Park bench honors McDonough Ron Whiting shows the bench honoring Dan McDonough. The AIDS activist is to be remembered at one of his favorite spots By Patti Zarling News-Chronicle Ron Whiting wants the memory of Dan McDonough, a prominent Green Bay AIDS activist who died in November, to remain - so he's dedicating a park bench to his friend. McDonough was HIV positive for seven years, but he never exhibited any symptoms. He died at the age of 56. He worked for the AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin and served as a member of the United Nations Global AIDS Project. He also gave presentations with Whiting at local schools. Whiting has had HIV and AIDS for 23 years, and while he has been ill, he has remained strong. "Dan talked more about the activism, while I talked more about the realities of living with AIDS," Whiting said while remembering his friend. "I'm the one with all the sicknesses, and Dan never had that; that's why his death gave us such a shock. "We had a memorial service for him, but I wanted to do something permanent." Whiting said he thought a park bench would make a great memorial. His first thought was to place it at a bus stop, since McDonough frequently rode the bus, both in Green Bay and during his trips abroad. But the city wouldn't allow a bench at a bus stop. Whiting also thought of Preble High School, but school administrators said a bench would have to meet specific architectural requirements Whiting didn't think he could afford. Whiting lives at Monroe Plaza, and when manager Kathleen Schenk heard of his dilemma, she offered a spot near the downtown building. "It's on private property, so he wouldn't have to worry about meeting the city or whoever's requirements," Schenk said. "And we really like Ron around here, he's been a good tenant. He's had a lot of losses in his life, but he's always kept going. And we know about Dan and what he did, and we just want people to support that. "I know these days people are afraid of AIDS, and that's unfortunate. A lot of people just don't know enough about it." Whiting said he hopes the bench will help give him closure about the death of his friend. "I think Dan would be very pleased," Whiting said. "Maybe he'd be taken aback; he was the kind of guy who didn't thrive on attention. "He was loved and appreciated for so many things. He did so many unselfish acts, it's nice to do something to remember him by."