RLT Event Recap: The Winner Is....

My Tweet-Up, Book signing Saturday night was a blast! I'm always happy to hang out with the people I meet through Social Media. Honestly, I have met some good people through both of my Facebook pages, Twitter and my Blog.

We ate, laughed, people purchased my book and bracelets, and we tweeted HIV/AIDS information in the swanky Donna's Cafe, in Chicago's South Loop.

 I had some great swag bags and great food. Donna hooked us up and the dessert was courtesy of Patrick's Butter Cookies, Kilwins provided yummy fudge and Ramon DeLeon,  Dominos, Lava Cakes. If you have never had either, you don't know what you are missing, BTW, Patrick's (PGC Lunchroom Cookies are sold in Walgreens Chicago.

Patrick... And Follow him on Twitter. He finally made it @Cookie_Tycoon

 Honestly, the biggest fun was people trying to win the Grand Prize, the use of a GMC/Chevy vehicle for one week.

They were so cute taking pictures of the Terrain and Tweeting them, especially Vau've Jay and Valencia.

Vau'ue Valencia, Me and Jay

I also love  the fact that I work with some great brands, like GMC. They are a brand with an honest reciprocal relationship with Bloggers and their readers.  Read my Blog on GMC/Chevy HERE..

Markeeda  My BFF Looking Fab with Wilbert my walking buddy!

Maureen, The Owner of O'Brien's Sporting RLT Collection Summer 2012!

Chanel Sporting RLT Collection! 

Any who, I'm proud to announce that Valencia won the grand Prize. She is so geeked about her one week use of a GMC/Chevy vehicle. I wouldn't be surprised if she asked for the Terrain because everyone that saw it that night, fell in love with it. I know for me, in that one week, I concluded if I were going to purchase a vehicle the Terrain would be in the number three going.

Cee Cee Holding her raffle Prize from one of my biggest supports of the event  Eden's Fantasy

Ramel holding his raffle prize.. Earrings designed by Samantha owner/designer of Sound Chick Accessories

More Cupcakes made sure everyone walked away with a gift card for a free cupcake! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE More...

You missed a great event, but there will be more!

Valencia looking fab in the Terrain

Raffle Prize and Swag Bag Sponsors.. You can Follow them on Twitter. 

Post Script: You can purchase an autographed copy of my book Here... You can order through Amazon Create Space HERE. Also, RLT Collection is having an End of Season Sale... Great Markdowns plus an extra 10% off, Coupon Code at checkout is Diva Click Here

RLT Event: Meet, Greet, Tweet and Book Signing!

Here I go again! It's been over a year since my last HIV/AIDS Tweet-up! I thought that it was long overdue!

To date I've had 4 Tweet-Up's/Meet-Up's and they have all had their own personality and  have all been a blast!

My Events are a time to come together, meet, tweet and have fun, while at the same time, publicly supporting the issues around HIV/AIDS. We will Tweet and Facebook HIV/AIDS education throughout the night.

The coming together makes a statement. Just your presence challenges the stigma and shame that leaves people with HIV living in secret and shame. At RLT Events your presence alone is a STAND!

So here are the details! This will be a Meet, Greet, Tweet and Book Signing on August 25, 2012 from 6:00-8:30 at Donna's Cafe 1255 S. State Street, in Chicago, Illinois. It is FREE! However, I do want you to RSVP! HERE

I love the fact that local businesses have continually shown support for my work around HIV/AIDS. Remember the Heart to Heart Tweet Up at Kilwins? Well this one will be more of the same. Donna's Cafe is also a Black/Female owned business just like Kilwins.

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE that Black women are supporting me in this fight. I will be telling you more about Ms. Donna in the weeks ahead. I'm honored that Donna is hosting this Event! It also gives you a chance to meet a local business owner! Follow Donna on Twitter!

I'm sooooo excited! I have so much in the works. This night I will also launch my Global Anti-Stigma Campaign; I Stand With RLT-Against Stigma and Shame Around HIV/AIDS! More details on this exciting campaign coming soon! Stay Tuned.

In the mean time, mark your calendar for August 25th! Come hang out with me for the evening, get your autographed copy of my new book The Politics of Respectability and Tweet about HIV/AIDS!

