San Francisco Examiner - Tuesday, December 10, 1996
Jane Ganahl, Examiner StafF

Diagnosed 13 years ago with AIDS, the 54-year-old Wedemeyer is one of those people worthy of study. How has he kept going? Managed to hold down a job? Kept working out at his gym? Donated endless hours to his community?

For Wedemeyer, the answer is simple: Qigong (pronounced chee-GONG), an ancient form of Chinese therapeutic exercise similar to tai chi. Wedemeyer practices qigong in a regimen of traditional Chinese medicine that also includes acupuncture, diet and herbs.

"Qigong is used to enhance longevity and to restore harmony," he says. "Which makes it good for everyone."

Having learned qigong almost since the day he was diagnosed, Wedemeyer began teaching it, along with a partner, Emilio Gonzalez, in 1990. Gonzalez, 57, has been a martial arts practitioner for 25 years, and HIV-positive for 15. Most of their clients - more than 4,000 so far - have been people with AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses.

"There were tai chi classes in Golden Gate Park, which is damp and cold. And that isn't good for people with AIDS. I had friends who were going downhill and we decided something had to be done."

So they established a classroom, and put the word out. It became an immediate success, with about 40 people showing up for classes twice a week. The difference it has made in people's lives has been remarkable, say proponents.

"One of our clients had his T-cell count go up by 100 points in a short period of time," says Wedemeyer. "At the very least, they report feeling an enhanced sense of well-being, and that is invaluable."

Of course, the practice has its detractors: doctors who call it fanciful, including some who spoke out in a recent CNN report on qigong. "Right, they know which doctors are going to say that and they go out and get 'em," Wedemeyer laughs, unbothered. "Most of the younger doctors these days incorporate alternative medicine into their treatment."

Given how easy it is to learn qigong - usually patients report feeling better in just one session - Wedemeyer thinks everyone should try it.

"With tai chi it takes you about a year to learn all the movements, whereas qigong you can learn right away. Qigong begins energy in the organs and tai chi circulates it, but the basic benefits are the same. Organs have positive and negative emotions. So when you balance the organs you balance yourself."

Today, Wedemeyer and Gonzalez have transformed their non-profit practice into a thriving labor of love: a series of four half-hour classes taped for television broadcast.

The first station to run the series is The City's own KQED-TV, Channel 9. The sessions are running on consecutive Saturday mornings at 6 a.m. (the first ran last Saturday). Dec. 7 The complete series will run again beginning Jan. 4.

Wedemeyer, who has become a popular speaker at national conferences on alternative medicine, got KQED interested in airing the series - which was already taped and available for sale - by simply making a phone call.

"I was listening to "Forum' on KQED-FM and (KQED-TV program director) Kevin Harris was on, so I picked up the phone and asked if the station ever got involved in grassroots local projects. He said yes and I thought "gotcha! He said it on the radio!' At the end of our conversation he said to send a proposal. I did, and they accepted."

Neither Wedemeyer nor Gonzalez will make a dime on the series; they haven't yet with any part of the project. "We get nothing," he says cheerily. "Any profits go to people with AIDS."

But nowadays, that feels like less of a burden than in the early years. "The first five years we did everything, paid the rent on the class space and such. Now everything has come together so beautifully. American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine is paying the rent. Friends at the San Francisco Symphony composed and played the music, the crew who taped the shows were volunteers. I mean, you can't buy that kind of dedication."

Classes in qigong are held Mondays and Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. at 50 Oak St. (third floor), near Market Street and Van Ness Avenue. For information, call (415) 661-2080. To order the videotape "Qigong for Health" ($49.95), call 1-800-835-6555.
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