Philly AIDS Thrift will award $200,000 in grants this spring to 24 local organizations fighting HIV/AIDS during the pandemic. Among the organizations receiving grants are ActionWellness, the Attic Youth Center, Bebashi-Transition to Hope, Black and Latinx Community Control, Colours, the LGBT Elder Initiative, and Mazzoni Center, and the William Way LGBT Community Center. The Philly AIDS Thrift grant program began in 2014 and takes place twice a year.
“We are proud and humbled to be able to fund these grants this year,” said Philly AIDS Thrift Board President Michael Bryne, in a press release. “The pandemic has hit each of us, including Philly AIDS Thrift. Closing for almost four months and sales being down has not dimmed our commitment to our mission. Our hardships pale in comparison to the many deserving programs doing the very real work relied upon by individuals across the Delaware Valley affected by HIV/AIDS.”
“We are so appreciative of this grant from Philly AIDS Thrift,” said David Griffith, director of programs and outreach at the LGBT Elder Initiative. “This past year has obviously been a huge challenge for so many in our communities and it’s been really important that programs and services supporting people living with HIV have been able to adapt to address emerging needs. The support from Philly AIDS Thrift is going to allow us to continue our virtual HIV & Aging programming until we’re able to safely be back in person.”
The grant received by William Way LGBT Community Center will be used for programming for the Arcila-Adams Trans Resource Center, including providing PrEP and prevention education through partnership with local healthcare providers, providing twice monthly support groups facilitated by people of lived experience, providing monthly health and wellness workshops.
“William Way is grateful for Philly AIDS Thrift’s grant in support of HIV services in our Trans Resource Center,” WWCC executive director Chris Bartlett said. “When the history of Philadelphia’s HIV philanthropy is written, PAT’s contributions over so many years will be a key part of that story.”
The Mazzoni Center plans to use their grant to continue in-person HIV/STI testing and support services at their Washington Square West Testing Site, as well as to ensure the ability to safely and effectively provide critical services to patients, clients, and the larger LGBTQ community who use the site.
“In this incredibly challenging and uncertain year, we are profoundly grateful for the generous support of the Philly AIDS Thrift grant program,” said Chelsea L. Switzer, Mazzoni Center Corporate & Foundation Relations Officer. “Their grant ensured we could safely and effectively continue to provide critical HIV services our patients, clients, and the larger LGBTQ community. For more than a decade, PAT has been instrumental in our efforts to support HIV/AIDS services and programming in Philadelphia.”
The grants and other services provided by Philly AIDS Thrift come from the sales of donated items at the organization’s two locations. The main space at 710 S. 5th Street features three floors of items including books, household items, fashions, toys, and decorations. The second space, Philly AIDS Thrift @ Giovanni’s Room, sits on the corner of 12th and Pine St. and sells similar items with an emphasis on used and new books. The organization has provided over $3.1 million dollars to the community since it began operating in 2005.
“It is amazing to all of us that we have surpassed the milestone of giving away over $3 million dollars since our inception,” said PAT Founder/Manager Christina Kallas. “We could not do it without our generous donors and enthusiastic shoppers. Our staff and volunteers work very hard every day to make sure that we can make the biggest difference possible in the lives of people living with and affected by HIV/AIDS across the Delaware Valley.”
The organizations receiving grants this spring are: Action Wellness, AIDS Delaware, AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania, Angels in Motion, Attic Youth Center, Bebashi – Transition to Hope, Black and Latinx Community Control, Camp Dreamcatcher Inc., Colours Organization, Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agricolas, Congreso de Latinos Unidos Inc., Family Service of Chester County, Family Services of Montgomery County, LGBT Elder Initiative, Mazzoni Center’s Washington West Testing Site, Metropolitan Area Neighborhood Nutrition Alliance, Neighborhood United Against Drugs, One Day At A Time/Urban Affairs Coalition, Planned Parenthood Keystone, Prevention Point Philadelphia’s Syringe Services Program, Resources for Human Development’s Morris Home, Siloam Wellness’s From Food Pantry to Table, SOL Collective, and William Way LGBT Community Center.
The next request for grant proposals will take place towards the end of 2021. For more information about grant awards, donations or how to get involved, please visit www.phillyaidsthrift.com or call 215-922-3186.