Yes, there will be Raffles, Light Refreshments and ummmm I'm working on a Swag Bag too!  Keep Your Fingers Crossed RSVP HERE!

MIA!

I've been MIA! Sorry but my health has been on a roller coaster ride. I got off IV medication well over a week, all healed, by the way,  and then three days later I had a cold. I was hoping the cold would move on quickly, but it has set up camp. Yep! A week turned into two and now it's bronchitis.

The over achiever in me has been whining like a spoiled brat. I had to postpone the Trunk Show for RLT Collection, reschedule a photo shoot two times and to make it worst, I have neglected my blog.

This is killing me, but I've come to an understanding that my Super Woman cap needs to be repaired!

So I am coming back soon. In fact, I'm working on a blog about trust now. Hopefully I will finish today, but either way, just hang in here with me, I'm coming back in full force as soon as I get better.

In the meantime, Please RSVP to my first Trunk Show for RLT Collection. I'm so excited about showing my new collection up close. So come hang out with me at Comfort Suites Chicago, October 27th, 6:30-9:00, it's free of charge.  Click Link Here to RSVP! In the meantime, I'm pressing my way as best as I can... #IcannotdoitAlone

Also, I'm looking for other bloggers who are willing to write a blog about the Trunk Show. Please email me @ rae@raelewisthornton.com

Monday Reflection: There is Hope In Time....

Telling someone to hold on when it seems as if their world is falling apart sometimes seems futile. I mean their heart and spirit are screaming: CAN'T YOU SEE, I'm hurting? But yet all you can really say to them is hold on. I say it often, I even repeat it to myself, "Hold on Rae, tomorrow is another day." I do it because the Bible says there is life and death  in the power of the tongue. I do it because in that instant it reminds me that I want a tomorrow. Asking to hold on for an hour or even a moment is asking for time... Time for it to be better... To get better... There is hope in time...

But we wake in the morning and nothing has changed, we say, "But I thought the Bible says that joy comes in the morning?" Well, I'm a living witness that joy does come in the morning. It may not be tomorrow morning. It may not even be the morning after because our time is not God's time. And I've learned through my own history with God, His time sometimes seems like whack time, like, ummm where you at God? You forget about me? Yep, when you are going through, it's like, gee God, why you so slow? You may not voice it, but you think it and your heart feels it. 

But if you look back over your past isn't it interesting that it seems like you came out of that other situation just in the nick of time? Right before you were at the point of losing your mind...

I'm writing this post for all of us today. I have some close friends who are going through very difficult times right now. Their world is falling apart as they know it. Change is inevitable and sometimes painful. I write this blog for me because my health has taken a major hit and the hits just keep on coming. 

I want us all to remember that there is hope in time. If you can just hold on in that moment, it becomes a second which becomes a minute, which becomes an hour and then another day.

Pain is an inevitable part of life. Change is also an inevitable part of life. And they both serve to make us stronger and better. I don't understand why there is pain in this world, but there is. Pain and evil were the two most debated issues in my theology classes in seminary. And no one really had an answer. The Bible says simply, "In this world there will be tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." With this in mind, I'm learning to be content in whatever state I'm in... Can't do shit about it anyway, except go through the journey... And stressing over the journey will only make the journey harder.

This is what I know for sure... God can use anything, even your pain, to enrich your life and the lives of others. So for all of us today, Hold On! Why? Because time will give you a better tomorrow. Hold on because each day you wake you are still a part of God's earthly plan. And life in and of itself is the most wonderful gift that God can render in your earthly journey.

Just think... If I had given up. Stop taking my medication, stop holding on in those days that were full with pain... Those days when I could barely hold my body up... When I could see death staring me back in my face... If I had stopped holding on, there would have never been a tomorrow. I would not be writing this blog today... So while we may not be able to see our way out of it at this moment... Hold on and allow your hope to rest in time... God's time!

PostScript: My health is not good... I plan to write a blog that outlines everything that is happening to help you fully understand how AIDS work... No, I'm not dying... But I am struggling... Keep me in your prayers as the doctors try to put me back together again. I will be taking some time to get better. I will not be blogging everyday, but I have asked some of my blogger friends to fill in the gap.

