lth issue .4.- Gay United wa Samara and _./4~...._ M 4;, Vermont Com‘ unity Foundafion Bv EUAN BEAR he Vermont Unity Project, I a joint operation of the Samara Foundation and the Vermont Community Foundation, recently announced its push to raise $200,000 in Vermont for use by the GLBT community. The kick-off event was held on March 25 in the executive dining room of Vermont Life in Montpelier and featured Nancy Cunningham, executive director of the National Lesbian and Gay Community Funding Partnership. “As the ‘leader in the‘ ‘éountiy 'o'n‘“lesb'ia'r1“"'" and gay civil/family rights Vermont provides an ideal envi- ronment for a successful partner- p ship between national, state and local funders to support the grow ing needs of the LGBT communi- ty,” Curmingham wrote in a press release. The funds would be used to secure a $100,000 chal- lenge grant from the National Lesbian and Gay Community Funding Partnership. The challenge grant comes from a consortium of major nonprofit foundations, including the Aaron Diamond Foundation, the Gill Foundation, the David Geffen Foundation, the Ms. Foundation for Women, the Open Society Institute (George Soros), the Levi Strauss Foundation, and the Philip Morris Companies, a_mong others. Responding to a ques- tion characterizing the new fund drive as an effort to build a Vermont ‘gay United Way,’ Samara Executive Director Bill K Lippert said, “I wouldn’t choose the United Way as aime’tap"ho'ri 4‘ our mission, our vision is bigger — to support and strengthen the community today and build an endowment for tomorrow.” If the Project meets its goal to raise $200,000, the funds will be “re-granted” to gay and lesbian organizations and projects within Vermont. Of the total . $300,000 in funds raised and matched, up‘to $50,000 may be applied for and sequestered in an 0 T 5 vice For LiésaliANi,icAv,fiiBtsExuAL,iAN D‘ TRAN so E N 13 ER tommu N iirvl OUNTA Samara fixecqtive Director Bill Lippert endowment fund for the’ future. "Another portion 4 $l0,000- is held aside for “administrative costs,” leaving a total of $240,000 for actual grants within the community. ., If the project raises only $100,000 in matching funds, half of the challenge grant will be released for regranting. “The beauty of this proj- ect,” explained Lippert, “is that it’s new dollars raised from out- side the community. And it Medical Marijuana Key Issue for HIVIAIDS Patients BY JUSTIN BARTON-CAPLIN AND EUAN BEAR ast month the so-called I “Medical Marijuana” bill passed the Republican- controlled Vermont House of Representatives by a vote of 82- 59. According to Rep. Bill Lippert (D-Hinesburg), support came from across the political spectrum, as members rose to share personal stories of relatives with serious diseases who could have been or were helped or made more comfortable by the (currently illicit) use of marijua- ‘ na. Diseases whose sufferers may benefit from marijuana use include various forms of cancer, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma, AIDS, anorexia, chronic pains, spasticity, epilepsy, arthritis, and migraine, among others. A Democratic members of the Senate expected the bill to pass in that chamber, but were less certain of whether Governor A Howard Dean would sign such a measure. Responding to the news that a “sunset” provision had been added to the bill requiring the legislation to be reconsidered in 2006, Dean, a physician, has been quoted as saying, “The bill sunsets when it hits my desk.” Dean has also said that he is not opposed to medical use of marijuana after it had been subjected to the same drug safety and efficacy testing that manufac- tured drugs undergo. The current economics of drug testing may make such a criterion impossible to meet. Manufacturers pay for drug studies in hopes of recoup- ing their costs witha patentable drug they can later sell for profit. Marijuana has no drug company sponsors and the government has been reluctant to commission studies. The medical marijuana bill matters to the gay and lesbian community because of its poten- tial to stimulate appetite for patients with a wasting disease, such as HIV/AIDS, or nausea from treatments for breast and other forms of cancer. Responses from Affected People “As an RN I can see the medical benefits of marijuana’s use,” wrote Steven Pomainville, RN, replying to a request for respons- es to the issue. “T.H.C. (the exposes new significant donors to - ' our community’s needs, increas- ‘ ing their potential to donate to additional projects outside this campaign. The Vermont Community Foundation is offer- ing us entry into a community of donors we have so far been unable to access.” Once these . new “ally” donors are “engaged,” they are more likely to donate again, even after this particular > continued on page g active chemical in marijuana) has had a great impact on appetite stimulation and decreasing nau- , sea in those of medical need who have used it. If medical marijuana can improve an ill person’s quali-— ty of life, or help a person in short tenn medical crisis get through_their crisis I am in support of this type of use. I must let it be known in all good faith that I do oppose the rampant mis- use of this substance.” A Rob Larabee, an advo- p 'cate ‘affiliated with the People With AIDS Coalition, responded that “the compassionate use of medical marijuana is extremely significant to people living] with . AIDS. Marijuana allows a person who may be having difficulty eat- ing, a very common side effect from HIV itself and complicated by the many medications and their effect on tastelbuds, to eat. Marijuana relieves pain associat- ed with HIV, stomach upset and helps in the gaining of ‘weight in cases of wasting syndrome. > continued on page 3