1 post tagged “hiv/aids”

Back Bay/South End

Have you ever gone to a place and realized that it just feels right? That something in the atmosphere makes you feel good? That is the feeling that I get whenever I volunteer at the Boston Living Center. The BLC is exactly what its name claims - a center for living.

The BLC is near Back Bay station, but it is tucked away, almost hidden on a side street so that a passerby might not even notice that it's there. The BLC stands to serve the HIV/AIDS community. AIDS has now been in the United States for more than a 25 years. The disease is still widespread within our country, and much more so internationally, affecting people from all walks of life. With advancements in drug therapies people are living longer and healthier lives as HIV positive individuals. But what about their quality of life? There is a lot of focus on drug therapy, and of course, proper medication is what allows for people inflicted with the disease to live. Treatment for the quality of life is not typically a part of Western medicine. The disease is something that the individuals have, but it is not who they are, and treatment is all the more powerful and comprehensive when it involves the the individual beyond the disease.

That is why places like the BLC are so important. They are here for the treatment and well-being of the people, not just for the treatment of the disease. The mission of the BLC is to create a community where people with HIV/AIDS can feel safe and welcome, where they can receive nutritious meals, a haircut, a massage, counseling, job training, computer education, and medication. It is a place to make friends, to hang out, and to be yourself. How can you not feel good when you go to the BLC? The positive ways that the Living Center affects its members is clear when you visit, and it is contagious. If you have not been there, please read the comments below written by BLC members (from the BLC website):

• Coming to the Boston Living Center and seeing the strength, courage and happiness that so many of the members here exude helps me to find the strength, courage and happiness within myself."

• "The Boston Living Center has proven to be a great source of comfort and strength to me. It is one of the few places I can go where I know I will not be judged, where I know that I am appreciated and welcomed for simply being a fellow human being.
  
  
• "My life has never been better or more productive and I owe a lot to the Boston Living Center for their help in my process"

To help support the BLC's efforts, Boston Cares has recently posted the lunch time meal service opportunities on the calendar. Volunteer work is critical for the success of the BLC. Without volunteers, the meals program costs substantially more money to run, and money is a critical resource for every nonprofit. If you have not yet served at the Living Center - I highly recommend that you do. There is a lot of living going on behind their doors, and everyone is welcome to be a part of it.

(Top Picture: BLC Pharmacy; Bottom Picture: Volunteers serving lunch)