What's the point of having people who love and support you if you don't allow them to support you. You cannot want support on the one end and refuse it on the other. Sometimes God sends people to help us on our journey... Don't miss your blessing stuck. Don't deny the help that God sends your way out of pride. Its counteractive to your deliverance... Even Jesus had disciples...  Ain't no glory in suffering alone, you don't win a prize for that shit, you just create a harder and darker path for your deliverance.

So I hope you will continue to read as others help me fill in the gap.

The radio show Tea With Rae: Wellness For The Mind Body and Spirit will be postponed until after I'm completely off IV medication. The book club RLT Reads will be postponed over the summer. I will announce the summer read within the next week and we will discuss it in late September...

Thanks for all your support #IcannotdoitAlone

Yes, my next Tweet Up is tomorrow, Tuesday, June 14th at 7pm.... In honor of National HIV Testing Day. YES... I plan to have my IV medication on Tuesday during the day and get to SideTrack and have a blast with you... 

Please join us... I toured SideTrack Bar for the first time last night and it is freaking Fab. The guest DJ, Laura Branch, I understand is off the chain... We will be dancing, laughing, socializing, giving away wonderful raffles, tweeting and testing for and about HIV/AIDS. You can RSVP... I know a lot of you have said you are coming but have not RSVP'd. You can still show up but it would be nice to have you check in... HERE

Smooches

RLT

United In HIV! A Social Event For a Socially Conscious Cause!

I'm very proud of the groundbreaking work that I have been doing in social media to educate and challenge stigma and shame around HIV/AIDS. In just a little over a year, I have made a mark. When I embarked on this mission, I had no idea that it would take a life of its own. It's been good for me and the people that I engage daily, through Twitter, Facebook and this Blog.

I am exceptionally proud of my groundbreaking HIV/AIDS Tweet-ups. Taking a social event and carving out of it a social cause. To date, I have held two tweet-ups and on this Tuesday I will host my third in recognition of National HIV Testing Day. By the way, I'm taking my Tweet-Up's across the country to the cities where I'm speaking, beginning in September.

The thing that is really fun is that I have not locked myself into one type of Tweet-Up. The first one was held at Hotel Allegro Encore Liquid Lounge, with wonderful swag bags and raffles galore. A grand affair for sure. I was told it was one of the best swag bags ever. The second Tweet-Up was hosted by Kilwin's Chocolate, here in Old Town Chicago. I partnered with  my friend, Social Media Guru and Mommie Blogger, Dwana aka Houseonahill. We socialized, tweeted HIV statistics, ate chocolate and ice cream on that cold winter night, for National Black HIV Day.

Cyon in His Hostess Attire! 

Now on this Tuesday, June 14th, I'm going to SideTrack, a premier gay bar in the City of Chicago. Why? Well, because Gay Black men are our brothers, fathers, sons, grandfathers and cousins and yes, many of us  women have a BFF in our back pocket. The exciting thing is, I'm partnering with the Chicago Black Gay Men's Caucus. And the Dynamite, Fabulous Cyon Flare will be hosting on this night. And I've been told that he is the best Host on that side of town.

Side Track Bar is rolling out the red carpet for us and I'm way excited. Now it's gonna be a rough day for me. Yes, many of you know that Tuesday's are my IV medication day. But I will have my 6 hour IV drip, come home, rest my body and spirit. Have a cup of tea, put on my Ruby Woo lipstick and 4 inch heels and get there to have a blast.

We will be testing for HIV throughout the night. There will be lots of information, condoms and just a lot of fun people united around HIV. We will be tweeting HIV statistics throughout the night. There are raffle prizes from spa treatments to tea, RLT Collection, and the list goes on and on. We even have a tea give away for the first 100 people. Cyon and Craig Johnson of the Chicago Black Gay Men's Caucus have worked their tails off. I'm grateful that they took up all the slack when I became ill. And of course my wonderful assistant Latoya always does her part. If not for them this would not be happening.

