a special summer camp was last night hailed a success.

About 300 people attended the "Dance Because You Care" party organised by AIDS charity the Allan Vincent Smith Foundation.

AVSF director Joe Gibbons said: "It went very well -- we don't have final figures but we attracted a good crowd and the pledges went very well.

"The minimum pledge was $50, but the average went a lot higher than that.

"We covered all our expenses and gave ourselves a good cushion. And there is still money which was pledged to be collected.'' Now several Bermudian children will be able to go to Camp Heartland in Minnesota, a summer camp devoted to caring for youngsters with HIV and AIDS.

Mr. Gibbons admitted: "We would have liked to have seen more people -- but for a first time event, I think everybody had a great time. There was a great atmosphere and people were very generous.'' The news came as it was announced that another director of the charity has been elected to a Caribbean-wide body dedicated to fighting the killer disease.

Now Michael D. Fox will sit on the first executive board of the Caribbean Regional Network -- which aims to win better treatment of people with HIV in the Caribbean area and to form a multi-national network.

Mr. Fox said yesterday his election was an honour not just for him, but for the AVSF.

He added: "What we are trying to do is improve the way people respond to people with AIDS.'' The CRN is jointly funded by the UN, the Pan-American Health Organisation and the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre.

Mr. Fox won his seat on the group at a major Caribbean AIDS conference held in Grenada last month, which he attended as a representative of the ASVF.

He will liaise with AIDS organisations of the six British dependent territories and assist with the development of programmes to improve the social treatment of HIV positive people.

Mr. Fox said: "I heard some shocking stories at the conference -- in some of the islands, people don't have medication, they're beaten up and murdered and nothing very much seems to be done about it.

"We're trying to help people with AIDS and HIV to live a quality life and to spread what knowledge of the issues each country has among the others.'' FUND RAISER FNR