AIDS representative to speak about charity work

Nancy Valnes, Representative of the Global AIDS Partnership, will speak at River of Life Assembly of God this Sunday at 6 p.m.

She spent the last few years working in Africa, raising awareness of HIV and equipping people to respond to the needs provoked by the HIV crisis in their communities.

In May she participated in HIV/AIDS training in Suriname, a small nation in the northeast corner of South America. Along with other Global AIDS Partnership colleagues she spent a week in the capitol city of Paramaribo. They studied the way the epidemic is evolving in the Caribbean, taught the facts about HIV, identified factors that put people at risk for infection, and considered the best ways the church can respond to the crisis.

“Since starting in this new ministry, I have become increasingly aware of the issue of human trafficking: the transportation of a person by use of force for the purpose of subjecting them to involuntary acts,” said Valnes. “Human trafficking is perpetrated by criminal organizations, which are closely linked with gambling and prostitution. These elements are very visible in the capitol, with over a dozen casinos and many brothels, and a proven record as a country involved in trafficking. “

One of her new goals is to equip missionaries and national church partners to respond to the HIV/AIDS situation they face in their countries of ministry. “In October I will be traveling with a small team to a sensitive country in Central Eurasia,” she said. “This is a new work for the Assemblies of God, with only a few personnel on the ground, and only a handful of believers – of any denomination. The country is struggling with spiraling drug addiction, which plays a huge role in HIV transmission. This is a totally new area of ministry for me, and I’m looking forward to learning more about this issue first-hand.”

Pastor Mark Phillips invites the public to hear Valnes’ presentation this Sunday evening. “We all can help be a part of the solution to this worldwide crisis,” he said.