What's so awesome is this, Boys Town will have no idea what hit them. The fact that a Black Woman is not afraid to partner with Black Gay men and unite around a cause is groundbreaking. We are showing Chicago that as a people, we are united around the issue of HIV/AIDS. And we have even invited the Mayor. We are keeping our fingers crossed that he will choose our National Testing Event, as he is planning to drop in on some in the city during this month.

This is going to be a lot of FUN! Laura Branch, former director HIV/AIDS Division of the Chicago Department of Public Health, will be our special guest DJ and I have heard that she is off the chain.

Cyon! 

Ok, so come out and have a little fun with us. I might even dance in spite of how I'm going to feel from my IV treatment. Now if I can dare to take such an important stand on the need to work together with our brothers and pull my Diva together and get there after 6 hours of IV medication, then you can at least come hang out with us. With me and Cyon, ha, we will be the hostesses with the mostesses and all for a great cause.

You can RSVP Here. We just want to get a head count. The event is Free! But if you give a $10 donation you will receive a free drink. Yes, there will be spirits, but Starbucks will be there serving, yep, you guessed it, tea. And the money will be spilt straight down the middle between me, to support my work around HIV/AIDS, and the Chicago Black Gay Men's Caucus.

See Ya Tuesday! We are United In HIV!  #UnitednHIV Like I say on Twitter everyday #ICannotdoitAlone and neither can Gay Black Men. We must come together if we are going to see a change happen for the best in our community around HIV/AIDS.

United In HIV!

Black Gay men are our brothers, uncles, fathers, grandfathers, cousins and sons. And for some they are our BFF's. No matter the label, for sure they are a vital part of our village. And I, for one, am fed the hell up with all the blaming that goes on in our community around the infection rate of black women from men on the Down Low.

Yep, I'm going there. The Centers for Disease Control has said over and over again the statistics just don't add up. Down Low brothers have not single handed caused the HIV infection rate among black women. They don't people! About half of the women infected with HIV in the United States are from the use of a dirty needle during IV drug use. And furthermore, we still have a large portion of men infected from IV drug use and those men do have sex with women.

Now, don't misunderstand me, YES there are men who have sex with men, and then turn around and have sex with women. They are out there, I have heard countless stories over the years. I have even dated one. Yep, I dated a brotha that was on the Down Low. It was a long time ago, about a year after discovering that I was HIV infected. He knew that I was infected with HIV and was purely comfortable with my status. On his death bed at age 29, I discovered that he had been living a double life. He did not infected me, remember, I was already infected when I met him. But I was angry as hell that all this time he knew my status, but never told me his. Thank God for common sense and condoms or he would have re-infected me.

He was one fine ass, like I mean fine ass brotha and he had lived this double life because people expected him to date women, cause a brotha that fine needed a sista. I will admit it took years for me to get over it, but when I had that Aha moment, I got it! He had been living this double life, with self-hatred, until the day he died. I got it! If the Black community had created space for him to be who he believed he truly was, he would have never lived this double life.

I accepted my culpability as a member of the Black community and I stopped playing into this covert homophobia that has infested the Black community. Even when we have a family member that is openly gay, we don't create space in our families for them to live and breath freely. Do we ask them if they have a partner? If they are lonely? If they are happy? Do we support them in their personal life the way they support us? This don't ask, don't tell policy in our community is unhealthy and it is killing our brothas.

Like how do you show love and concern for one family member's dating life and not the other and do it in their face. Like gee, you have no concern for their happiness? Your silence speaks a lot louder than your words. And don't tell me that your disapproval of their lifestyle is that thing that blocks you from loving them unconditionally. Who the hell died and made you God? This double standard I see is crazy. The shit we let straight men get away with in our community. For Real! I learned the other day that a prominent, prominent minister got his assistant pregnant and divorced his wife and never took any time away from the pulpit to get his act together and that was ok... Huh? Yep, double standard!

When you don't feel loved, you go searching for it. This alienation of Black Gay men in our community helps to fuel their low-self esteem and leads to unhealthy behavior and is a factor in their increased rate of HIV infection. So I'm going on record. I love Black Gay men and ain't a damn thing you can do about it.

Yes, there are brothers that live a double life and yes, the Down Low is a factor in the rate of  HIV infection for black women, but it's NOT the only one. In addition to drug use, there are brothas out there that sling their penis from woman to woman. Yep, they have sex with one woman and then turn around and have sex with another woman. Like the minister I was just talking about.

