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Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Sculpture Task Force Launches Capital Campaign During World Aids Day

The Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Sculpture Task Force is excited to announce that the AIDS Memorial Sculpture is one step closer to becoming a reality. The Palm Springs City Council recently unanimously approved the acceptance of the Sculpture to be placed in the new Downtown City Park. The Task Force has also partnered with DAP Health to provide a dedicated link to enable community members to help fund the Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Sculpture, visithttps://www.daphealth.org/aids-memorial-fund/.
“December 1, World AIDS Day was chosen as the launch, as it signifies the remembrance of those we’ve lost to HIV/AIDS and gives renewed hope that one day, the virus will be eradicated. It is our responsibility to remember their lives and to continue to tell their stories, so that they are never forgotten,” said Mike Richey, Co-Chair National AIDS Memorial. “AIDS has affected every community across the world, and it is for this reason that AIDS Memorials should be established to honor & remember those lost.”
The Task Force’s vision is to provide the AIDS Memorial Sculpture as a gift to the City of Palm Springs and people of the Valley. Internationally acclaimed artist based in the Coachella Valley, Phillip K. Smith, III, has been commissioned to design the memorial, which will provide an opportunity for reflection, remembrance and hope once its placed in the new City of Palm Springs Downtown Park.
“The AIDS Memorial Sculpture will be a touchstone for unity, hope, grief, and healing in the Coachella Valley. As a monolithic, singular stone sculpture, the carved surfaces will dance with light, shadow, and reflection. Through rotating grooves cut into the gloss surface as matte marks signifying unity through struggle or the soft curve of undulating forms evoking healing over grief, this is a memorial to be touched, to be felt.
It is a timeless, enduring landmark delicately placed on the land. It is heavy, but light — lifting hope, lifting struggle, and lifting up what is important,” described Phillip K. Smith, III.
The Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Task Force’s mission is to ensure the lives of those lost are never forgotten, and that their stories and lives are remembered into the future. We also envision an opportunity to use this memorial as a means to educate the public about HIV prevention, diagnosis and treatment options available to everyone who seeks information and to help direct individuals to resources available to them throughout the city, and the country.
The goal of the Task Force is to raise the necessary funds to support the creation, installation and ongoing resources to maintain this sculpture for generations to come. Given the impact that HIV/AIDS has had on our community, we believe there will be great support for securing the necessary funds to make this AIDS Memorial Sculpture a reality.
Donations to the Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Fund can be done by visitinghttps://www.daphealth.org/aids-memorial-fund/. For more information contact: Dan Spencer, Member Palm Springs AIDS Memorial Sculpture Task Force at dan@danspencerstudio.com.
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