From now until World AIDS Day, December 1, New York-based AIDS service organization Housing Works will be collecting goods such as first aid kits, clothing and canned items to send to those affected by Hurricane Noel in Haiti and the Dominican Republic (hwupdate.org, 11/9).
A total of 250,000 people are living with HIV/AIDS in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, with the latter having the highest rate of infection in the Western Hemisphere, at 5.6 percent.
“People with HIV/AIDS in the Dominican Republic and Haiti are among the most marginalized in both countries,” says Charles King, president and CEO of Housing Works. “They are in areas that are missed by other relief efforts, so it is crucial they receive the essential goods they need.”
Items will be accepted at all Housing Works locations in Manhattan, as well as at their “Reading of Names” vigil that will be held in City Hall Park in Manhattan on December 1, World AIDS Day.
"I am psychologically suffering from body wasting, mainly hips, face, legs and arms. Does anyone know where I can order something (maybe underwear with foam) to fill the sunken hips, so that pants can start looking normal? I feel pathetic when I look at myself in the mirror in jeans—jeans used to fill up so nicely, now they just hang!"