Yep! That's why I tell women to take control and responsibility of their own freaking body! You have no idea if the penis is with Bob or Barbara when it ain't with you, so why are you out there having sex without a latex condom? *confused look* #forReal. And then blaming everyone but yourself. *blank stare*

So anyway, I'm taking a stand! I cannot be concerned about the HIV infection rate within the African-American community and not be concerned about our brothers. The Centers For Disease Control estimates that one in two Black Gay men have HIV. We cannot throw our brothers away because we don't approve of their lifestyles. Shoot, if I took a looking glass into your life, I probably will not approve of everything that I see. For real! So don't go Holy on me. Please... Let me say it like this, DO NOT come at me with the Bible because I will come back at you with the same Bible and then tell you to stay the hell off my blog!

With that said, I'm so excited about my next RLT Event, #UnitedinHIV Tweet-up. Lip service is over for me when it comes to supporting our brothers, uncles, cousins, sons, fathers and BFFs who happen to be gay. I am very proud to be partnering with the Chicago Black Gay Men's Caucus and the one and only Cyon Flare.  Together we are taking control through unity and advocacy! United in HIV Tweet-Up is in honor of National HIV Testing Day.

National HIV testing day is this month and it's true, the earlier you know your status the longer you live. And if you know your status the chances are slim that you will infect someone else. We will be offering HIV testing that evening because we want to stop this cycle in the Black community. We don't get tested so we die sooner than our white counterparts and when we don't know we are infected we infect others. About 38% of newly diagnosed cases are people infected by people that didn't know they were infected.

So join me and my friends as we Tweet about HIV and have a blast doing it. It's gonna be fun. The one and only Lora Branch (Director of HIV/AIDS division of the Chicago Dept. of Public Health) will be the guest DJ... This should be fun! And I will be raffling off  RLT Bracelets and yes, some tea items from my tea partners.

The Tweet-up is June 14th at the best gay bar in the city of Chicago, Side Track, 3349 North Halsted Street, from 7-9 P.M. And it's FREE... But a $10 donation will get you a free drink and all the money will go to RLT (me) and the CBGMC, half-straight down the middle...

Please RSVP... Here!!! I'm excited to be partnering with my brothas on this vital issue that has deeply affected our entire community. Be there or be square. But I'm #UnitedinHIV.

Facing AIDS: National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day

Today is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day. Many African-Americans face HIV and AIDS every single day. I've been facing AIDS for over half my life. It is a battle that many of us face head on and some even face it alone. I know what it's like to live in secret, afraid that people will not love me if they know that I have this ugly disease.

Although it took me seven years to tell more than five people, it's the best thing I could have done. But yet I still live with the stigma of having this disease. That must change. We must make it acceptable for people to go get tested for HIV, to know their HIV status. Knowing your HIV status early will prolong your life. Over 38% of new cases of HIV are people infected by people who didn't know their HIV status. That's a dangerous cycle that helps to increase the number of cases of HIV in the African-American community. In the United States African-Americans comprise 46% of all HIV cases, yet we are 12% of the population. This must change! We must make these changes in our personal lives and in our community. I will spend my day educating through social media. I will be answering questions on Facebook and Twitter throughout the day. Feel free to drop in.

This evening you are welcome to join me at my Tweet-up at Kilwin's Chocolate and Ice Cream, 1405 N. Wells, Chicago from 6:00-8:30 p.m. It's free!!! Hosting this Tweet-Up with me is my friend and fellow blogger, Dwana, aka Houseonahillorg. Thanks to our sponsor, Kilwin's Chicago, we will hang out, enjoy the fudge, caramel corn, ice cream and hot chocolate, and tweet about HIV/AIDS. You can RSVP right now!

Facing AIDS Together

Monday is National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day and African-Americans across the country will have to face AIDS whether they want to or not. HIV/AIDS programs, radio, TV and newspapers across the country will intrude on your lives. But then on Tuesday many can walk away and not give AIDS another thought, unlike me, a woman who has had to face HIV/AIDS over half of my 48 years of life. Facing this ugly disease head on, all day every day, don't seem fair in some ways, but it's the way it is.

