We are increasingly worried about the people, your and our neighbors, that we serve. The safety net of services that they need and rely on because of their HIV/AIDS and other challenges is being jeopardized by stretched private resources.

When one of our neighbors, Michael, came to us three years ago, he had become homeless and addicted to drugs and alcohol. We worked side by side with him to get him into treatment, find a suitable apartment and help him gain the skills he needed to get a job. Over the time we have worked with Michael, he has become homeless several more times and even relapsed. However as good neighbors, we kept taking him back, confident that he would be successful. Our faith in him has paid off as he has been in his own apartment for a year, obtained his first in job nearly 15 years and has been drug-free for 8 months.

Another neighbor, David, lives in a very isolated rural community and is scared to ask for help because of the stigma of having HIV. Rejected most of his life by his family and community, he has been in trouble with the law and his AIDS diagnosis has made him very fragile medically. He keeps letting us into his life, reaching out to his case worker when his forward progress is vulnerable. Without us, he would likely stop taking his medications and give up, shortening his life.

A young small town neighbor, Monica, lives with her frail grandmother who is her sole caretaker that struggles to understand the many services Monica needs to manage her HIV and other challenges. Her case worker attends meetings, advocates for Monica and helps her grandmother make decisions that will help her reach her teenage years and hopefully beyond.

Our clients look to us to help them, to hold their hand through difficult times and live as well and long as possible. Don’t we all want that for every one of our neighbors?