He has two teenage children. And he is HIV positive.

When he was diagnosed 10 years ago, Timms at first thought was he was going to die. “It was kind of a total shock,” the Tulsan said.

Through Tulsa Cares, he learned that AIDS or HIV isn’t an immediate death sentence.

“It has been my saving grace,” he said.

Tulsa Cares provides social services for people with AIDS or HIV and connects clients with housing, food, medical care and others like them.

“We’re seeing more and more people every year,” said Sharon Thoele, the group’s executive director.

Timms is one of an estimated 4,668 people living with HIV or AIDS in Oklahoma. He will be among those who attend a free Tulsa symposium Tuesday for World AIDS Day. Later, a candlight vigil is scheduled for 6 p.m. at All Souls Unitarian Church, 2952 S. Peoria Ave. More than half of newly reported cases each year are among people younger than 25 years of age, Thoele said.

HIV refers to the human immunodeficiency virus, which causes AIDS. AIDS is the most advanced stage of the viral infection. There is no cure for either.

“The people being infected are our youth,” Thoele said. “It’s staggering to me that people think the AIDS epidemic is over.”

Unfortunately, Timms dated a man years ago who had the disease and knew it but didn’t tell him. The man’s sister told him, instead.

“It was kind of a process. I finally got the courage to get tested, and they automatically put me in touch with Tulsa Cares,” he said.

The stigma associated with the disease is still so great that many people don’t get tested or treated, Thoele said.

“What hasn’t changed is people are still treated poorly if they have this disease,” she said. “Who hasn’t made a poor choice at least once in their life? The folks who get HIV don’t get do-overs.”

More than a quarter of Americans with HIV don’t even know it, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And many of those who do know don’t tell their families or friends because of what people might do or say to them.

“It would be very much like telling people with cancer that it’s all their fault because you smoked or didn’t eat right,” Thoele said.

She said it is not her place to judge anybody, but it is her place to care. “The people we see are somebody’s child, brother, sister or parent,” Thoele said.

Timms says he is fortunate to have a family that is supportive. Most of those with the disease don’t have that, he said.

“The support system is as important as any doctors or medicine,” he said. “I have a 14-year-old and a 17-year-old, and they know. They also know you can’t go out and do crazy things and not pay for it later.”

Thoele said new drug therapies mean people are living longer with the disease and that the quality of their lives is greater.

“It’s already done when they come to us,” Thoele said. “Our goal is to provide them with a safe environment and the care they need.”

World AIDS Day Events

-- Free symposium, “Together We Live,” about HIV/AIDS from Tulsa Cares. Workshops from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Central Community Center in Centennial Park, 1028 E. Sixth St. To register, 834-4194, Ext. 18, or tulsaworld.com/TulsaCares.

-- A World AIDS Day candlelight vigil, 6 p.m. Tuesday at All Souls Unitarian Church, 2952 S. Peoria Ave.

-- The Langston University Professional Counseling Center’s World AIDS Day luncheon, noon Tuesday at Langston University, Langston. Free rapid testing will be available afterward. For more information, (405) 466-3201. -- Red Rock Behavioral Health Sciences, 4400 N. Lincoln, Oklahoma City, will be offering rapid HIV testing Tuesday. For more information, contact Mike Maus at (405) 425-0473. -- A candlelight vigil will be hosted by the Latino Community Development Agency, 420 S.W. 10th St, Oklahoma City, at 6 p.m. Wednesday. For more information, contact Nohora Chandler at 405-236-0701.