So how does one face AIDS most of their life and not lose their freaking mind? Glad you asked, there are many factors that aid in my sanity. My faith is solid as a rock. I have a support system that lifts me up like Aaron did Moses when his arms were too tired to go it alone. I have a will, zeal, and determination sealed in God's plan for my life. And I make it count. I make sure that the choices I make about my life are not in vain.

So like many African-Americans in this country, I will be doing what I do on Monday to make my mark in spreading awareness, like I do everyday of the week. As usual, I will be using social media to spread the message of HIV prevention. But, on Monday, Chicagoans can join me at my second Tweet-Up. It will be a little more laid back than my last one at Hotel Allegro, but fun nonetheless.

We will Tweet-up at Kilwin's Chocolate and Ice Cream, 1405 N. Wells, Chicago from 6:00-8:30 p.m. It's free!!! Hosting this Tweet-Up with me is my friend and fellow blogger, Dwana, aka Houseonahillorg. Thanks to our sponsor, Kilwin's Chicago, we will hang out, enjoy the fudge, caramel corn, ice cream and hot chocolate, and tweet about HIV/AIDS. You can RSVP right now!

For those who are NOT in Chicago, you can help by being a part of the conversation. Tweet and re-tweet about HIV/AIDS using the hashtag #heart2heart4HIV. For those of you who are NOT on Twitter, don't worry, you can come to the blog and be a part of the conversation through the live feed.

Then on Tuesday, I ask that you continue to be a part of the solution: 1) Go get tested for HIV; 2) Use a condom when you have sex. There is no sex worth your life. And I promise you, if the penis ain't in your pocket, you have no idea what it's doing when it ain't with you; 3) Learn all you can about HIV/AIDS; 4) Help me use social media effectively! Tell your friends and family about my blog. You can also subscribe to my blog and come every darn day! Please... Have your friends and family follow me on Twitter, subscribe to my YouTube Channel, and Like my Facebook fan page. All of these things help me to build my social media base and make the work I'm doing even more powerful.

Ask your pastor when he/she is planning to have a HIV program at the church. Students, go to your student leaders and ask them when they are going to have a program on HIV. And you can get connected all across this country volunteering around HIV/AIDS education and prevention... I say it often but it's really true, #IcannotdoitAlone.

And last, if you have a friend or family member who is living with HIV/AIDS don't let them go it alone. In many of our families we will know someone who is infected. It's the pink elephant in the room that no one talks about. Reach out! So what it's a secret! I promise you, knowing that they are loved will overshadow the fact that the secret is exposed. The only reason it's a secret in the first place is because of the fear of rejection.

As we approach yet another National African-American HIV/AIDS Day, let's face this disease together!! Together we stand, divided we fall. #Truth.

It Felt Right: Social Media and HIV/AIDS Education

About a year ago I started using social media around HIV/AIDS education. I wasn't sure of it myself, but my friend Luke thought that I should give it a try. Once I got the hang of Facebook, I was on a roll. Then about six months ago, I started using Twitter to spread the same prevention message. But more so on Twitter I share my ups and downs and the ins and outs of my daily battle living with AIDS. People seemed inspired by my daily struggle and my will to press on.

Then a month ago I hosted the first ever HIV/AIDS Tweet-Up/Meet-Up around HIV/AIDS. It was a huge success. Some people couldn't understand why I would put so much energy into social media. I wasn't sure either. I just knew it felt right. Speaking engagements had dried up and I also knew that I needed to find new ways of delivering my message, and I did.

I'm glad I did it. The outpouring of support that I have received has been overwhelming. I know that I am on the right track. I'm grateful that God continues to have purpose in my life...

This morning I woke to a phone call from my girlfriend Audrey telling me that I was on the front page of the Chicago Tribune in a cover story about how I use social media in HIV/AIDS education and prevention. I knew the article was coming but I had no idea that my work would take center stage. I'm feeling really blessed right now. I'm glad that I took a chance. That I stepped out on faith.


Click here to read the article...

An Amazing Night!! RLTEvent.....

