REACH LA is proud to announce it’s new partnership with Be The Generation Bridge, a website created to inform people about biomedical HIV prevention efforts. The Be The Generation Bridge website includes a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page that provides important information regarding the HIV vaccine in order to understand the HIV prevention options currently available.
During REACH LA’s Ball Star Weekend, the Ovahness Leadership Team hosted the Ovahness Summit, a day long roundtable focused on improving the lives of young gay men of color through self-empowerment and advocacy. The Ovahness Summit took place at the Village at Ed Gould Plaza on Saturday, October 8th and featured inspirational keynote speaker Jamaal Clue, round table discussion facilitated by Ovahness Leaders, and resource fair. DJ Ben spun tunes into the evening for the Ovahness Summit Dance and social. (more…)
Fifty REACH LA staff, leadership and volunteers hosted the annual Macy’s Glamorama Teen Reception at Ramon Cortines HS on September 23, 2011. The event opened with an HIV 101 assembly and dinner provided by In-n-Out. Students were then escorted into the Black Box theatre where REACH LA volunteers ran a variety of HIV and STD prevention games. DJ Ben provided house beats as Ovahenss Leader Eddie Smith commentated over an impromptu runway competition. Students and REACH LA volunteers boarded buses to attend the Macy’s Glamorama “Artrageous” fashion show at the Orphium Theatre in downtown Los Angeles. There the students were treated to a multi-million dollar fashion complete with performances by Far East Movement and Ce-Lo Green. 
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REACH LA hosted 31 House/Ball HIV Leaders from across the nation for the first ever in-depth discussion about HIV/AIDS and other health disparities and its effect on members of the House and Ball community on October 6-8, 2011 at the Westin LAX Hotel. The goal of the group was to discuss health disparities that affect the House and Ball community and to develop an agenda consistent with the National AIDS Strategy in order to support youth/young adults as they navigate through testing, diagnosis, linkage to medical care, and social and human service resources. The convening resulted in a set of recommendations and a forthcoming “white paper” to address health and wellness within the House/Ball community. The House/Ball Community White Paper will be the first of its kind and will set the stage for addressing health disparities within the House and Ball community nationally; thus establishing a guidance for creating a healthier community. The House & Ball HIV Leadership Convening was sponsored by REACH LA with a generous grant from the Open Society Institute and support from Childrens Hospital Los Angeles’ Center for Strengthening Youth Prevention Paradigms (SYPP), City of Los Angeles AIDS Coordinator’s Office and UCLA/AIDS Institute. (more…)
The REACH LA Ovahness Ball 6: “Let The Games Begin!” was held on Sunday October 9th, 2011 at the GAM Art Center. Football players, street basketball players and swimmers to jockeys, gymnasts and basketball wives, all turned out for their chance at the $1,500 potluck cash prize. Mason Marcus (Garcon), Keshon Shannon (Khan), Brenan Watson (Chanel), Roger Mathis (Revlon), Randy Jones (Escada), El-Krim (Cartier), Mike Silas (Rodeo), Joshua Gordon (Ebony) and Antonine McDonald (Mizrahi) were honored by REACH LA and LA House Parents for their house leadership and community service. Over 400 people were in attendance. AIDS Healthcare Foundation provided free HIV and STD testing at the ball.
The Ovahness Ball marked the end of the REACH LA Ball Star Weekend that consisted of the National House & Ball HIV Leadership Convening, a 3-day gathering of national ballroom leaders who work in the HIV/AIDS field, health officials and local House parents to discuss health disparities, HIV within Ballroom communities and the National AIDS Strategy; the Ovahness Youth Summit that consisted of workshops, discussions and resources for young men who have sex with men; the Pioneer Dinner which honored individuals for their contribution and development of the West Coast and Los Angeles ballroom scene.
REACH LA would like to thank all the sponsors who helped make Ball Star Weekend - Los Angeles a great success. The NHBHL Convening sponsors were Open Society Institute, UCLA/AIDS Institute, the City of Los Angeles AIDS Coordinator’s Office and Capacity Building Assistance Program (CBA) provided by the US Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The Ovahness Summit was sponsored in part by the Liberty Hill Foundation-Queer Youth Fund. The Ovahness Ball was made possible (in part) by: the cooperative agreement award PS-10-1003 from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National AIDS Fund and though a subcontract with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Division of Adolescent Medicine through funding from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the County of Los Angeles, Department of Public Health, Office of AIDS Programs and Policy, Macy’s Foundation and Macy’s Passport Fund. Special thanks to the LA Gay and Lesbian Center’s The Village at Ed Gould Plaza and Lifeworks for their support of the Ovahness Youth Summit.
