Community Story
Alison Richards, Women’s Health Center client
In 2005, when Alison Richards found out she had HIV, she didn’t take it well. “I was hysterical,” Richards says. “And then I was in denial. I didn’t want to hear that I had HIV.”
The women-friendly environment, health care and services of the Women’s Health Center are helping Richards face the challenges of living with the virus while raising three children. She’s especially passionate about support groups like the Road to Well Being or Women in Focus. “We talk about getting our lives back, about what we’ve been through. Women go through a lot of the same things. We understand each other,” Richards says, adding with a chuckle, “I spend more time here than I do at home!”
And Richards is, indeed, getting her life back. She says she’s never been on better terms with her three children, one of whom reacted poorly when he found out about her HIV status. She’s a peer at the Women’s Health Center as well as a member of the Community Advisory Board. And she’s got her eye on the future. “I want to be an HIV/AIDS counselor,” she says. “One day, I’m going to get there.”
Make a difference
Women are increasingly at risk of HIV and Africa American women are disproportionally affected. Housing Works continues to confront this disturbing and often overlooked trend. And, as with all of our programs, we address the social and cultural factors—like poverty and homelessness—that are equally to blame.
Support Housing Works now and honor strong women like Alison.
