Center Blog

Starting Friday, September 16, 2011, more than 120 riders will begin a three-day cycling journey from Boston to New York City. With the support of 50 volunteer crew members, they will ride 285 miles to the steps of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, demonstrating their resiliency and dedication to stopping HIV/AIDS.

They are riding to raise funds for the important life-saving HIV/AIDS services of the Center, which assist thousands of people living with HIV who have limited or no financial resources to cope with this disease. Money raised by the event also supports key youth HIV prevention programs at the Center.

They are also riding because of these alarming statistics:

* More than one million people in the United States have HIV.

* Every year for the past decade there have been 50,000 new HIV infections in the U.S. and a quarter of the new cases are young gay men.

* This year alone, thousands of Americans will die from AIDS-related complications.

The crisis must stop and these riders are doing everything they can to make that a reality. This year’s ride will include Centerpieces, a cycling team comprised of Center staff, and supporters. Riders also include a devoted group of cyclists called Positive Pedalers, who master the hills with signature orange flags on their bikes announcing themselves as HIV+. Positive Pedalers break the cycle; they thrive with HIV and demonstrate why the Center’s work is vital.

Closing Ceremony

The Closing Ceremony, hosted by out lesbian country singer Chely Wright, will be held at 5:00 PM on Sunday, September 18th, when loved ones, family and supporters gather outside the Center on West 13th Street to welcome back the riders and crew members. The celebration will continue inside the Center with a Victory Party sponsored by GO Burger and Brooklyn Brewery. The GO Burger Truck takes the gourmet burger experience on the road and is proud to support Braking the Cycle. Google is a presenting sponsor for Braking the Cycle.

In its nine-year history, Braking the Cycle has raised over $2.5 million for the Center’s vital HIV and AIDS services. To learn more about the HIV/AIDS services of the Center, visit us online. You can also read more about the event in this Edge article.

Back in May I booked our Executive Director Glennda Testone on the Derek & Romaine Show, a popular national LGBT focused radio program on Sirius XM Satellite Radio. The topic:  Braking the Cycle, the 285-mile cycling event from Boston to New York, which benefits the Center’s HIV/AIDS Services. Glennda was joined by Clay Williams, who is participating in this years ride with Glennda and around 150 other riders.

Derek Hartley, Romaine Patterson, Amber Hall, Clay Williams, Glennda Testone, Eric Epstein

We appreciated the show giving us a platform to talk about the importance of HIV/AIDS awareness and the need to continue bolstering our efforts to end the epidemic through Braking the Cycle, but never did we imagine what hosts Derek Hartley,  Romaine Patterson, and executive producer, Amber Hall had in store for us.

Glennda Testone and Clay Williams on the Derek & Romaine Show

In a nutshell, Amber Hall signed up for Braking the Cycle soon after Glennda and Clay appeared on the program, and she and hosts Derek & Romaine have been tirelessly raising money for the ride since then.  They invited Glennda and Clay back on the air in early August and to date, the show has raised nearly $27,000 for the Center’s HIV/AIDS Services, making it one of the top three fundraisers for the ride. Eric Epstein, President of Global Impact Productions, the company that produces the ride for the Center, continually updates us on Amber’s progress and the number just keeps going up day by day.

Amber Hall, Executive Producer, the Derek & Romaine Show

We cannot begin to thank Derek & Romaine and Amber enough for their phenomenal commitment to Braking the Cycle! And we are even more touched that not only is Amber riding, not only does the show continue to raise money for us every night on the program, but Romaine Patterson has also signed on to be a member of the Braking the Cycle crew, a dedicated group of individuals who look out for the riders every mile of the journey.

Amber Hall, Executive Producer, the Derek & Romaine Show

Bravo and Kudos to this amazing trio!  Amber Hall, Derek Hartley and Romaine Patterson,  hats off to you for the energy you have invested in our small but powerful ride that literally saves lives. We’re excited to see how the rest of your fundraising goes leading up to the September 16-18 event.

Glennda Testone on the Derek & Romaine Show

Read more about Braking the Cycle here. Donate to Amber’s efforts here. Read about our recent trip to the NASDAQ here and listen to the Derek & Romaine Show here.

On Monday, August 8, the Center’s Executive Director, Glennda Testone along with Center staff and members of Braking the Cycle, had the distinct honor of ringing the closing bell of the NASDAQ Stock Market.  Braking the Cycle is the 285-mile bike ride from Boston to New York, which benefits the Center’s HIV/AIDS Services. This year will mark the event’s 9th year and many riders were on hand at the NASDAQ on Monday to showcase the importance of the ride and raise awareness about the continued fight against HIV/AIDS.

