With federal HIV funding at risk, the health center is urging Washingtonians to support its 40th annual fundraiser on Sept. 19.
We’re sharing a nice article about our upcoming Walk & 5K to End HIV which is featured in this week’s Metro Weekly! Please come walk with us on Sept 19th – or donate at whitman-walker.org/give!
Excerpts:
Money raised through the Walk & 5K to End HIV will support Whitman-Walker’s research arm, PrEP clinic, and SMART Clinic. The research arm is conducting more than 40 active studies involving more than 2,500 participants, including studies of long-acting injectable medications. The PrEP clinic offers HIV prevention and treatment services, while the SMART Clinic provides more than 3,000 free HIV tests each year, helping people learn their status and pursue appropriate prevention or treatment.
“It’s been harder to raise money, and I think that this is happening with a lot of the event-based walks across the country — we’ve just seen different levels of participation,” says Naseema Shafi, president and CEO of Whitman-Walker Health, which is seeking broader community support for its chief fundraiser, the Walk & 5K to End HIV.
“I think we are really fortunate to be in a place where we have such effective treatment and prevention, but I also think that has reduced the urgency around the fundraising,” Shafi says. She notes that new HIV diagnoses remain high, particularly among younger people, who may not have received comprehensive sex education or may be unaware of the threat the virus still poses and how to prevent its transmission.
“We still see new diagnoses in younger folks,” she says. “You can get so much information, but it’s all fragmented, so it’s hard to get a clear message across and help people understand that this is still a really important issue.”
Read full article in Metro Weekly:
https://www.metroweekly.com/2026/09/walk-to-end-hiv-whitman-walker-2026/
