Bay Windows - September 7, 2006
Rob Akers

The "Mad Hatter's Tea Party" complete with a "Queen's Croquet" match featuring local celebrities such as columnist Leah Garchik and KRON-TV movie critic Jan Wahl is slated to take place from 1 to 4 p.m. at the grove, located in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park.

The tea party "will be our signature event for 2006, and an opportunity to pay tribute to all who have helped create and maintain the National AIDS Memorial Grove these past 15 years," said Kim Teevan, event producer.

The event is set to honor the volunteers who have given their time and money to support the grove, and will also raise funds for the grove's operations and endowment. Over 200 guests are expected. Tickets are $125 each.

During the croquet match, plans are in the works to put together two teams and provide some sort of costume, according to Teevan. "Right now the thought is to create actual playing card vests for each player to wear."

"The Caterpillar, the Mad Hatter, and the White Rabbit will be in attendance," said Teevan. "We'll be pouring champagne cocktails, bloody marys, and greyhounds along with proper tea. You can wear one of Lewis Syke's hats and have your photo taken at the photo booth," she added.

Teevan said the thought behind the tea party was to do something different.

"We wanted to bring a whimsical and fun element to the remembrance and thought the croquet match could certainly be part of the fun," Teevan said.

This summer also marked the 25th anniversary of the first reported AIDS cases.

"It provides a time to reflect on our collective progress and the work still ahead to end the epidemic," Teevan said.

"The National AIDS Memorial Grove is as relevant as ever now that we've lived with AIDS for 25 years with no cure," said Ken Ruebush, longtime co-chair of the grove's board of directors. "It is imperative that we do all we can to maintain this permanent reminder about AIDS in the public landscape, in the face of ever increasing apathy."

The grove's mission is to provide a healing sanctuary, to increase awareness of the national monument, and to promote learning and understanding of the human tragedy of the AIDS pandemic.

The grove got its start back in late 1988, when a small group of San Francisco residents, representing a then-devastated community, were looking for a positive way to express their grief during the early years of AIDS. They envisioned a serene, natural setting suitable for memorial services or individual mourning and remembrance. From that initial concept, a team of architects, landscapers, designers, and lay people volunteered countless hours to create the living tribute to those lost to the disease.

In 1996, a milestone was reached when Congress and then-President Clinton approved the National AIDS Memorial Grove Act, which officially designated the historic de Laveaga Dell in Golden Gate Park as the nation's first AIDS memorial. Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) was instrumental in securing the federal recognition.

"The idea of a memorial grove was conceived by a small group of local residents in 1988 after attending numerous memorials for friends and family who had died of a new disease called AIDS," said Jack Porter, an early board member and continuing volunteer at the grove.

"The once neglected area of the Golden Gate Park has been lovingly transformed through countless hours of volunteer labor, along with a park gardener whose wages are funded under the National AIDS Memorial Grove budget," Porter told the Bay Area Reporter . "Following the December 1989 death of my partner, who was one of the original group, we requested that donations be made to the Stephen B. Marcus Fund of Friends of the Urban Forest. This was our first seed money."

From there, benefits were held, including one at the home of James Hormel, who was a steering committee member.

"Next came approval by the various commissions and a search for an appropriate site in Golden Gate Park. It was unanimous decision to renovate the long-neglected de Laveaga Dell," Porter said.

Then-Mayor Art Agnos turned the first shovel of soil to kick off the first volunteer workday on September 21, 1991. Funds for hiring a small office staff came from the Columbia Foundation and from Hormel. In 1993, the grove's steering committee signed a 99-year renewable lease with the city that called for clearing the 7.5-acre site, raising funds to replant and build several hardscape features, and raise an endowment to maintain the grove and fund a gardener in perpetuity.

"When we started with the workday clean-up in 1991, we really didn't envision regular ongoing workdays," Porter said. "We thought we would clear the area of weeds and blackberries and go about the business of raising the necessary funds to maintain the area. Right away, we saw the enormous power of a devastated community coming together to create a place to honor their family and friends."

For fifteen years, workdays have remained the strength and backbone of the memorial grove.

In 1995, the main portal was dedicated to its benefactor, Steve Silver, the creator of Beach Blanket Babylon who died of AIDS that year.

"It is very gratifying to have helped create a place in Golden Gate Park where people can gather to remember those they've lost to AIDS," said Alice Russell-Shapiro, a grove co-founder. "It took many years of community organizing and fundraising to build and endow the National AIDS Memorial Grove, but the success of the endeavor proved it to be a project whose time had come."

"My partner and I will be observing the 15th anniversary at the September 9 event," said Thom Weyand, the grove's former executive director, "and we will do so with much gratitude and love."

Weyand, who said he has had a few "brushes with death" as a person living with AIDS, has found the grove a source of regeneration.

"Now, in 2006, we hear so much about AIDS as a Third World problem, but we need to also remember that it is this country û the United States of America û that has the highest HIV rate among developed countries," Weyand said. "I think the grove has a role in helping people remember this, and providing a sense of renewal to act on this shameful reality. In short, the grove has a role to help end AIDS. Metaphorically, the grove is positioned on a three-legged stool, the legs being remembrance, hope, and renewal."

To purchase tickets for the event, contact Wendi Deetz at (415) 750-8340 or e-mail her at wdeetz@aidsmemorial.org. Guests are encouraged to dress in the spirit of the occasion. For more information on the grove, or to donate directly, visit www.aidsmemorial.org.

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