In commemoration of World AIDS Day, eight sections of the internationally celebrated NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt will be on view in Palm Springs Saturday and Sunday, November 30 and December 1.

Supported by nine local organizations, the exhibit will be open from 2 to 8 pm, in Fellowship Hall at United Methodist Church of Palm Springs. A freewill donation will be accepted.

These handmade blocks, sewn by hundreds of thousands of partners, friends and family, tell the emotional stories of more than 98,000 individuals who have lost their lives to AIDS. Of those, approximately 80 Palm Springs residents or relations are represented in the upcoming exhibit.

Bruce Lederer of Cathedral City, one of the original panel sewers, was present at the unveiling of The Quilt on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on October 11, 1987.

“The NAMES Project through the years has been rewarding,” Lederer said, “and great healing was found in the creation of multiple panels for dear friends I have lost. The Quilt is an extremely positive avenue for survivors to mourn the loss of their loved ones, it is for the living.”Each section on display measures 12 feet by 12 feet. Sections were last on display in Palm Springs in 2016.

Supporting organizations include Bloom in the Desert, Boots in Squares, Desert Aids Project, HARP: HIV + AGING Research Project, Havurah of the Desert, LKAPS: Let’s  Kick Ass Palm Springs, Over the Rainbow Desserts and Cupcakes, PFLAG: Parents, Family and Friends United with the LGBTQ Community, and United Methodist Church of Palm Springs.

The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, now weighing over 54 tons, began in San Francisco with a single 3 x 6 foot panel – the size of a grave. Today, this epic memorial Quilt is the largest piece of ongoing community art in the world, which earned it a nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989.  It has evolved as a compelling visual reminder of the AIDS pandemic and a powerful tool in the effort to educate against the lethal threat of AIDS.

UMCPS is at 1555 E. Alejo Road, Palm Springs, .CA, 92262.