Imagine walking down a long winding path not knowing where life will lead you.
Then imagine yourself being a child, alone and in the middle of the African AIDS crisis.
That's what "World Vision Experience: AIDS" wants guests to understand in the exhibit now at the Pima County Fair.
The interactive walk-through exhibit is the story of four children in Africa touched by the AIDS crisis: Babirye, Mathabo, Kombo and Emmanuel. Two of the children are HIV-positive; the other two are not.
"The exhibit is about following the lives of children affected by AIDS and putting a face and photographs to a statistic," said Millie Smith, World Vision tour communications manager.
Guests come to know the children through the use of portable audio players as they make their way through the exhibit. They also see pictures, real-life artifacts and up-to-date information about their lives.
People are also reading…
Near the end of the exhibit, guests enter a makeshift health center with a booth in the corner. Before leaving they walk up to the booth and receive a stamp on their hand with a positive or negative sign.
This is when they find out whether the child they are following has HIV or not.
"It's a pivotal part of the exhibit," said Michele Tvedt, World Vision volunteer program coordinator.
"People get the suspense of walking up to the window and getting the stamp showing whether the child was HIV-positive or negative."
Finding out a young child was HIV-positive was an eye-opening experience even for volunteers helping out with the exhibit.
"I felt hopeless when I saw the positive stamp mark on my hand," said Joy Mabee, 68, a volunteer from Northminster Presbyterian Church, 2450 E. Fort Lowell Road.
Some of the artifacts used in the exhibit, such as blankets, are from the children and their families, which for some brings back memories of previous trips to Africa.
"Every time I walk through the exhibit and see the artifacts it makes me think of the children I met over there," Smith said.
For others the exhibit hits home.
"I cried from the moment I walked in," said Tammyjo Tyler, 46.
Tyler, who lost a brother in 2005 to AIDS, visited the exhibit with her 9-year-old son, Todd, to show him the impact AIDS has on children and families around the world.
"It brought tears to my eyes to see what those children go through," Tyler said. "It's amazing how many people don't think about something like this. I wanted my son to understand more about the disease and how it affects people."
Nearly 33 million people worldwide have AIDS, with two-thirds of those living in Africa alone, according to World Vision's Web site.
At the end of the exhibit there are opportunities to sponsor a child, donate money toward clean water, health kits and more.
"It's an incredible feeling to sponsor a child," said Tvedt, who has sponsored children around the world for 10 years. "Being involved in their lives for so long, they start to feel like family."
If you go
What: "World Vision Experience: AIDS" exhibit.
Where: Pima County Fair, Pima Hall.
When: Noon to 9 p.m. through Sunday.
Cost: Free with admission to the fair.
For more information about the AIDS exhibit and World Vision, go online to www.worldvisionexperience.org
