The Bridging Access to Care (BAC) charity awards benefit held on World AIDS Day 2015 last week highlighted the continued plight of the city’s low-income and formerly homeless individuals living with HIV/AIDS, and was a life-affirming affair celebrity affair filled with the likes of Academy-Award nominated actress/activist Rosie Perez.
The event, dubbed “Saving Our Homes, Saving Our Lives” was held at the Raymour & Flanigan showroom in Downtown Brooklyn, 490 Fulton Street off Bond Street. World AIDS Day is held every Dec. 1 each year and is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV & AIDS, show their support for people living with HIV and to commemorate people who have died. on Dec. 1 every year to
“Thirty-five percent of all people living with HIV/AIDS in New York City are homeless or unstably housed and 60 percent experience homelessness or unstable housing at least three times over the course of their illness,” said BAC Executive Director Glenda G. Smith. “Our job is to help our clients overcome the persistent barriers and give them the quality care they desperately need. With the support of people like Raymour & Flanigan to help us spread the word, we know that our clients can truly benefit from our housing programs.”
Smith, who was born and raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant, said she became involved with BAC, which was formerly known as the Brooklyn AIDS Task Force, while a student at Hunter College working in health education and stuck with the nonprofit out of her belief in its cause.
“Two of my uncles passed away from HIV/AIDS after catching the disease abusing drugs and to this day my family and I miss them very much,” said Smith.
Currently BAC operates out of five locations including Bed-Stuy, Flatbush, Williamsburg and Crown Heights, and has a multitude of services including health screenings, housing and mental health among others.
“We are here for the community and not just for for people with HIV/AIDS,” said Smith. “We have good quality services with respect for people and we deliver them in a way that they feel good that they came for our help. We’ve seen clients come out of shelters with nothing and now their lives are transformed.”
Perez was on hand to receive the The World AIDS Day Humanitarian Award for her long work as a HIV/AIDS activist in the early 90s and for using her star power to educate national audiences on the epidemic.
Raymour & Flanigan President & CEO Neil Goldberg, who utilizes the showroom space for several good local causes throughout the year, said it was a no-brainer to open it up for BAC.
“The vital work that Bridging Access to Care does for those living with HIV/AIDS and mental illness throughout the Brooklyn communities is incredible,” said Goldberg. “To recognize and partner with such an important organization is an honor for all of us at Raymour & Flanigan.”
