AIDS Walk San Francisco

I’ve been a proud participant and fundraiser in the San Francisco Aids Walk for 5 years now, and each year it becomes more empowering, more gratifying and more successful! The walk is a 10K (about 6.2 miles) in Golden Gate Park on a July Sunday, with an average participation of 15,000 — 20,000 walkers, all who work to fundraise $ 2 million plus every year! It’s a wonderful cause and event to be a part of, with so many great reasons to participate. Walk in support of loved ones, walk to raise money for charity, walk to celebrate your own good health — all are fabulous and totally valid. This is a strong and positive community, and all are more than welcome!
You can participate as an individual but I definitely recommend joining a team. Your employer’s team is ideal but every team is open to all participants — I walk with the PG&E Employee Network in support of a great friend, and they are a fabulous group, always a gold team (in the top 25 for fundraising). Other companies that are large participants are Pixar, Chevron, Macy’s, The Gap, and dozens more. Don’t be shy to sign up with any team, no affiliation or connection is needed! Larger teams will also provide pre-​walk breakfast and post-​walk lunch to team members (nothing is provided by the event organizers, and nearby options are limited — the team way is the best way!), and generally offer team t-​shirts. The camaraderie is great for morale!
Fundraising efforts are simple to navigate– your fundraising webpage is established when you register to walk, and it can be personalized with photos and quotes. You can share that page to Facebook and all social media, and of course email the link. Online donations are the simplest, the only catch being a minimum of $ 25 must be donated. For folks who might want to give less or prefer to submit cash or check, walkers are provided with envelopes and instructions to get those funds to the organizers, or they can be submitted on walk day. There are fun incentives for being a diligent fundraiser, including the official Aids Walk t-​shirt received once you’ve raised $ 150. If you are a rockstar and raise $ 1,000 or more, you are awarded the title of Star Walker! You’ll get even more goodies, including the coveted Star Walker hoodie, plus a hot breakfast with mimosas before the walk. It’s an awesome and rewarding experience for diligent do-​gooders!
The walk takes about 2 hours to complete, kicking off at 10:30 a.m., and there are multiple stations throughout the course with water and snacks, plus live entertainment like the UC Berkeley and Stanford marching bands, belly dancers, even the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence will be there to cheer you on!
This is a great event and a fun time always, highly recommended as a positive day in SF! Support a great cause, keep fit, and have fun — what could be better? See you there in 2016!

A really great family event. It was about 5 miles and such a beautiful scenery. We walked at the Golden Gate park. Toward the end the sun was out so it was very pretty and got warmer. There was music at some parts and there were people who were passing out water, popsicles and chips at certain sections of the walk. That was really helpful too.

This year’s walk is the week before the International AIDS Conference in Washington, DC. This is the first time it has been held in the U.S. for 20 years, since the administration has lifted travel restrictions for people with AIDS. There is such hope on the horizon but the need is bigger than ever. Please consider joining us at Golden Gate Park on July 15 or donate to one of the hard-​working fundraisers — like me :).

I would feel wrong if I gave AIDS Walk anything less than 5 stars. If you find out that your co-​workers, club, or organisation you might belong to is considering making a team for AIDS Walk, PUSH IT and volunteer! It is truly a really rewarding experience and above all fun.
~ If you don’t live in San Francisco, AIDS Walk is a great excuse to go out and see the city. We all know that San Francisco is a great place with plenty of things to do. After the walk, why not enjoy a pleasant rest-​of-​the-​day with a delicious meal (I’m sure after all that walking you would have worked up an appetite) and sight-​seeing?
~ AIDS Walk is located in Golden Gate Park and to be honest no one really cares if you go off the main road because you’ve already raised the money you did. I always like to go on adventures through Golden Gate Park and go on a beaten path leading to somewhere. Go to Stow Lake and the Chinese Pagoda!
~ You meet a lot of interesting characters at AIDS Walk. I met a transgendered male to female who walked 6 miles in 6 inch heels. Stilettos. As someone who cannot walk 6 steps in 6 inchers, he is my new hero.
Convinced? Of course you are. It’s a great experience!
TIPS:
1. Bring a breakfast or eat a big one beforehand. If you have a team, maybe be a good person and bring a batch of muffins for them as well. AIDS Walk unfortunately doesn’t serve breakfasts — all the breakfast foods you’ll see are brought from specific teams.
2. I cannot stress this enough: TAKE BART. TAKE BART. TAKE BART. Why ruin your day trying to find parking space? Parking is going to be horrendous I GUARANTEE you. Plus, why not spare the air as well as raise money for AIDS research?
I’ve volunteered for AIDS Walk every year for 4 years during my time in the Bay Area and I loved every single time. It truly is a wonderful experience and a great cause!