REACH LA’s Ovahness Young Men’s Leadership team will be hosting the Ovahness Summit and Dance on Saturday, October 8th at The Village@ Ed Gould Plaza, 1125 N. McCadden Place, LA, 90038. The event is open to all young gay men of color, ages 13-24, and focuses on reflection, change and self commitment. The Summit will run from 10:00am-5:00pm with workshops led by the Ovahness Leaders running throughout the day. Lunch & snacks will be provided for participants. A dance will conclude the day’s activities from 5:00pm-8:00pm in the court yard of The Village. DJ Ben Xtravaganza will be working his magic. This event is sponsored in part by the Liberty Hill Foundation Queer Youth Fund and Macys’s Passport Fund. REACH LA would like to thank Milton Smith @ Connect to Protect Coalition- LA, Lifeworks, LA Gay and Lesbian Center and all the organizations who are participating in this event.
REACH LA will be offering FREE HIV testing from September 9th-30, 2011 at REACH LA office, 1400 E. Olympic Blvd. Suite 240, downtown Los Angeles, 90021. All folks from the LA House/Ball scene are encouraged to come test and recieve a FREE pass to REACH LA’s Ball Star Weekend, October 6-9th. The RLA Ball Star Weekend pass will get you access to the “Sex in the City” party (21 and over)on Friday, October 7, Ovahness Youth Summit and Mansion Party (21 and over) on Saturday, October 8, and the Ovahness Ball #6: Let the Games Begin!! on Sunday, October 9th. Please call or text the REACH LA HIV Testing Hotline at 213-572-7819 to set up an appointment.
Attention all young gay & bisexual men, ages 13-29! Come down to REACH LA for a free HIV test and earn one of 3 great gifts: Deal H-Christopher Street West Package of a 2-day pass to Weho Pride Festival; Deal I - ATB official LA Black Gay Pride Package - Pass to Beach Party, After Party and the West Coast Legends Ball; or Deal V: an all day pass to Magic Mountain. Deals are limited and are given out on a first come, first serve basis. Deal or No Deal event begins May 16-June 9, 2011. Call the REACH LA HIV Testing Hotline: 213-572-7819 for an appointment. REACH LA is at 1400 E. Olympic Blvd. Suite 240, Los Angeles 90021, between Central Avenue and Alameda.
On March 25, 2011, Ovahness Leaders Lance Blair, 18, , and Frank Armenta, 22, touched down at LAX after being abroad for 6-months. Lance and Frank were participants in the Global Xchange program, an exciting six-month international exchange programme which gives young people from different countries a unique opportunity to work together, to develop and share valuable skills and to make a practical contribution where it is needed in local communities. The Multilateral Youth Xchange (MYX) worked with 20 young people (aged 18-25) from five participating countries: UK, South Africa, France, Sierra Leone and the USA. The exchange took place between October 2010 and March 2011. Volunteers lived with host families and work in host communities for 3 months in Belfast, UK and 3 months in Durban, South Africa. Part of the MYX experience is workplacement in community that ranged from working at a Muslim orphanage to teaching HIV prevention to teen and college students in Durban; to creating social marketing materials a gay men’s health organization to facilitating peace agreements among Protestant and Catholic youth. More on their experience to come…
February 12, 2011 - 20 REACH LA staff and volunteers headed to the Glove Affair, an HIV prevention dance, hosted by Oakwood School in North Hollywood. The annual dance serves as a way to educate students about HIVprevention and encourage testing. The Glove Affair also serves as a fundraising event with proceeds raised benefiting HIV prevention programs working with youth. Those in attendance included staffers Greg Wilson, Sean Milan, Danielle Wondra, Jerome Kitchen and Carla Gordon and volunteers Bryon Jackson, Carlton Eleby, Tim Ochoa, Rodger Washington, Lenworth Poyser, Kenyon Hughes, Kennith Williams, Shannon Jones, Amere Whitaker, Ryan Hope,Violette Andrade, Jennifer and Stephanie Zaragosa. Thank you for all your hard work!!