Earlier this month, our Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health Prevention through Active Community Engagement (PACE) officers participated in a variety of events to commemorate World AIDS Day. The World AIDS Day theme was Putting Ourselves to the Test: Achieving Equity to End HIV. Our PACE officers helped to amplify this message and to support their work to spearhead the Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. (EHE) initiative. In partnership with federal agencies and non-federal organizations, PACE officers work to support regional EHE efforts.

We wanted to share images and information with you about some of the World AIDS Day community and regional events that PACE officers participated in. Featured in photos from the events are: CAPT John Oguntomilade, PACE Director for Region IV; CDR Luz Rivera, PACE Director for Region VI; CDR Rodrigo Chavez, PACE Deputy Director for Region VI; and LT Alberto Pina, Public Health Analyst for Region IX.

The photos depicted here highlight some of the many efforts of our PACE officers and the community-based organizations they partner with.

Photo 1: CAPT Oguntomilade attending a “Change the Pattern Southern TourExit Disclaimer” World AIDS Day event in Montgomery Alabama. Featured with CAPT Oguntomilade are Ms. Dafina Wards, CEO of the Southern AIDS Coalition, and Ms. Shanell McGoy of the Gilead Program (Region IV).

Photo 2: LT Alberto Pina (left) and CAPT John Oguntomilade (right) with Dr. Carl Highshaw (middle), CEO of The Arming Minorities Against Addiction & Disease (AMAAD) InstituteExit Disclaimer, a community-based organization working toward ending the HIV epidemic in Los Angeles (Region IX).

Photo 3: CAPT John Oguntomilade and LT Alberto Pina at a site visit to The Arming Minorities Against Addiction & Disease (AMAAD) InstituteExit Disclaimer (Region IX).

Photo 4: CAPT Oguntomilade at a World AIDS Day 2022 meeting with the Alabama Department of Public Health HIV Leadership Team, including Ms. Michele Jones, Ms. Sharon Jordan, Ms. Vontrese McGee, and Ms. Jora White (Region IV).

Photo 5: CAPT John Oguntomilade and LT Alberto Pina at a World AIDS Day event with the East Los Angeles Women’s Center (ELWC)Exit Disclaimer. (Region IX)

Photo 6: CDR Luz Rivera (left) and CDR Rodrigo Chavez (right) with Fundación Latino Americana De Acción Social (FLAS) Exit DisclaimerCEO, Elia Chino. FLAS works to enhance behavioral health and wellness services for the Latino community (Region VI).

Photo 7: CDR Luz Rivera and CDR Rodrigo Chavez with their booth promoting the Celebro Mi Salud viral suppression campaign at the Fiesta YouthExit Disclaimer World AIDS Day Community Fair in San Antonio on December 3, 2022 (Region VI).

Photo 8: CDR Luz Rivera and CDR Rodrigo Chavez participating in the Harris Health System’s Thomas Street Health CenterExit Disclaimer Light Ceremony on December 1, 2022. The Thomas Street Health Center is a freestanding clinic in Houston, Texas for patients affected by or with HIV (Region VI).

Photo 9: CDR Rodrigo Chavez presenting the U.S. Public Health Service coin to Ambassador Alicia Kerber Palma at the Mexico consulate on December 1, 2022 (Region VI).

Working together with the community, we can make progress toward ending the HIV epidemic. We wanted to share with you a snapshot of some of the work of our PACE colleagues as they work to support EHE.