Erie in the News
For more information about Erie Family Health Center, please contact Valerie Comprelli at 312.432.7463 or vcomprelli@eriefamilyhealth.org
Paint the Town Red: a 20 year celebration of Lending Hands for Life in the HIV/AIDS community
By: Christiana Roach
Written: December 12, 2009
Written: December 12, 2009
On February 24, 2010, Erie Family Health will host Paint the Town Red, a gala honoring the 20th anniversary of Lending Hands for Life (LHL). Located on Chicago’s West Side, LHL is an award-winning HIV/AIDS program and an extension of Erie Health’s mission to provide comprehensive, community based, quality health care regardless of a patient’s ability to pay.
The impact of LHL is best appreciated through the experience of its patients. One such patient tells a story which brings home just how vital LHL’s services are.
Marcelo moved to Chicago several years ago. While he quickly obtained employment, the job lacked health insurance. Fortunately, a student told him about Erie Family Health Centers, a “place where everybody is seen”. As part of a routine check-up, Marcelo requested an HIV test. Then, he went home and got on with his new life. When he received the call telling him he was HIV positive, his world stopped. An HIV diagnosis may no longer be a death sentence, but treatment is costly, finding the right specialist confusing, and doing it all in a new city, your family thousands of miles away… the thought of doing it alone was crushing.
But, Marcelo wasn’t alone. Erie’s staff immediately referred him to Lending Hands for Life. LHL went beyond just informing Marcelo of programs to pay for the costly medications required, it enrolled him in those programs. LHL didn’t simply hand over a list of specialists Marcelo needed to see, it handled the referrals itself. LHL provided the counseling and support essential for those newly diagnosed with HIV. “LHL has always been more than doctors, case managers and nurses; they are my family in Chicago…They took care of everything.”
For the last three years, Marcelo’s viral load has been undetectable. He is healthy, active, and, for the past two years, a member of Erie Health’s Board of Directors.
LHL currently cares for over 150 patients living with HIV/AIDS. It provides all of them with counseling, education, case management, medication monitoring, and primary care. It is the only such program on the West Side and a nationally recognized model for community-based, inclusive healthcare. Paint the Town Red is a chance to raise awareness about the program’s value and about the options open to those with HIV. In Marcelo’s words, “Helping people with HIV/AIDS live a healthy life will allow them to become happy and productive members of the community. Firsthand, I can attest that this is absolutely true.”
To make an appointment at any Erie Family Health Center, please call: 312-666-3494 or visit their website: www.eriefamilyhealth.org/ .
Paint the Town Red will be held on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 at Martini Park, 151 West Erie 
Street. The event begins at 6pm and will last until 9pm. Tickets are $60 in advance and can be purchased by phoning 312-432-7378 or by visiting www.eriefamilyhealth.org/red.
Street. The event begins at 6pm and will last until 9pm. Tickets are $60 in advance and can be purchased by phoning 312-432-7378 or by visiting www.eriefamilyhealth.org/red.