I arrived at Encore Liquid Lounge for my very first RLTEvent at 2:30, but I still found myself running a tad late. Some volunteers showed up two hours late and set up took longer than expected. Still, at 5:30, we were trying to get the 350 swag bags stacked against the wall in the small lobby between the elevator of Hotel Allegro and the entrance to Encore. But from the outside looking in, things were running smoothly.

People had already started to arrive when I stepped into the back to make my Diva transformation at almost 6:00 p.m. Tacky, but it would have been even more tacky leaving my team empty handed with work still needing to be done. A leader never leaves a ship when it’s time to pedal hard. By the time my makeup was done and I stepped out into the front of Encore Liquid Lounge, close to 6:30 p.m., I couldn't believe my eyes.

The room was already buzzing. My first event ever was in full swing. It was magical! The first people I saw were my friends Emme, an incredible jewelry designer, and Millie, the owner of enBeadia, a bead shop, both sponsors of RLTEvent. As I made my way, I saw old friends, Twitter followers and Facebook friends. The tables were adorned with Hot Tamales candy that my girlfriend Cathleen donated, one of my my favorites, conversation cards with HIV/AIDS statistics ready to be Facebooked and Tweeted, and condoms to be picked up.

This was not just a social event, but clearly an HIV/AIDS Awareness Event. The swag bags were stuffed with goodies, a lot of good information on HIV/AIDS and tons of condoms. In one moment, I stopped and took it in. All of it! The AIDS Quilt hanging behind the bar, the balloons, the candy table, the cakes shaped like AIDS ribbons donated by Creative Cakes by KeeKee, the homemade cakes, the big carrot cake with RLT Event on it donated by my girlfriend Audrey, the raffle table with over 80 prizes, the Encore staff wearing bright red and the crowded room that at one point became so tight you could barely move. It was all so overwhelming.

It all seemed surreal. The fact that God would still have purpose for my life is amazing to me. That He would want to use a little girl from Englewood to do work such as this is also amazing to me. In the beginning I couldn’t believe where this work was taking me, new territory that I could have never imagined. Think about it, who could have imagined Facebook and Twitter ten years ago?

The fact that I was actually hosting an event at a bar/restaurant was pretty amazing in itself; I don’t even go to bars. I don’t even drink, never have. All this new territory, social media and social media events to challenge stigma and shame, to educate about HIV/AIDS is pretty amazing. For Real! I’m a speaker and for the most part, that’s the area to which I had relegated my HIV work. Speaking has been my life and work. Honestly, I went to social media kicking and screaming one at a time: My Space, Facebook, Twitter, and my best friend Luke doing the dragging. But now I am there and growing by leaps and bounds. I’m here, and by golly, it is clearly what I am suppose to be doing.

Social Media is the craze and I have it by the tail and I will not let go. I’m meeting people where they are at, educating around HIV/AIDS in ways people can understand. My Tweet-up/Meet up was the next step. And so many came out to help me make history. THANK YOU!!!! The first ever HIV/AIDS Tweet up and my very first event was quite a success. Together we did it! Participants, sponsors and volunteers! Yes, we had a packed house but we also packed Twitter and Facebook with HIV/AIDS education.

And let’s not forget that our Master of Ceremonies, Art “Chat Daddy” Sims, was an absolute delight and a trooper with handing out raffle prizes that seemed to go on and on... I think the evening was simply amazing: packed house, the food was delicious, cake galore, and the wonderful candy table. There were plenty of drinks and great conversation and let’s not forget the best part of it all: we challenged stigma and shame around HIV/AIDS with our presence. We used the most popular tools of modern technology to educate around HIV/AIDS. That is pretty amazing... Thank you for being a part of this amazing night!

Post Script: Yes, there were a few kinks, but don’t give up on me... #IcannotdoitAlone. Y’all know that I am an overachiever so I will be looking to make the next one even better. RLTEvent2 will be a World AIDS Day Event! I’m working on the date for the first week of December, I will let you know as soon as I do... Want to join #teamRae? E-mail my executive assistant Latoya at l.renae@raelewisthornton.com. The photos were taken by Errol Dunlap Photography. To view the full album click here. More will be posted on my Facebook page from Jason E. Jones Photography soon.

 The video is coming soon.....