So i choose to be security again this year again. i was guarding the speaker towers. I saw the Chief of Police the new one and Gordon Lee on stage. I had a free concert i told people they can’t smoke in the park or they get a ticket.

This is our 4^th year participating and our 3^rd year as Star Walkers. We volunteered as high schoolers and we always have a good time at the walk.
In these economic times, I’m SO happy to see so much support for such a great cause. Way to go everyone =)

This is my second year volunteering for SF AIDS Walk at the sign-​in tents and it’s fantastic to see so many people fundraising and coming in from as far as fresno for a good cause. It started as a way for me to give back to the community since moving back to SF from college. And of course, I dragged my boyfriend to the orientations and it’s been a yearly thing for us since!
I had a lot of fun this year (and last) and hope to be on the other side as a walker next year and raise some money!

I had great time at AIDS Walk San Francisco today. The event was well-​organized and ran very smoothly.
It was gratifying to see so many young people participating. And the Star Walkers tent was just fabulous. It was a good way to meet new people and chat with friends.
Kudos to the SF AIDS Foundation for another fun, successful event.

Since working for Wells Fargo Bank, where volunteerism is highly encouraged and supported, I’ve been involved in AIDS Walk San Francisco. Over the years, fundraising has become more difficult in these tough economic times, but I have found that compassion and generosity prevails. I walk and fundraise again this year… for family, friends and strangers, and their loved ones, who have been or are currently struggling with HIV/​AIDS. Please feel free to visit my fundraising page:
The AIDS walk is Sunday, July 18^th… join a team and walk or just come out and see for yourself the thousands of people who support this extremely worthwhile cause. I’m proud to work for a company that supports many causes without prejudice.

Wow they really go all out. Walked here about 15 years ago to raise some money for aids benefit.
They really take care of you and give lots of free food and drinks. I mean just barrels and barrels of goodies everywhere.
The walk itself was excruciatingly long and painful.
Now that I think of it, it was only a drop in the bucket since aids is still around.
Personally I think aids was manufactured by the us government. There was no trace of aids in history until US gave out vaccination in Africa during the 60s-​70s.
Now after many years, drug companies make a living off of suppressing aids instead of curing it. There’s almost no chance of cure because of corruption.

What’s better than raising money for a good cause and getting some exercise at the same time? Nothing!
This review is long overdue and thank god I received a reminder email about the AIDS Walk progress.
The company I work for part-​time weeknights is affiliated with Williams Sonoma, Inc and the employees were asked to see if they wanted to participate in the AIDS Walk 2009 on Sunday July 19 2009. I didn’t know of the walk the previous year so I thought it would be fun to attend this event and donate some money at the same time. The company accepted any kind of donations, and for $ 25 and up, each participant received a nice lunch prepared by Williams Sonoma corporate employees at the finish line. I heard from co-​workers that WSI throws out the best lunch spread with portobello mushroom burgers with all the condiments, large cookies, beverages, and salads. I donated my $ 25 and had another friend do the same on the company affiliated AIDS Walk 2009 website.
The day of the walk, Anchalee, Peter T, and I arrived in San Francisco at 7:30am. We found pay parking only a few blocks away from the actual event across the street from McDonald’s. We arrived early and already walked a good half mile just to find the corporate check-​in booth. There were gobs and gobs of people mostly from corporate sponsorships. Free energy food bar samples, fruit drinks, pop chips, and candy were given out to every participant. I believe Whole Foods donated most of the proceeds.
I’m glad I attended this walk because I met up with an old college friend who I stumbled upon while he was checking in to the Williams Sonoma booth. He’s not an employee of the company but he said he always donates under this particular company because of the lunch he gets at the end of the walk. I hadn’t seen him for a good 10+ years and we had a lot to catch up on. Even when the walk started, we walked and talked about half the way until I decided to catch up to my wife. Along the walk, there was break areas with orange slices, water, chips, bananas, and porto potties. We even got some ice cream along the way. There were drag queens and a lot of unusual people, but hey… we were in San Francisco! Lots of support and a good crowd vibe made the walk go smooth.
We all survived the 6.2 mile walk and it only took less than 2 hours to complete. It helped since we started in the front of the walk and not in the middle or back. I had a lot of fun and would certainly do this again next year. Kudos to the SF AIDS Walk raising over $ 3.5 million to date!

