Brazos Portal

Saturday afternoon we met up at the office at 2:30 pm to be in Komchen at 3:00 pm. We had already prepared the boxes, and especially the posters made by TEAMM on Friday. Carlos, Luca, Arlette and Nadine drove to Komchen together and there they met up with TEAMM Yucatan.

Thursday morning 8 am we were all to meet up at the office to load the cars with our boxes full of material, that had already been prepared on Wednesday, and to head out to Valladolid for our testing event. The time waiting for everyone to arrive we spent playing games and making our name tags. At about 9 am we were complete and ready to go. We left as a group with nine participants, which really is a great number. Luca was driving, as well as Fred who made the car ride joyful with his music he prepared for us!

Having organized the boxes for the testing event in the main square a couple of days before, we set out for the event with enough time to get set up and begin at 5pm. We arrived and the location was fantastic for us, as our stand was facing the centre of the main square, meaning everyone could see where we were!

Looking back on this last year I have spent volunteering with Brazos Abiertos, I am filled with many fond memories. I feel very fortunate to have started out my year here with such a great burst of energy, enthusiasm and experience in June 2010 when TEAMM USA returned to the Yucatan to carry out a school workshop in Komchen’s secondary school.

Despite the unusual crispness in the air, the fund raising dinner for Brazos Abiertos, held at the home of Cristobal Ponce Patron and Josefina Miranda de Ponce exuded warmth and conviviality.

Chef Paul Lindemuth and his team who flew here from Chicago, prepared a feast fit for kings that included Beef Wellington – one of my favorite entrees, and one I haven’t enjoyed in years.

The Fenix Quartet, members of Yucatan’s Symphony Orchestra played classical as well as contemporary selections, and as always, their music made the event truly special.

Brazos Abiertos was invited to attend the 6th Rotary Health Fair in Merida on the 10th February 2012 and we were very pleased to be able to attend. The Rotary club had invited many schools in the Merida area to the Fair and so this provided the perfect opportunity for us to distribute information, condoms and give demonstrations on correct condom usage. It also happened to be the first health fair of many of the new volunteers at Brazos so everyone was excited to see what it would be like!

The 28th December marked the date of the annual Brazos Abiertos and TEAMM Yucatan Posada.

Various members of the Brazos team had their jobs, and Luca was in charge of catering for the event, whilst I had to organize some games to play! Armed with ideas for competitions, including one which involved having to eat a full bar of chocolate brought especially from England for the occasion, we arrived at the office for an afternoon of food, fun and games.

On the 15th December, we headed just off the coast of Cancun for a Brazos Abiertos and PEACE event hosted by a friend of the charity, Steve, owner of Casa Sirena on Isla Mujeres. The event itself was a cocktail night fundraiser held in the hotel on Friday 16th December. The aim of the event was to increase awareness for the cause of Brazos Abiertos on Isla Mujeres, and gain support for a potential testing event in the summer of 2012.

The 1st December 2011 marked the annual World AIDS Day and to mark the occasion, Fundacion BAI held a testing and information event at Parque La Capilla, in Francisco de Montejo. It also happened to be my first real event with the organization and so I learnt a lot about the work that goes into organizing a testing event. In the days leading up to the event, we packed boxes with all the necessary materials, including testing kits, condoms and educational materials so that we would have everything we needed on the day of the event.

When I think of Mérida, I bring up memories of a relentless heat, mosquitos and cockroaches, and gastrointestinal problems. However, the memories that have left a bigger, lasting impression are those of my friendships. I arrived in Mérida without knowing anyone, but immediately the other volunteers at Brazos Abiertos made me feel comfortable and welcome. I don’t know what I would have done without them. A few days after I arrived, I went with Brazos Abiertos to Isla Mujeres for a health fair.

Izamal, Yucatán was Brazos next ‘stop’ for visiting, on August 27, 2011.

We installed ourselves at one side of Izamal’s convent, in one of the parks. Once again, the help of TEAMM Yucatan, (the girls and guys form Komchen), with volunteers along with Dr. Cabrera was of great importance to the success of this campaign of testing and information.

July 29 of 2011 saw Brazos Abiertos going to the Feria de Ticul, (Ticul’s Fair), where, thanks to Graciela Parra’s arrangements and of course, TEAMM Yucatan’s support plus interns and volunteers, we administered a total of 60 HIV rapid tests.

Despite the rain that fell before our arrival, the response was positive. We established our booth in a kiosk in people’s sight. As usual, we also set up a point where Counseling would be given before people had the test done. A table where sex education was provided was also set up.

I have been in touch with the people of Brazos Abiertos for a bit more than two years. During that time, due to personal reasons, even though they were asking me to collaborate with them, I “resisted”. Well, in 2011, I decided it would be a good idea to give it a try, not for them, but for me, as I always felt very nervous to engage in activities like that.

Promotional Poster for the Campaign

Recently, Brazos Abiertos visited Isla Mujeres to conduct a Testing Campaign among the general population.

We received a lot of support form local authorities, who also took the chance to get tested.

Despite the cloudy day and the sudden rain that fell, there was a great response from people, who was very responsive not only to the opportunity to be tested, but of the HIV-related information that was given to them.

I luckily arrived to Merida the same week of the trip to Isla Mujeres. I immediately met the other volunteers and members of the board, and saw that even though we were so different, we all want to help people and do our part and educate and eliminate the advance of HIV and AIDS. I got along really well with the members of the TEAMM Yucatan. I hope to work with them so we can all train and educate other people to be leaders in their communities.

Our trip to Isla Mujeres was centered on Saturday’s testing event. The rest of the time that we spent there was devoted to preparing for the event – learning to administer the test, preparing condoms to be distributed, and learning the material that is covered during pre-counseling. We tested about 60 people, and didn’t find any reactive cases.

The trip to Isla Mujeres because of the Health Fair was a new and different experience for me, because during those days I learned a lot about the HIV/AIDS and got along with people I didn’t know; it was hard at the beginning but afterwards all was a mixture of learning and fun.

As a new volunteer I was looking forward to helping out at the first detection event of 2011 held on Friday February 18th. Not knowing exactly what to expect I was delighted by the success of the whole evening and the effort of the community in this campaign against HIV. We set up in the Parque Hidalgo across from La Paranda Grill on Calle 60. We hung a Brazos Abiertos banner from a tree in front and the testing table and education circle were set up in good visibility to attract curiosity.

The Battle Against HIV/AIDS in Mexico
by Marene Gustin

Young adults in Houston’s LGBT community today don’t remember rotary phones (if they remember land lines at all), fold-out street maps, turntables, or pet rocks. And, thankfully, they don’t remember a time when no one knew how “the gay cancer” spread, or a time when parents would throw HIV-infected children out on the streets.

A Brazos Abiertos TEAMM US member, Mackenzie Massey, taking a leadership role to promote sex education and contraception alternatives in Texas Public Schools. We acknowledge her efforts and are very proud of her!

Visit the link to the Daily Texan Article by Clicking Here