Valerie Reeder-Bey and her granddaughter, Annisha, authors of “Annisha’s Story: My Grandma has AIDS,” will participate in the Fifth Annual HIV Vaccine Awareness Day on May 18. The event is sponsored by the Vanderbilt HIV Vaccine Program (VHVP).
A morning event will be held from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Dragon Park at the corner of Blakemore and 24th avenues to honor volunteers. The authors will tell their story and hand out copies of the book at the John Henry Hale Community Center from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
HIV Vaccine Awareness Day was designed to honor volunteers worldwide who have participated in experimental vaccine trials. The day marks the anniversary of President Bill Clinton’s 1997 commencement address at Morgan State University in which he set a goal to develop a safe, effective preventive vaccine for HIV/AIDS within 10 years.