The Birds of Sorrow: Giving Voice to Loss in an Age of Pandemic - Irwin Library, April 2025

Names on Block 5357:

Panel 1: Karey!

Panel 2: John Campbell; St.Vincents Hospital & Medical Center

Panel 3: Miami University Students Infected with HIV

Panel 5: The Latin School of Chicago

Panel 6: Hemophilia of Indiana Remembers: Aaron P, Alice K, Andy H, Arnold L, Barry A, Bill C, Bill E, Brannon W, Brian M, Brian W, Chad B, Chad H, Charles C, Charlie J, Chris B, Chuck, Danny T, David B, David C, David L, Dennis B, Don P, Don S, Durk, Elias E, Esquiel E, Frank A. Riedle J, Franklin R, Fred B, Fred C, George F, Howard B, Howard H, Jacob Sworty, Jerome S, Jerry H, Jim D, Joe E, John K Barnes, Jr, John, Larry Brittain, Larry D, Larry E, Larry P, Mark D, Mark E, Maurice S, Michael C, Michael M, Nolan J, Paul B, Paul C, Peter S, Raymond M, Richard S, Robert C, Robert D, Robert P, Ron A, Ron M, Ronald Eugene Baker, Russel M, Russell T, Ryan P, Ryan W, Scott M, Scott P, The Hess Family, Tony McDade, Tony S

Panel 7: John Sullivan

Panel 8: Shaun Anthony Herring

The AIDS Memorial Quilt digital collection presents digitized records concerning Quilt panels that are more than 25 years old. Records concerning panels less than 25 years old are available onsite in the Folklife Reading Room.

The Library of Congress is providing access to these materials strictly for educational and research purposes.

The National AIDS Memorial and the Library of Congress ask that researchers treat the records within the Archive with respect for the persons whose lives the records document.

The information provided below is taken from the panel maker records to allow the description of these panels, and the people represented on them, to come from those who loved them and made the panel. It is used under Fair Use for educational purposes. To read the panel makers' submissions in full, please visit the digital collection through the Library of Congress.  If you have other reference questions about these files, you should contact the Folklife Reading Room for assistance. Not every panel on each block had records available and if no information is publicly available the panel is not included below.

Who is on this panel?

Karey Bewersdorf of Chicago, IL, whose panel was made by her cousins. They shared that Karey was the second in their family to have AIDS, their brother died from it 1992, and so they treasured each moment they spent with her. "She had twinkling eyes and a beautiful smile" and was "such a fun person who lived life to the max!" The panel design was chosen because, "every time we see a Betty Boop we think of Karey ... forever wearing that Betty Boop hat with that sparking eyes and big smile." They closed saying, "She was really loved by relatives and friends and left this world knowing how much everyone loved her."

St.Vincent's Hospital & Medical Center, Comprehensive HIV Center. In 1984, St. Vincent's opened the first, and what became the largest, AIDS ward on the East Coast. Historically, the hospital served the poor and disadvantaged and when the HIV/AIDS crisis began, it was the doctors, nurses, and the Catholic Sisters of Charity who were willing to care for those everyone else had abandoned. Mr. Tom Bernarden, a resident of Greenwich Village for decades summarized the experience of living through the AIDS epidemic saying, "I lost all my friends, all right. You understand? I’m 24 when I move in here. I’m 70 today" and when asked about the sisters said, “The only people to stay behind and take care of the dying and the sick at that epidemic were the Sisters of Charity, following their Christian mission,” (from Michael J. O'Loughlin's article, "The Catholic Hospital that Pioneered AIDS Care" published Jan.24, 2020 in America Magazine).

This panel was made in 1999, submitted by the hospital on behalf of the patients of the St. Vincent's Comprehensive HIV Center. They submitted it saying: "Please accept this token for the many loved ones who have left before us and for the hope of the many still fighting." 

It is estimated that over 100,000 New Yorkers have died of AIDS and over 125,000 are living with HIV now. St. Vincent's closed in 2010, with Mt. Sinai taking over the AIDS Center in Greenwich Village.  A memorial to those New Yorkers who have died of AIDS and to St. Vincent's Hospital for their work on behalf of those living with HIV/AIDS was opened in the park across from the center in 2016.

The photo of the The New York City AIDS Memorial, by JasonParis is used under a CC-BY-2.0 license.

Stephan Jacklitsch, the architect of the New York City AIDS Memorial, said at its unveiling on World AIDS Day, 2016:

It is impossible to convey the horror of such an epidemic and the injustice and stigma experienced by those directly affected, but public memorials serve as important reminders of our history, our shared values and the actions and attitudes we put forth as a public body during moments of crisis. This memorial should serve, in future epidemics, both as a reminder of the dangers created, when we allow fear to rule, and of the positive outcomes that result when we unite to fight discrimination and seek solutions to our common ills.

Hemophilia of Indiana Remembers Hemophilia of Indiana still exists today as an advocacy and support community, from their website: "Hemophilia of Indiana is dedicated to empowering the bleeding disorder community through education and support, while advocating access to quality care and product safety." Each drop on their panel contains the name, and sometimes a brief message to a Hoosier who died from AIDS.