David Ernesto Munar, president/CEO of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago, speaks at the 2012 Dinner with Tony Kushner. AFC Photos-Ed Negron

Below are David Ernesto Munar's remarks from the AIDS Foundation of Chicago's 2012 Dinner with Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tony Kushner, who wrote Angels in America. The dinner was held on March 27, 2012, at the Hilton Chicago, and raised more than $100,000 for HIV/AIDS services throughout Chicago.

To view Ed Negron's pictures from the dinner, go to AFC's Flickr page.

Donté Smith is a member of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago Americorps team.

At times, hip-hop lovers who also believe in social justice can grow discouraged by the homophobia and misogyny so rampant in today’s brand of beats and rhymes.

But tomorrow night, there will be a refreshing showcase of hip-hop talent performing for a most worthy cause: to enhance the lives of people living with HIV at the Bettendorf Place, a new home for the homeless on Chicago’s South Side.

“This event is important to Bettendorf Place because, as a newly-built facility, it’s crucial that they are supported in the work that they're doing,” said Donté Smith, a member of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago (AFC) AmeriCorps team organizing the event.

Dr. Lisa Henry-Reid poses with her family. From left to right, daughter Lorelle, son Taylor, Dr. Henry-Reid and her husband Samuel.

Dr. Lisa Henry-Reid remembers when AIDS became personal for her.

It was 1996. One of her first AIDS patients, a young man she had grown close to, was dying of AIDS. Refusing medication, he wasted away until he was too weak to leave his West Side house or even answer the door. So, Henry-Reid would go to him, sometimes bringing along her 3-year-old daughter. They watched movies and shared meals.

When she left for Hawaii to celebrate her husband’s 50th birthday, she was racked with worry that the young man would die in her absence and called him daily. He died a month or so after she returned to Chicago. He was 20 years old.

“I think I cried more than anyone at his funeral,” said Henry-Reid in a recent interview. “It was very painful but it toughened me up a bit.”