As Glennda stressed in her remarks before the closing bell “After almost 30 years into the epidemic, HIV/AIDS continues to be a major health issue in the United States and around the world. As the New York Times reported just last week, the Center’s for Disease Control released new figures showing that ‘despite years of great progress in treating AIDS, the number of new HIV infections has remained stubbornly around 50,000 a year in the United States for a decade… and the American epidemic is growing rapidly worse among young black gay men.’”

Glennda went on to highlight the myriad of services the Center provides to those living with or affected by HIV/AIDS. We have been at the forefront of providing services in the fight against AIDS since our founding in 1983. Tens of thousands of New Yorkers with HIV or AIDS have benefited from our help. Each year The Center provides more than 1,800 counseling and group sessions to people living with and affected by HIV and AIDS. More than 1,000 LGBT youth and young adults attend HIV prevention activities and leadership training.  Thousands more attend educational forums and conferences.

Although the market was experiencing a major downfall the day we visited, The Center and Braking the Cycle were thrilled to have the NASDAQ platform to raise visibility and remind the American public that there’s still a long road ahead to the end of AIDS, and we intend to stay on the path and keep riding until we reach that end.

ADVISORY– (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) –

What:

Braking the Cycle and NYC LGBT Center will visit the NASDAQ MarketSite in New York City’s Times Square.

In honor of the occasion NYC LGBT Center Executive Director, Glennda Testone will ring the Closing Bell.

Where:

NASDAQ MarketSite — 4 Times Square — 43rd & Broadway — Broadcast Studio

When:

Monday, August 8th, 2011 — 3:45 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET

Contact: Barry Collodi 917-570-3713 bcollodi@aol.com

NASDAQ MarketSite: Jen Knapp (212) 401-8916 Jennifer.knapp@nasdaqomx.com

Facebook and Twitter:

For multimedia features such as exclusive content, photo postings, status updates and video of bell ceremonies please visit our Facebook page at:

http://www.facebook.com/nasdaqomx

For news tweets, please visit our Twitter page at:

http://twitter.com/nasdaqomx

Webcast:

A live webcast of the NASDAQ Closing Bell will be available at: http://www.nasdaq.com/about/marketsitetowervideo.asx or http://social.nasdaqomx.com .

About Braking the Cycle:

Every once in a while, you discover an opportunity that can change your world forever. Every now and again, you get a chance to be welcomed into a new family. And occasionally, you get a chance to make the world a better place by putting yourself on the line. That moment is now. That opportunity is Braking the Cycle.

We are not just another AIDS ride. Over the past eight years, we have built a family that loves and cares for each other year round. We laugh and cry together, we care for you like family, and we’re as much fun as the law allows. We think that’s why each year, more than two-thirds of our participants return. And together, our hearty little band accomplishes something big: In the past eight years alone, Braking the Cycle has delivered over $2.5 million to support the HIV/AIDS services of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, while spreading awareness about HIV in communities across 285 miles from Boston to Manhattan. We’re a small ride, but we’re a big family making a huge impact, and each year we welcome new members into the fold. For more information please visit www.brakingthecycle.org .

About the NYC LGBT Center:

A beacon of hope for 28 years, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center builds and supports our community through arts and culture, wellness and recovery, family services and life-saving youth programs designed to foster healthy development in a safe, affirming environment. Since the Center’s inception in 1983, tens of thousands of New Yorkers with HIV or AIDS have benefited from the organization’s service. Each year The Center provides more than 1,800 counseling and group sessions to people living with and affected by HIV and AIDS. More than 1,000 LGBT youth and young adults attend HIV prevention activities and leadership training. Thousands more attend educational forums and conferences.The Center envisions a world where LGBT people will no longer face discrimination or isolation because of who we are or who we love. We offer a welcoming home to 300,000 visitors each year and we are committed to serving all LGBT people through a variety of programs, services and activities that are designed to meet existing and emerging needs. The Center is many things to many people. We invite you to experience our home at 208 West 13th Street in person and online at gaycenter.org < http://www.gaycenter.org > .

