Enid, Oklahoma

The Regional AIDS Interfaith Network (RAIN) will continue operating. The organization said it would have to close Wednesday because of financial problems, but officials said the group received $106,000 in last minute donations and pledges. "We've been overwhelmed. This is phenomenal. We're staying open," said Jean Ann Van Krevelen, the organization's executive director. Officials with the privately supported, nonprofit organization had projected a $40,000 budget shortfall in 2002, which would have meant closing its offices in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. RAIN has a budget of $270,000. Network staff members and volunteers assisted more than 230 AIDS patients last year in Oklahoma. According to the state Health Department, there are 2,394 people infected with HIV and 1,597 have AIDS.

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