Raised over $ 3million for Aids research, how cool is that?!
The walk was fun and very entertaining.
Its good to walk even if you didn’t raise any money, at least show that you are out there «supporting» the cause.

This is my first AIDS Walk, so I don’t know how San Francisco compares to a lot of other cities, but I had an amazing time.
The entire walk is 6.2 mi/​10 km and takes place in all of Golden Gate Park, so you get to walk past the waterfall, the museums, the gardens, and even the bison area! When you get there in the morning they are already giving out tons of food. They have fresh bananas, granola bars, and yogurt in a tube. They also had coconut water and cashew juice in these little cartons. The cashew juice was pretty good. And if you ask for two or more they don’t get mad, and there are so many places where you can pick up more food that it’s pretty much all you can eat.
There are tons of port-​a-​potties all over, but they all still have 5 – 10 minute lines – some places even longer! The best place to go is near the end of the walk because when we got there, there wasn’t a line at all.
They have 3 official spots where you can stop for a break. The first was handing out more granola bars, but a different brand. (I swear I must have had 10 granola bars! hehe) The second stop had frozen fruit bars, which was perfect because it was a warm/​hottish sunny day. The third stop had popchips, which were pretty good, definitely better than regular potato chips, which they were giving out somewhere too. That’s what you want after a 6.2 mi walk, greasy potato chips…
What else? They had singers and performers all over. Before the walk, they had some things up on stage. During the walk, they had a drum corp and a marching in place band. They also had belly dancers and radio stations hosting their music out of large vans. We also walked past Swing Dancing in the Park, so we had that, and lots of walkers brought their boomboxes with, so there was a lot of hip hop going on too. Oh! And after the walk, they had a live reggae band, haha.
All in all, it was a great time! I got lots of free stuff from the money I helped raise: 2 T-​shirts, a sweatshirt, a tote bag, and an AIDS Walk 2009 button. But if you raised $ 500+ you also got a water bottle. Ooo! And if you raised $ 1000+, you got a special commemorating crown, where you’re treated like a king or queen for the day. :)
Finally, at the end of the walk, my team had a delicious barbeque, where we had tons more food, relaxed, and listened to a live reggae band. Oh the food was so good! It was the best part! Well besides being with friends and having a good time. Oh! And if you go, don’t forget to bring sunscreen! My legs got burned sort of, heh! Maybe that’s what they should offer in addition to food, little bottles of sunblock, hehe.

Its only one day a year but its a day I look forward to every year.
Clearly a charitable event AIDS Walk San Francisco brings out thousands of walkers every year whether two legged or four, Motorized or Radio Flying. For more info on day of events, registering or ways to contribute go here:
AIDS Walk is a 10k walk (6.2 miles) that takes place in Golden Gate park every July. Average time to walk the entire route would be around 2 – 3 hrs. RECOMMEND trying to take Mass Transit to get to the event as parking is very limited to the surrounding neighborhood streets. If not arrive at least one hour prior to get a parking spot. They do provide a secure place for you bikers out there
Things you might want to bring:
DONATIONS
Pre-​register before the event to collect donations but you can also continue to collect after the event
WATER
A good water bottle is essential but know along the walk Volunteers will provide water at break stations. For your little K-​9 as well.
PROPER CLOTHING
Weather changes are abrupt at Golden Gate park. Something light that won’t be a nuisance that you have to lug for 6.2 miles. Backpacks should be light and good on the shoulders, trust me.
WIPES/​SUN-​BLOCK
Anti-​Bacterial Wipes or goo for post Port-​O-​Potties breaks or after lunch. It may seem foggy and misty but without a warning the blazing sun will shine through so properly equip some Sun-​Block.
The route of the walk itself invites you to the beauty that is Golden Gate Park. You’ll see such gorgeous things as the Conservatory, the de Young Museum, a Bison paddock with a small herd grazing, Spreckels Lake sometimes filled with miniature sail boats and a plethora of unique vegetation and tree species. Musical acts like the always amusing and original Stanford University Band, Taiko drum group (Tatsumaki is one I often see), Steel Drum musicians (i believe called CSM Panhandlers), or The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence to cheer you on.
Before the walk guest speakers and celebrities will get it started with warm up routines to get you groovin’. After the walk more entertainment and lunch will be served. Pack a lunch or bring some cash to purchase one nearby although there are plenty of volunteers that give away free food (i.e. Juice, Water, Ice Cream, Fruit, Granola Bars, Candy) First Aid, Lost and Found, a Kids coral area are also some services that can be found as well as several companies representing providing information on goods and services.
As you can tell there is a lot to happening at this event and I invite all of you readers to come join the walk. I can’t recommend it enough.

