February 17, 2000

Dear Friend,

In the next few months, I'll be participating in a very special and powerful event to help fight the battle against AIDS. In June 2000, I'll take seven days out of my life to ride a bicycle 570 miles from San Francisco to Los Angeles with over 2500 other people in an event called the California AIDS Ride 7 Presented by Tanqueray. We're riding to raise money for the Jeffrey Goodman Special Care Clinic and other HIV/AIDS-related services for the LA Gay & Lesbian Center. Together, we hope to raise more than $10 million for individuals living with AIDS and important AIDS prevention programs in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

I've agreed to raise at least $2500 in pledges between now and the beginning of the Ride on June 3^rd. Would you please make a pledge to help me meet my goal? Please complete the form at the bottom of this letter, designate the amount that is right for you (as well as my Rider # 5468), and mail back to me. Please keep in mind how far I'm riding and how long I'll train for this event. You can also check out my website for more information under the Activities link. You can also click on the link to the Official AIDS Ride 7 website.

AIDS affects nearly all of us and has taken more than 410,800 of our loved ones. Additionally, it's estimated that over 1,000,000 Americans are infected with HIV right now. Those who have died in the last two decades from AIDS amount to more than six times the fatalities in the Vietnam War. With your support, I hope to avert any more deaths by this epidemic and to help those who are ill and in desperate need of care and intervention.

If you would like more information, please contact me directly at (805) 544-9773 or via email or snailmail. Thank you in advance for your generosity and support!

All my best,

Valerie Barboza

California AIDS Ride 7 participant

Email: vbarboza@calpoly.edu