About NASDAQ OMX:

The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. is the world’s largest exchange company. It delivers trading, exchange technology and public company services across six continents, with more than 3,500 listed companies. NASDAQ OMX offers multiple capital raising solutions to companies around the globe, including its U.S. listings market, NASDAQ OMX Nordic, NASDAQ OMX Baltic, NASDAQ OMX first North, and the U.S. 144A sector. The company offers trading across multiple asset classes including equities, derivatives, debt, commodities, structured products and exchange-traded funds. NASDAQ OMX technology supports the operations of over 70 exchanges, clearing organizations and central securities depositories in more than 50 countries. NASDAQ OMX Nordic and NASDAQ OMX Baltic are not legal entities but describe the common offering from NASDAQ OMX exchanges in Helsinki, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Iceland, Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. For more information about NASDAQ OMX, visit http://www.nasdaqomx.com . *Please follow NASDAQ OMX on Facebook ( http://www.facebook.com/pages/NASDAQ-OMX/108167527653 ) and Twitter ( http://www.twitter.com/nasdaqomx ).

This news release was distributed by GlobeNewswire, www.globenewswire.com

The Center is extremely sad to hear that our friend and tireless supporter Mark “Spanky” Bialous has passed away this week after battling cancer.

Spanky was a beloved member of Team Eagle, an amazing group of cyclists who consistently raise the most money for the Center’s annual Braking the Cycle fundraiser, a three-day bike ride from Boston to New York, which supports the Center’s vital HIV/AIDS Services. Team Eagle raised a hundred thousand dollars for the Center in 2010.

He was truly a special character and a few of his friends shared these wonderful Braking the Cycle memories about him:

“He had all of his outfits custom made for the ride and they had labels inside that said “petite” because ‘when you go custom they’ll do anything you want.’ He was about 6′6″”

“One night at dinner in PA on the old G’burg/NYC route, ride organizer Eric Epstein was making his announcements and a cell phone started ringing. It was Spanky’s who of course was dressed up like a French maid. As you and I both know, pockets are not always available so he had it shoved down his cleavage. He dug it out – seriously – whole arm down the front of his dress and got it turned off. He was 20 shades of red. About 30 seconds later Eric was back doing his announcements talking about route safety or hydration or something and Spanky’s phone said “message received” with perfect timing.”

The Center extends its deepest condolences to Spanky’s family, friends and his comrades on Team Eagle. He will never be far from our hearts and we’ll be remembering him fondly on this year’s Braking the Cycle ride.

Location:
Buckley Funeral Home
509 Second Avenue
Asbusy Park, NJ

HIV and AIDS remains pandemic, killing 1.9 million people in 2009 worldwide, nearly 30-years after AIDS was first recognized. 2.6 million people were newly infected with HIV in 2009 and  40 percent were young people aged 15- 24.  In New York City young gay and bisexual MSM and transgender people of color in particular are at extremely high risk.

The Center is helping to get the word out about a very important event later this week. The United Nations is seeking young leaders to lend their voices to a one day conference on HIV and AIDS this Friday, April 8 at the UN. The 2011 Civil Society Hearing on AIDS is a series of interactive discussion panels convened by the President of the General Assembly, with leaders in the AIDS response from around the world. With people, communities and countries at a critical crossroad, the AIDS epidemic and the people whose lives it touches must help shape the future of the AIDS response. With 40 percent of new infections globally, young people are at the center of the AIDS epidemic and must therefore be at the center of the AIDS response.  In the lead up to the June 2011 UN General Assembly High Level Meeting on AIDS, this historic event will help ensure the voices of those most affected can influence the negotiation process for a new declaration, which will shape the AIDS response in years to come. Join the dialogue to create a new generation of diversity, shared action and community participation.

Events like the 2011 Civil Society Hearing on AIDS, programs like the Center’s Youth Enrichment Services (YES) and Center CARE and fundraising activities like Braking the Cycle and AIDS Walk New York, which benefit the Center’s HIV and AIDS services, help keep the spotlight on a disease that impacts so many members of our communities.

Here’s detailed information for those interested in participating in the United Nations Event:

LOCATION: United Nations HQ, General Assembly Hall (1st Avenue at 45th Street)

TIME: Friday 8 April, 10am – 5pm

RSVP REQUIRED: (By 5pm, Thursday April 7) to bienenstockr@unaids.org, including your full name and e-mail.

REGISTRATION: Use the entrance at 1st avenue opposite 45th street. You will need to pass through security, so do not bring large bags. Tickets can be picked up at the registration desk in the visitor’s foyer, adjacent to the information booth. Please arrive at 8.30AM to ensure there is time to pass through U.N Security and collect your ticket.