Volunteered this year, couldn’t walk because of my partner’s injury. Despite gloomy weather, this was still satisfying.

I’m not a very charitable person. This, and the $ 50 that I contributed, is going to be my good deed for the year.
I did not originally plan to attend this walk.
However, after constant harassing for two weeks straight from a friend who organized the firm’s AIDS Walk contingent, and another friend who think I should do something beyond eating out, working, partying, and Unilocaling, I decided to give it a go.
So on the cold foggy morning of the 20^th (It could not have been more than 50), I was huddling with the others, keeping warm with the coffee and donut and cursing myself for falling victim to my own volition.
Fast forward half an hour (and one and a half mile) later — I was having the time of my life: catching up on gossips, enjoying the free mango icey pole and trying too hard not to drink too much water.
A couple of miles later — «Are we there yet?»
Fast forward to the six-​mile mark… being the camera whores that we are, we were busy taking pictures at the actual mark.
Fun times. For a good cause too.

It was absolutely fantastic to be out and about with 25,000 amazingly diverse and interesting people! I spent the day walking with colleagues, playing games, socializing and just enjoying the atmosphere of the walk, itself.
It really doesn’t get much better than participating & contributing to a worthy cause while enjoying myself with some wonderful people.
I walked in memory of my friend Ken.

I’ve been doing AWSF for 10 years and I’d be a complete ass to to give it anything less than five stars.
BUT I just wanna say, if I’m gonna show up at 7:15am to volunteer, please don’t treat me like an idiot. I did green sign-​in and I was quizzed four times on how to find someone on an Excel sheet. What is the point of orientation if I’m just gonna be taught again and again and again and again the next morning? Even after I told them that I am a professional desk pilot who sits on the computer all day and then goes home and dicks around on the computer some more, I was still treated like a monkey. Maybe next year I’ll just walk.

7^th year doing this. Goal this year was to finish in 1.5 hours.
Time running 10K: 1h 22mins (a long ways from 3h 42mins my first year!)… yes, I ran it most of the way!
Time Goal: MET
Amount fundraised: $ 250 (thank you: Arnold/​Cristel, Joe/​D, mom, ChiChi, Stephanie Dub, Chris, Emily)
Current funds raised: $ 295
MANY THANKS!
Walking in honor of my friend ZQ.
(|)

I’m going to compare 3 walks San Francisco, San Diego and Los Angeles. I rolled over 5 stars because of the work that will get done from the money raised. Each walk has it’s highlights and all three were fun this year. Due to size limitations please search for AWSD and AWLA in my reviews section.
AIDS walk SF
ROUTE: Well planed out 10k stroll through Golden Gate Park
WEATHER: SF has the least predictable weather year to year making it hard to plan attire. I goofed this year and dressed too warm.
SWAG: Plenty of free stuff thanks to great «corporate» donations of food and water.
PEOPLE: Friendly yet a bit cliquey, felt out of place without a big «team».
STAND OUT: Best use of homeless! SF homeless make great cheer (jeer)leaders along the route. This year one guy was trying to talk a walker out of his AW t-​shirt so he could raid the food/​water station. LA homeless, less abundant, were mostly cleaning up the empty plastic water bottles. SD must have given their homeless a day trip to the beach. The usual pan– handlers that lurk in Balboa Park were mysteriously absent.