HOPEDC Celebrates 29 years of HIV Social Support in the Washington DC area
Washington DC (PRWEB) August 21, 2017 -- On September 23rd, 2017, the Health Options and Positive Energy Foundation, Inc. (HOPE DC) will celebrate 29 years of bringing together the HIV+ Men's community in Washington, DC.
The celebration will be marked by a social much like the very first gathering that initiated the HOPE DC community.
In keeping with a tradition now more than two decades in the making, the HOPE DC anniversary celebration will be hosted this month by a generous foundation couple in a private home located in Arlington. Details are available upon request.
HOPEDC's informal group originated in 1988, during the darkest days of the AIDS epidemic, when a small group of HIV+ Men met at Medstar Georgetown University Hospital during clinical trials of life-saving treatments. They decided to bind together for mutual moral support away from the hospital and began hosting private social events throughout the district. The clinical trial is long since history, but the fellowship that they started is still going strong.
The group remains active today, as the need for moral and peer support for HIV+ attendees has not changed. Over the years, services and support offered by HOPE DC have proven to be essential for the health and well-being of each Social attendee. The focus of the group is primarily directed to single gay men with HIV in the Washington, DC area, but all are welcome.
In 1996, the informal group became a non-profit 501C3 organization called The HOPE Foundation. Over the years, the group has grown to over 1200 individuals. The gatherings are now regular events called “The Monthly Social” where HIV+, and poz-friendly, gay/bi/trans/questioning men can meet and provide support for each other in the greater Washington/Baltimore area.
"We celebrate the dramatic medical breakthroughs that have turned HIV into a manageable condition, but we are deeply aware of the Social challenges of living well and responsibly with HIV,” explained Jim Garza, Vice-President of the HOPE Foundation. “That is why, almost 30 years later, we are still here and will continue to be here as long there is a need.”
About HOPE DC
HOPE DC is an all-volunteer non-profit organization that serves the HIV+ Community in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area. Services provided include the Monthly Social which offers a stress-free gathering that fosters mutual support, as well as and website to share articles, information, links and resources about living with HIV, and also occasional public seminars or lectures. we also have monthly Brunches, Museum Tours, and Day Trips. The HOPE DC philosophy is that by providing such services, they help HIV+ gay men foster a greater self-esteem and sense of community and that this in turn fosters the responsibility and behavior that helps diminish the spread of HIV.
The Group is funded by Generous Donations from Brother Help Thyself and Whitman Walker Health and has meetings and informal speaker series at the DC Center.
To learn more about HOPE DC Like us on Facebook.
For more information about the group please visit http://www.hopedc.org.
Contact Information:
The HOPE Foundation, Inc
C/O The DC Center
2000 14th st. NW Suite 105
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 466-5783
Jim Garza, HOPE DC, Inc., http://www.hopedc.org, +1 (202) 466-5783, [email protected]
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