is also holding a public forum March 5 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in Peter Clark Hall.

“Masai Groove,” sponsored by U of G’s Student Support Network, will feature performances by the Slogo Project and Club Treehouse, a band with a chilled "island vibe" that features steel drums and has influences as broad as Miles Davis and Eddie Vedder. Tickets are $10 and available at the door.

The University’s Masai Project: For Africa, for AIDS, for Hope aims to raise $100,000 on campus as part of a larger community effort to raise $1 million for an AIDS clinic in Lesotho, the epicentre of the AIDS epidemic in Africa.

To date, U of G has raised close to $50,000, partly by selling the $5 red and white beaded “Bracelets of Hope” produced by a rural women's co-operative in Eshowe, Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa. The bracelets are available at the U of G Bookstore.

The March 5 public forum, “Sharing Hope: Stories From the Tsepong,” is free and open to the public, but organizers are encouraging participants to buy a Bracelet of Hope. The forum will feature stories from doctors and volunteers on the front lines in Africa, including local doctor Anne-Marie Zajdlik, who spearheaded the Guelph-wide Masai project.

More information about the University's Masai Project is available online.