Florida AIDS Walk 2010

Life is an interesting experience if you pay attention as you go along.  Threads of your existence are woven together in ways that only dawn upon you years after the fact.  As far as I’ve traveled it has only shown me how small the world can be.  In London I bumped into a friend I hadn’t seen in 8 years and Chicago harbored a childhood crush from my days in Costa Rica.  These are just a few examples of my life connecting in unexpected ways, but there have been times where I was the catalyst for that experience in others.

In the early 2000’s my girl and I lived in a quaint little apartment building of no more than 10 units.  Every resident truly loved their homes and did their best to make the building an wonderful place to live in.  Our neighbor across the hall was a tall, sweet man from Texas named Tim Yocom.  He had just moved down to South Florida to try out the lifestyle.  My girl used to go to his place for a cup of coffee and I remember many a hallway chat with Tim.  Tall and laid back, Tim always put you at ease.

We left Florida for North Carolina shortly after our time in that building.  As often happens with interstate moves we lost touch with Tim.  Fast forward 5 years and we’re back on native soil.  Most of our friends had drifted away, leaving us to start from scratch in our now unfamiliar homeland.  At a birthday party for one of our remaining friend’s boyfriend we bumped into an amazing group of transplants hailing all the way from Texas.

Warm, inviting and tons of fun we started hanging out with this great group of people.  All friends from back in Texas they decided to move to Fort Lauderdale after one of their very best friends blazed the trail for them.  In passing conversation one night, after drinks and a movie, one of them mentioned the fabled friend’s name… it was Tim… Tim Yocom.

What we didn’t know was that he had passed away shortly after we left Florida.  If we had stayed this entire clan of friends would have been ours many years sooner, but instead we briefly touched their lives and then faded away only to return through sheer coincidence.  When things like that occur I make sure to pay attention.  Tim’s memory is the driving force for their participation in the Florida AIDS Walk under the team name “Club Us” and  I am now honored to be a part of that team.  In the five years since Tim’s passing, this group of friends has raised nearly $100,000 in honor of their friendship with him, and the intent to share those friendships with others.

I ask you to please support me in my walk to battle AIDS.  Before you dismiss the Walk as something outside of your life or not a part of who you are, sit and think about all the ways life has surprised you with her tangled web, bringing you closer to different people than you’d ever think possible.  If you learn to appreciate those moments of happy circumstance your life will become richer than you could ever imagine.

Please help me keep friends alive and together as opposed to only in memories.  Please sponsor me in this year’s Florida AIDS Walk.

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