International AIDS Candlelight Memorial

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Strategies

Making a Plan

Memorials can be planned in many ways. Some will take place over several days with many activities and speeches, while others are more simple and may last perhaps an hour, and end with lighting a candle. There is no wrong way to plan a Candlelight Memorial (see “Choosing Activities” for specific ideas). Careful planning, however, is an important part of coordinating any event, and a good, realistic plan can prevent many problems from occurring before and during the event. It can also motivate people to work harder and continue participating in memorials for years to come. Below are some tips for making a plan.

Making a Plan

Questions to ask yourself and the planning team:

What are the goals of our Candlelight Memorial?
What is the need in the community for this event?
Who do we want to influence – leaders, community, etc.?
What important messages do we want to convey? Better national AIDS policy? Improved access to treatment? More training of health-care workers?
How will we evaluate our success?

Some basic elements to consider in planning your memorial:

Resources – where to find candles, sponsorship, etc. (See “Finding Resources”);
Location – finding and choosing a central, accessible place to the community;
Time – choose a time that works best for the majority of people;
Personnel – assign tasks to your team that best use their skills;
Volunteers – arrange a groups of volunteers to help you with logistics during the event;
Security and emergency services – in case of a large event, identify police, water, emergency medical supplies in case someone gets hurt, etc.

Other considerations:

Plan early. The earlier you plan, the less you have to rush to make logistical arrangements, and the easier it will be to secure resources and special guests.
Create a timeline for different tasks to be accomplished and be sure to keep to it so you do not have many tasks at the end.

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