AIDS Alive® was formed by the family and friends of Robert M. Gillin, Jr. (Bob) who died due to complications of AIDS on October 27, 1992 at the age of 30. He was the oldest brother in a upper-middle class, suburban, Catholic family of nine children. He grew up in Bryn Mawr and graduated from the Haverford School in 1981. At Haverford, he was a member of the varsity crew team, represented the U.S. Crew Team at Henley and was especially known for his leadership skills, serving as school president for both his junior and senior years. Bob received the Ken Man Award at his graduation from Haverford, an award voted on by the senior class and faculty that is given to the student who demonstrated outstanding traits of character, scholarship, intelligence and leadership. Bob graduated from Georgetown University with a bachelor of arts degree in English in 1985. He completed the Credit Training Program at Morgan Guarantee in New York, prior to starting his own architectural and interior design firm. We provide Bob's profile here to make the point that Bob was not the typical "face of AIDS" that we or many other people expect to see. His death reminds us that AIDS does not discriminate.
Bob was diagnosed with AIDS in 1990 while living in New York. Shortly thereafter, he moved home to enable us to endure his journey with him. Bob had a deep appreciation and love of life, coupled with the unique gift of making others feel the same way. The significance of his life was as a great person, brother, and friend who had wisdom that surpassed his year's experiences that he shared with all of us. The significance of his death was that he died with grace and dignity and taught his family and friends many things:
- Acceptance of the fact that AIDS affects all of us in some way;
- How to be compassionate toward, and supportive of, those infected by this disease; and
- That his and our family's willingness to be open about his illness could raise awareness among other individuals and families who think that they will not be infected/affected by HIV, and thus, possibly prevent others from having to endure this horrible disease
Throughout Bob's struggle with HIV/AIDS, he was struck by the wealth of organizations and resource materials designed to help individuals deal with the health and medical aspects of AIDS and how few resources existed to help people deal with the psychological, emotional and spiritual struggles that accompany this disease. Thus, Bob decided to channel his talents and energies into creating a video, called Coming to Terms, that would educate those newly affected by the disease and their families and help them to deal with the physical, emotional and spiritual aspects of AIDS. Bob died before finishing his video project and we believe that there is still an unmet need in this area.
Accordingly, the family and friends of Bob, who have witnessed first hand his journey as an HIV infected person and the impact it had on our lives, have joined together in an effort to celebrate Bob's memory and fulfill his vision. In Bob's memory, his family and friends have formed a non-profit organization called AIDS Alive®.
AIDS Alive® Mission
- Raising awareness and promoting prevention, particularly among those who feel they are not impacted by HIV/AIDS; and
- Raising resources to support organizations that address the psychological, emotional and spiritual aspects of this disease
- The 4 A's of HIV/AIDS Education:
- Acceptance: Accepting one's self and recognizing that there are seeds of greatness in each of us.
- Affection: A mutual respect between youth and parents and an understanding of trust in the family.
- Accountability: To be responsible for your choices no matter what the consequences.
- Abstinence: A call to action that challenges youth to have the courage to abstain from alcohol, drugs, and pre-marital sex.
We feel the mission of AIDS Alive® is a timely one. Advances in medicine and the use of cocktails are enabling many people infected with HIV/AIDS to live longer. There is widespread concern that the positive advances in treating this disease are dissipating the focus of AIDS as a crisis resulting in less focus on prevention and more difficulty fund raising among organizations who provide various AIDS services.
AIDS is still a crisis: many of those infected are still dying untimely deaths and many more people continue to become infected. Through AIDS Alive®, we will continue to raise awareness about HIV/AIDS, and raise resources to support organizations providing critical assistance for those who are learning how to live with this disease - those who are responding positively to medical advances, those who are not, and their families and care givers.
