The Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research (CANFAR) is excited to announce the 10th anniversary of one of their milestone fundraising events, Can You Do Lunch? (CYDL?).

This year’s event is co-chaired by CYDL? Founder Janice O’Born and CANFAR’s National Spokesperson Valerie Pringle and will focus on women and HIV. It is being held on Thursday, April 28th, 2022 at the Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto. It will pay tribute to important women who have been at the forefront of fighting and ending HIV in Canada.

CANFAR is recognizing and celebrating the women working in health and science, community-building and supporting through philanthropic efforts for their work to end the HIV epidemic in Canada and globally. Leading up to CYDL?, CANFAR will be announcing the over a dozen women they will be honouring and featuring many of them in a portrait series, photographed by Toronto’s rising photography star, Lucia Remedios. The portraits will be shared through CANFAR’s digital channels and will be on display at the event on April 28th.

In addition, CANFAR will be bringing greater awareness to women who are living with and newly diagnosed with HIV. About a quarter of the population living with HIV in Ontario are women, and women accounted for 25% of new cases of HIV in recent years. Women who face systemic and social inequalities, specifically African, Caribbean and Black women, Indigenous women and Trans women, are more likely to be exposed to HIV. CANFAR sees the importance of highlighting at-risk segments of our population to keep moving forward to support them.

CANFAR is grateful to welcome back community leadership sponsors Mantella Corporation and Holt Renfrew, as well as BMO, Labatt, The P. Austin Family Foundation, Dr. Trevor Born and Air Canada.