This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Bono on The Ellen DeGeneres Show

AIDS has killed more than 25 million people between 1981 and 2007. Despite recent and improved access to antiretroviral treatments in many regions of the world, AIDS still claimed 2 million lives in 2007 (270,000 were children). It seems cold to “crunch” some numbers here, but it really does hit hard when you read it.

December 1, 2011 marks World AIDS Day which has been occurring since 1988. It was originally conceived in August, 1987 by James W. Bunn and Thomas Netter, public health officers for the Global Program on AIDS (now known as UNAIDS), at the World Health Organization in Geneva , Switzerland.

Each year has featured a theme with 2011′s being “Getting To Zero by 2015.” The hope is to have zero deaths, (not zero funding which had steadily decreased in recent years) , zero new infections, and finally zero discrimination of those who suffer with it. There will be many events worldwide that will focus on many aspects of the disease including new treatments. No one will be more vocal about how devastating it would be to lose more funding for these antiretroviral drugs that have saved so many lives than Bono. He has worked tirelessly for this cause for many years and this year is no exception. You can find him on television shows like The Daily Show (November 30), Good Morning America and The Ellen Show (December 1) speaking about AIDS, how far we’ve come, and how far we have yet to go.

Bono will be the first to say that he is not the hero in this fight. Though he has done so much through his ONE organization, DATA and Product (RED), he has been quoted that the real heroes are in the trenches  fighting this devastating disease each and every day. One of those warriors is his friend , Ugandan nurse and AIDS activist, Agnes Nyamayarwo who was our guest speaker at the first U2 Conference held in North Carolina in 2009. For some who may not be aware, Bono was so taken by Agnes’ work to educate people about AIDS in the villages around her while she herself was HIV positive and not healthy. He paid for her and a number of women in her hometown of Kampala to get on the ARV drug treatments. The ladies got healthy and formed the Mulago Positive Women’s Network. The MPWN’s mission is to assist women in coping with the ramifications of HIV/AIDS in their lives. It works to empower its members by providing them with essential information on their health status and by helping them to obtain marketable job skills to support their families.

The main source of income for the women of the MPWN is the traditional African craft items they make and sell at their modest store in Kampala and through their website. I made a personal decision a few years ago to honor World AIDS Day by selling the crafts at a local holiday fair and sending 100 percent of the proceeds back to Agnes and the women. Among the many items I sell are dolls, paper bead jewelry, and even wooden animal statues carved by the children. Two very special items that I featured this year were the beaded Bono bracelets and small friendship baskets. The ladies made the bracelet in honor of the man that literally saved their lives.  The small basket (pictured on the website) is often used for storing coffee beans and rice in Africa, but I actually use it to hold my wedding ring. It has a side by side color pattern which represents how two friends walk side by side and support each other. It is a lovely sentiment and both items truly represent the deep and meaningful connection they have with their friend, Bono. If you would like to purchase these or any of the items to support the women and their families especially during this holiday season of giving, please go to their website or get more information by contacting info@mpwn-uganda.org.

I now have a special connection with Agnes and the women of the MPWN. It has made the “numbers” become real faces just as Bono wanted to do when he took Agnes on the Heart of America Tour to launch the ONE campaign in 2002. He , too, made those numbers become real people. AIDS does not discriminate. It takes men, women, and children of all races, creeds, and countries. We are all the faces of AIDS.

It is my wish for Christmas to have an AIDS free generation by 2015. I want to be a part of the generation that makes it happen. I chose to do an event for Agnes in honor of two of my family members who lost their lives to this disease before there were ARV treatments. Now that it is available, it is my hope that it continues to be made accessible to all those who suffer. There are many ways to observe this day. Bono is using his platform while Agnes will remain in the “trenches” fighting the good fight as only Agnes can. I chose to support Agnes and the MPWN by selling their crafts. Others may visit the final resting place of those lost. Some may visit those who are suffering with the disease right now. Some may sign a petition for ONE telling legislators it is not ok to cut funding that is saving millions of lives. Still others may simply buy a cup of coffee at Starbuck’s , one of the many supporters of (RED). Those few dollars will buy a vaccine that will save a life. Every contribution matters. We don’t have to be celebrities to make a difference and end this disease that has been taking lives for over 30 years.

Peace and love to all of you this holiday season and in 2012.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

World AIDS Day 2011

For those who may not know, Elsha has a form of Muscular Dystrophy. When she was born, her parents were told that she would probably not be able to do anything. Though unable to walk, Elsha has proved those doctors wrong. She graduated high school with a 4.0 GPA and is a talented and award winning artist. She devotes her time to many important causes including ONE’s campaign to make poverty history and the African Well Fund which helps bring clean water to those who so desperately need it.

U2 is near and dear to Elsha’s heart. In fact, she has met the the band on a number of occasions.  I do believe she holds a special place in their hearts as well.

Since 2006, Elsha has used her talent to design holiday cards which she sells and gives part of the proceeds to the African Well Fund.  She recently  revealed her new card design for 2011.  She has now decided to call them “hEArt” cards (art with a heart)  as some of them can be used for any occasion. You will notice a certain U2 reference here and there too! Purchasing the cards are a wonderful way of giving back to those in need this holiday season or any time of the year.

Here is more information on the card designs and how to order, her favorite charitable organizations , and the story of her remarkable life.

I wish you love and peace (or else!) this holiday season.  May all your dreams be realized in 2012.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Holiday Cards From Elsha’s Heart

The Rainforest Foundation was founded by Sting and Trudie Styler in 1989, and over the years has worked in more than 20 countries to support “indigenous peoples and traditional populations of the world’s rainforest to protect their rainforest homes and fulfill their rights to land, life and livelihood.”

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Autographed Uber Achtung Baby Box Up For Auction

Many in the stadium did not realize that Bevell was blind. At the end of the song, Bono gave Bevell his Gretsch Goal Is Soul guitar.

Bevell has turned this experience into the song, “Hand In The Darkness,” as a thank you to Bono. He said to Arizona’s FOX television, “I was able to send him a thank you letter to pass it on to Bono. I didn’t think the thank you letter was enough so I ended up writing a song.”

He described the song title’s inspiration:”I thought how often has it happened to me that someone has reached out to me through the darkness and led me to safety. … I thought that idea, a lot of people can relate to that idea, because you don’t have to be blind to have lost your way… and that whole idea of hand in the darkness came along and I felt inspired to write this song.”

“Hand In The Darkness” is available for download on iTunes for 99 cents and all the proceeds will be donated to ONE.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Thank You To Bono: Hand In The Darkness

On their list at No. 5 is the Bono-produced “What’s Going On?”

Their complete list is here.

What videos would you include?

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Videos of Comfort on This Day of Remembrance

If you went to any of the 360 shows this last leg in the United States  and Canada, you may have run into one of our forum members lovingly known to all of us as EdgeFest. If you don’t know her by name then you may have seen her with her signature black Edge hat on most often in the GA line. She attended 11 shows on this part of the  tour and gave U2 fans worldwide a live feed from the Winnipeg show. Lori-Jo (real name!) spent time taking some full color photos in East Lansing, Toronto and Montreal and she has chosen to feature them in a 2012 calendar.  The calendars cost 30 Canadian dollars plus shipping and handling with profits ranging from $4.50-5.00 (price varies slightly based on location). One hundred percent of the proceeds will go to her guitar hero’s organization, Music Rising in honor of Edge’s 50th birthday. For those who may not know, Music Rising was started by Edge to help musicians in the New Orleans area after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. It is something very near and dear to his heart and to Lori-Jo’s as well. She hopes to sell 100 calendars for a $500  donation,  but the sky is the limit!  She will update fans on her progress on her Twitter account @EdgeFest.

Many more details can be found here.

I wish her the very best of luck. I plan to order mine as a Christmas gift to myself! She hopes to do something special every year on his birthday. It is a wonderful way to honor The Edge and the work of Music Rising.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

Edge’s Biggest Fan Gives Back

I had the honor and pleasure of conducting a phone interview with Agnes ( though I wish it could have been in person!). She was gracious enough to spend time answering some questions I had for her. So in keeping with our “5 Questions With” format, the following is what I came up with.

1) We all know what Bono has done for Africa with his organizations like DATA and ONE. How has your first meeting with him in the TASO Uganda Clinic in Mulago Hospital in your village of Kampala affected you on a personal level and also all the women of the Mulago Positive Women’s Network?

Agnes: My meeting with Bono really affected me on a very personal level. It was being able to work alongside him and DATA that enabled me to be able to speak on behalf of Africans who were suffering from diseases such as HIV/AIDS, malaria , TB, etc and the extreme poverty that so many people were living in.

He also funded the initial treatment for myself and 25 of my colleagues in TASO Uganda for two years which kept us alive and able to spread the message of HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness around Uganda.

2) Agnes, you have returned to the USA for the first time since speaking at the U2 Conference in October, 2009. Your work with TASO (the AIDS Support Organization) has put you on the front lines of this battle to end the spread of HIV/AIDS, especially mother to child transmission in Africa. Why is it so important that you return here and speak to us about the current situation in Africa?

Agnes: I felt that it was important for the people of the USA to understand more clearly the current challenges that we are facing in Africa during this global economic crisis. With the potential cutbacks in funding for global health programs that help so many of our citizens in Uganda, we are very concerned that the progress that has been made in the last ten years could be slowly eroded away.

Thus, I wanted my visit to the USA to get this idea across to the American people and to ask them to continue to support our cause.

3) For those who wish to support the Mulago Positive Women’s Network with purchases of your handmade African jewelry and crafts, can you tell us where that money goes when it gets to you in Kampala , Uganda?

Agnes: All the money that we raise through the sale of our MPWN (Mulago Positive Women’s Network) craft items go directly back to the women who make those items. This money is important to us as we use the money to support our children to go to school, to upkeep our homes and to have a meal.

One thing that I wish to share about many of the women in our group is the extreme poverty in which they live. For example, Ida’s home was attacked by termites and she had no money to fight them off. Thus, her small home has no foundation now and is always in danger of falling. She lives with her parents who are very old and several orphans. These people have very little income. We worry about them all the time. We try our best to share with them the little that we have but it is never enough.

4) Agnes, June 27, 2011 was National AIDS Testing Day here in the United States. You were interviewed about the importance of this event by social activist, Shannon Rice-Muruli. We know this disease knows no gender or nationality. It affects all of us around the globe. Can you tell me why this type of event is so important whether you are in the USA or Africa?

Agnes: This day is very important because people need to know their HIV status because it is only by knowing your HIV status that you can take the measures necessary to protect yourself and others. National HIV/AIDS Testing Day is important in order to keep this issue alive in people’s minds that HIV is still with us and that funding for programs that fight it should be continued at their current levels.

5) We’ve spoken about your special friendship with Bono many times here on @U2. Your association with him has involved humanitarian work which included The Heart of America Tour you did with him across the United States in 2002. How did it feel to attend your very first U2 concert in Raleigh, N. C. on the 360 Tour in October , 2009 and receive a special dedication of the song “One” ? What did you think of their music?

Agnes: It was a thrill to see that concert. Knowing Bono as another advocate for Africa for so many years, seeing him onstage performing so energetically is something that I’ll never forget. It turned me into a U2 fan!
One of my favorite songs of U2′s is “Sometimes You Can’t Make It on Your Own”. I like that song because I wouldn’t have made it on my own without Bono’s intervention in funding my AIDS treatment which also gave me a platform to reach others around the world with our African message.

As for the special dedication of “One” from Bono, it made me feel good to be remembered by him as one of the members of ONE who were there from its inception in Philadelphia in May, 2004 and who continues to support the goals of the ONE Campaign.

Thank you, Lisa, for supporting the women of the MPWN through the sale of our craft items and for doing this interview with me. I hope that our message will reach many more people through this interview. I can’t wait to meet you one day! May God bless you and your family.

It truly was a treat for me to get the opportunity to do this interview with Agnes who has been a true hero of mine for a long time. It was very exciting to be speaking with the woman who was Bono’s inspiration for starting the ONE campaign who I now call my friend. She has done so much in the fight against this devastating disease while battling it herself. She has always done it with dignity and grace. Agnes would also like to thank the @U2 readers for all of their support and kindness to her and the women of the MPWN.

I am writing this piece on the July 4th holiday here in the United States. I am very proud of how much this country has helped in the fight against HIV/AIDS and poverty, but I hope and pray we continue to do so in the future. This war is not over. When it comes right down to it, we are all part of the human race which knows no country name or boundary. We are connected simply by what is in our hearts. Agnes and the ladies of the MPWN are my global family who I love dearly and will continue to help in any way I can. After all, to quote my favorite band…

One love , one heart, we get to carry each other.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

5 Questions With U2 Conference Speaker Agnes Nyamayarwo

According to Soles4Souls: “Last year, after U2 postponed their tour many fans who purchased tickets through StubHub could not commit to the rescheduled shows. With StubHub’s FanProtect Guarantee policy, these fans were able to return their tickets and receive their money back. Because it is StubHub’s policy not to resell tickets, these returned tickets are now being used to encourage charitable giving through the Take Off Your Boots campaign.”

The company has already done ticket giveaways at Hard Rock cafes in Denver, Seattle and San Francisco. Here’s the remaining schedule (for tickets to the Anaheim, Miami, Philadelphia and East Rutherford shows). Tickets are available while supplies list, and the limit is one pair of tickets per person making a shoe donation:

• Los Angeles (Hard Rock Cafe Hollywood on Hollywood Blvd., 6801 Hollywood Blvd., #105): 3-6 p.m. June 14
• Miami (CocoWalk, 3015 Grand Ave., Coconut Grove, Fla.): Noon to 4 p.m. June 28
• Philadelphia (StubHub Last Minute Services Storefront, 900 Packer Ave.): 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 13
• New York City (StubHub Last Minute Services Storefront, 40th and Broadway): 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. July 20

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

‘Take Off Your Boots’ For U2 Tickets

Of course, it’s “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses,” and the film by James Kleinert, Wild Horses and Renegades, is intended as a call to action for citizens to come forward and save American wild horses.

The film screened at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival last month and is headed next to the Newport Beach Film Festival. The official website also mentions it airing on the Documentary Channel.

To learn more about the film, click here. To view the U2 video promo, click here.

This is a post from the @U2 blog.

U2 Lends Song to Horse Documentary