Here's a glimpse of the first day of AIDS 2012...                                (AFC photos-Gregory Trotter)

Condoms were in no short supply at the International AIDS Conference.

Florence Ngobeni-Allen lost her 5-month-old daughter to AIDS some 15 years ago, before she had access to antiretroviral drugs.

For the HIV-positive South African, it was the most difficult moment of her life.

Fast-forward to present day, thanks to appropriate treatment and services, Ngobeni-Allen (at right) has two HIV-negative children:  Alex, who turns 6 years old next week, and a baby, Kulani. And she works as an advocate for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

“I am proof that if women are given the resources they need, they can live healthy lives,” Ngobeni-Allen said to the 80 or so attendees of the media training held in advance of the International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012).

Rev. Charles Straight, who serves on the Board of Directors for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, was selected to open the International AIDS Conference with an invocation.

Before the pastor's firm handshake and sonorous voice, comes the smile.

Radiant, wildly contagious, Rev. Charles Straight's grin seems to welcome you instantly, no matter who you might be.

Come Sunday, July 22, Straight will beam that smile down upon the thousands in attendance at the International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012) in Washington D.C. He was chosen by conference organizers to give the convocation, the words of prayer that will officially begin the conference. For Straight, it will be a profound moment in his 27 years dedicated to the HIV/AIDS cause.

“It is the greatest honor I could have imagined,” said Straight, pastor of the Faith United Methodist Church in Dolton, Ill., who serves on the Board of Directors for the AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC).