On Tuesday afternoon, about 50 paper butterflies with messages of love appeared in trees on Turlington Plaza.
Members of UF’s Undergraduate Public Health Association hung the colorful butterflies, which they made with women from the Rural Women’s Health Project. The women who made the messages all live with AIDS or HIV and wanted to raise awareness about the diseases, said Ivanna Rocha, the association’s community service chair.
The butterflies were originally going to be hung in December for AIDS awareness month, but Rocha, 19, said Valentine’s Day was more appropriate to emphasize self-love.
“The butterflies, which are symbols for a lot of their events, represent beauty in their troubles,” said Rocha, about the women who make up the Rural Women’s Health Project.
The quotes include inspirational messages like “No rain, no flowers,” and safe-sex awareness such as “Condoms are cheaper than AIDS.”
Although the organization believes it’s important to educate people about AIDS and HIV, the members want to emphasize these women aren’t suffering from the diseases, but living with them, said Rocha, a UF biochemistry and molecular biology sophomore.
“It’s important to talk about it and rid the negativity,” she said.
Rural Women’s Health Project, a nonprofit organization, uses health-based education and reaches out to rural women who are frequently migrants, said Nicole Zeiss, a UF health science senior who works with the group.
The butterflies symbolize these women’s journeys, the 23-year-old said.
“It’s an uplifting message of transformation,” Zeiss said.
