July 8, 2008

A luncheon to furnish religious leaders with information and resources necessary to start HIV-prevention ministries is set from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Friday, July 18 at the Marriot West Loop, 1750 West Loop South.

Sponsored by the Urban AIDS Ministry Task Force in collaboration with Houston Department of Health and Human Services (HDHHS) and the African-American State of Emergency Task Force, the luncheon will include a panel discussion and presentation by Pastor Rudy Rasmus of St. John’s United Methodist Church. Rasmus will deliver the keynote address, “HIV: The Path to Devastation in Our Communities.”

The Urban AIDS Ministry Task Force is a coalition of area faith leaders who develop strategies for engaging churches and ministers to better respond to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Houston.

Blacks in Houston and Harris County represent 54 percent of the 15,275 HIV infections reported to the Houston Department of Health and Human Services (HDHHS) since 1999.

For more information or to register for the luncheon, call 713-794-9397.