Inspiring Stories From the Dining Out For Life Community
I was living on the streets with no money or job, and HIV-positive. I wanted to work, but had a hard time finding a job without a permanent address. For one year, I was constantly looking for food and shelter – not just for myself, but for my 10-year old daughter, too.
I then learned about the AIDS Foundation Houston (AFH) housing program for families affected by HIV/AIDS. My daughter and I moved into AFH housing and I set two short-term goals: finding a job and getting a car. Within nine months, I accomplished both. Today, I am a technician at a local hospital and I drive to and from work in my own car. I am also saving money so that one day soon my daughter and I can move out of AFH housing and into our own home.
Dining Out For Life® is an annual fundraising event involving the generous participation of volunteers, corporate sponsors and restaurants. The concept is simple: Restaurants donate a generous percent of their sales to a local HIV service organization, and the local HIV service organization fills participating restaurants with diners. Participating is even easier: locate a Dining Out For Life event in a city near you, find a restaurant from the list of participating locations, and on that city’s event date: Dine Out to End HIV.
Each year, more than 50 local HIV service organizations partner with 2,400+ participating restaurants, 4,100+ volunteers, and 300,000+ diners to raise over $4.5 million for people living with HIV/AIDS in the United States and Canada. Best part? All funds raised through a city’s Dining Out For Life event stay in that city to provide help and hope to people living with or impacted by HIV/AIDS.
You can participate too! Find out if your city participates in Dining Out For Life by clicking on the interactive map on the homepage.
If you are interested in local or national partnership opportunities, please email us.
