Last night, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) partnered with PBS Independent Lens to host a sneak peek of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival award-winning documentary, “Blood Brother.” The film chronicles the story of Rocky, a young American man, who moves to India in search of a more meaningful life. He finds a sense of family and purpose volunteering at an orphanage for HIV-positive children.
Guests joined EGPAF to preview part of this heartwarming film, and learn more about the ever present urgency around pediatric HIV/AIDS.
EGPAF Board Member and former U.S. Senator Chris Dodd welcomed guests and spoke about the history of the organization, explaining why the film moved us to share it with our friends, colleagues, and supporters. Simply stated, “Blood Brother” is about a man who devotes his life to helping children infected and affected by HIV/AIDS, a cause that EGPAF has dedicated itself to since its founding 25 years ago.
Following the film, EGPAF’s Executive Vice President for Medical and Scientific Affairs Dr. Nick Hellmann, and Senior Director for Country Management and Support Dr. Stephen Lee, led a thought-provoking conversation about the global need for HIV/AIDS care and treatment. The children featured in this film are HIV-positive and depict similar situations to children who receive care and treatment from EGPAF’s 6,800 health care facilities. More than 260,000 children are newly infected with HIV each year. Of that number, only one third currently have access to lifesaving treatment. Without treatment, half of these kids will die before their second birthday.
During the screening, Sylvia Bugg, PBS’ director of general audience programming, said that the PBS Independent Lens strives to spark conversation through its powerful documentary series.
“PBS consistently delivers this kind of thoughtful content from around the globe,” Bugg said. She encouraged attendees to watch PBS’ televised premiere of “Blood Brother” on Monday, January 20, 2014. (Check your local listings here).
We were thrilled to share a portion of this remarkable film with our D.C. guests and want to thank our collaborator, PBS Independent Lens for helping to make this event possible. And a special thank you to those who were able to join us! We hope you went home last night inspired by the film, energized to follow Rocky's lead, and eager to help us reach our goal of eliminating pediatric HIV/AIDS.
Click here to view our Facebook gallery of Thursday’s event.
To learn more about how you can get involved and help us end pediatric HIV/AIDS, please visit pedaids.org/getinvolved.