Letter from Shelley Bristol (Las Vegas, Nev.) to Regina M. Sackrider (Las Vegas, Nev.), November 1, 1993

November 1, 1993 Regina M. Sackrider NAPWA Re: Speakers Bureau NAPWA Dear Regina, Hello, I'm Shelley Bristol, I have enclosed the form application or speaker HIV Negative. I Enclosed my resume & my certificates from AIDS for AIDS OF NEVADA in Las Vegas as a hotline operator I Educated & referred people on AIDS information and have been a volunteer there about 8 months working 10 hours a week. I guess I will write you my stories so you will understand how I teel & why I have chosen to be a volunteer & help as much as I I am a very open minded heterosexual woman & non judgmental of anyone. I am very honest & direct, strait forward in expressing my views, and I let people know who I am and how things are. Mv two stories of how the possibility of having HIV has affected me. It has also taught me how much courage & inner strength I have For a long time I really had hurt inside & I have worked very hard to get over this hurt in my life. My life has really changed for the best & I've grown so much. A year ago I was a legal prostitute in a Northern Nevada brothel. I am not proud of this mistake, and for awhile I lost my self esteem as a good person. I had an AIDS test, the 3 month and the 6 month. I tested negative on both tests and I feel very lucky When I stopped being a prostitute, I just wanted to start my life over. I really wanted to help, teach, & be there for people who needed to be educated on AIDS. This is why I started to volunteer for AFAN. Volunteering made me feel better about myself and I am proud of my sincere & hard work. I've been strait and clean for a year now! My second story is 2 weeks before my 3 month HIV test. I was seeing a man that I liked, and felt the need to be honest about my past and told him that I was going to have an HIV test. After the results were known, I told him I was negative. He told me that test was dormant and that we should not see each other anymore. I thought this was very unfair and I could not resolve this situation. Since May of 1993, I have helped organize & raise funds with Nevada AIDS Project. We have bake sales, car washes, raffles, etc. The funds raised go to people who test HIV+ and can't pay medical and other expenses. I always help out at our events. I know now that I am a very strong woman. I do feel very comfortable educating, speaking and helping other people on AIDS. I would be honored in my heart to give of myself to be a speaker on your bureau and help out. Always your sister as we educate and teach prevention of AIDS and help each other. I hope to hear from you soon. Sincerely, Shelley Bristol 3200 S. Arville #41 Las Vegas, Nevada 89102 (702) 871-8035