ORLANDO, Fla. — Some Central Florida groups worked to bring awareness to AIDS and how it continues to impact their community on Tuesday, World AIDS Day.

What You Need To Know

  • Tuesday was World AIDS Day

  • Central Florida groups worked to educate people on how to prevent HIV infections

  • Testing is vital to helo save lives through early prevention, advocates say

  • Screenings are availble at Miracle of Love, The Center and Orange and Osceola health offices

Angel Nelson, 31, said he and other members of the nonprofit Miracle of Love have dedicated themselves to helping educate their community about the disease.

HIV impacted Nelson like many people in the LGBTQ+ and Black or African American communities.

Nelson was 21 when he was diagnosed with HIV at a military screening after returning from Iraq.

“Of course, when we did the blood work, they said, ‘We need to test you again,’ Nelson said. “I was like, ‘Is there something wrong?’ They said, ‘We just need to make sure.’ I want to say it was June 8, 2011. That’s the day I found out I was HIV positive.”

Nelson then dedicated himself to educating his community about the disease. He joined Miracle of Love, an organization dedicated to the prevention of HIV, first as a volunteer and now as the nonprofit’s outreach coordinator.

The group also seeks to erase the stigma HIV patients face, Nelson said.

“That was my probably my biggest thing,” Nelson said. “How is this going to affect me physically and emotionally as far as social situation? [I learned to] just be the example because somebody has to be the example because that’s the only way the narrative ever changes.”

Among the organizations that offered World AIDS Day events was the Florida Health Department in Osceola County, which held a health fair at its office in Kissimmee. Organizations provided resources to receive free counseling for HIV patients, free HIV testing and PrEP Education, the medication to help prevent the disease.

HIV testing, which was paused in many places because of the COVID-19 pandemic, is vital to help save lives through early detection.

“People wanted to get tested, but it was slow getting people in the door and getting things moving again,” said Tommi Pritchett, The Center’s director of development and Kissimmee program manager. “But in 2021, we’ve seen (that) we’re close to getting back to 2019 numbers as far the number of clients coming in for testing on a monthly basis.”

Locations where anyone seeking an HIV screening can get one include: