Mission/History

SpeakUp! Mission:

SpeakUp! provides Youth, Educators and Parents the skills, opportunity and support to SpeakUp and be heard on the critical issues of today.

SpeakUp! enables youth to make positive life choices—and parents and educator to support them -- as they navigate the journey to become happy, confident adults.

SpeakUp! provides a foundation for a lifetime of positive communication.

History

In 1994, Martie Gillin started an AIDS awareness campaign to continue her son’s mission of bringing hope to those with HIV/AIDS. She sought to raise awareness about the disease by bringing education and prevention programs to schools and organizations. Over the next five years, the AIDS Alive organization began to believe that HIV/AIDS was just one of the central issues and that the solution was to bridge the communication gap between youth, their parents, and educators.

Accordingly, in 2000 AIDS Alive established the follow-up program Speak Up!, a hands-on program that directly deals with improving communication between generations. SpeakUp! forums foster productive dialogue at home, at school, and within the community and give participants the skills to deal with the difficult issues they’re facing. AIDS Alive has, in effect, evolved into SpeakUp!—its signature program.

SpeakUp! 2000....The beginning.....