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UW retiree seeks further opportunities in service

By Ben Freund

The AIDS epidemic is a monster that shatters lives across the world. It is a tragedy no matter where it strikes, but in many third-world countries, its impact is even worse. In such impoverished nations, vast swathes of the population have become infected — sometimes as much as 40 percent or more — and there are precious few resources available to assist them medically or emotionally.

Madison resident Jim Cross will soon become one of those resources. In January of 2005, he will leave for the African nations of Uganda and Kenya to spend three months giving whatever help he can. Cross spoke to The Madison Times July 25 at a benefit luncheon to raise funds for his trip.

"It's such a pandemic now that the world needs to be aware of how bad it is," he says, and there's no doubt that even an active AIDS combatant like Cross will see things he's never seen before in nations whose faces have been changed radically as a result of the disease.

Cross is well-qualified to assist. His medical training began in the late '50s when he served in the army, was later continued by a course in nursing training in Iowa, and culminated in nursing assistant training at Madison Area Technical College (MATC). Although he retired from his career in health care this March after spending nearly 12 years with the University of Wisconsin Hospital, Cross' desire to help others has not waned, and he continues to work at the hospital while he prepares for his trip.

However, Cross' work will not be wholly of a medical nature. In his years as a volunteer for AIDS-related services from the AIDSNetwork, Outreach Inc (who is in part sponsoring his trip), and other organizations, he was most active in programs like support groups for AIDS sufferers, friends and family, and the 'buddy' system, which pairs victims with sympathetic individuals who offer friendship and moral support.

The people skills he has gained are sorely needed, not only for those afflicted by AIDS, but also for those who have been hit hardest without necessarily contracting it. Among Cross' planned destinations is a Kenyan orphanage for children who have had their parents and family  taken by the disease. For them, Cross' medical training will be less vital than his decades of    experience as a compassionate supporter.

Cross has always been active in providing care and concern throughout his personal and professional career, but it is only relatively recently that he has set his sights as far afield as Ugandan clinics and Kenyan orphanages.  

Although the wheels were set in motion for his trip last November, Cross said that he had been hoping for such a trip for several years. He credits his inspiration to Landmark Education, a growing worldwide organization that runs motivational forums intended to increase senses of freedom and power in participants.

"It was a transformation," recalls Cross, who says the forums imbued him with skills in self-expression and leadership that gave him the impetus to take action on his vision of helping afflicted Africans. "It's the reason this came about for me."

And so, come the new year, 65-year-old Jim Cross will be setting out to serve abandoned people and afflicted nations however he can, be it saving lives or washing dishes, with his limited medical training and unlimited desire to make changes for the better. One can only imagine that the stories he will have on his return will be as inspiring as the trip that will lead him to find them.

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