A West campus organization is seeking recruits for this October’s AIDS Walk, in which about 20,000 participants are expected, up from 5,000 participants in 2008 after the program took a five-year hiatus.

West Devils want new recruits to help AIDS Walk 2009 organizers unite walkers at Phoenix City Hall to raise funds in the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

West Devils registered as a part of the University-wide Four Realms of Discovery series.

The Oct. 4 walk, sponsored by the City of Phoenix and Aunt Rita’s Foundation, a nonprofit charity organization focused on HIV/AIDS, will benefit 16 local HIV/AIDS prevention and health care organizations through donations and team participation.

Sheila Conner, coordinator with West campus Office of Student Engagement, said the focus of the series is to give students on all four campuses an opportunity to explore pressing issues and be motivated to make a difference.

“By participating in AIDS Walk, students will have an opportunity to get to know each other and make a positive impact in the community,” Conner said in an e-mail.

Kirk Baxter, co-chair of the walk, said he is excited for the return of the event to Phoenix after it took a five-year break before returning to the state Capitol in 2008.

“The return of the AIDS Walk to Phoenix is more than just a one-day fundraising event,” Baxter said. “It is the re-ignition of a public awareness movement.”

In Maricopa County, there are currently an estimated 9,191 cases of HIV or AIDS, according to the Arizona Department of Health Services.

Federal funding for AIDS research has become difficult as it dwindles in comparison to rising infection rates, Baxter said.

In 1990, Congress passed the Ryan White CARE (Comprehensive AIDS Resources Emergency) Act which funds a variety of AIDS- related programs across the country.

The bill was named in honor of the late Ryan White, an Indiana teenager with hemophilia, who was diagnosed with AIDS at age 13 in 1984 after receiving a blood transfusion.

His struggle received national attention after he fought discrimination because of his condition.

“The Ryan White CARE Act comes nowhere close to keeping pace with the increasing demand for HIV care and prevention services, particularly now for reaching our young people,” Baxter said.

West Devils is hoping to register enough students between today and Sept. 30 to rent a shuttle to transport participants.

“Our goal is to have participants leave the walk feeling both a sense of joy and accomplishment in contributing toward a vital cause,” Baxter said. “But also for many to have the opportunity to memorialize the thousands in the Valley who have been lost to the epidemic.”

Reach the reporter at devin.creer@asu.edu.