Making connections at Angela’s House

Portraits of HIV in Youngstown

Gallery

Sure, this small cross-section of people living with HIV in the Mahoning Valley defies the gay, white male template for the disease. But don't miss their gumption. It's something when people who have been judged invite scrutiny. It's a screaming dare. Words and Pictures by Daniel C. Britt.

YOUNGSTOWN — On the street outside the concealed door to Angela’s House in Youngstown, a girl near a bus shelter stomped the icy sidewalk and turned her collar to the wind.

Inside, it was warm, and stockinged feet sank into the carpet.

Like most nights, there was a meal cooking in the sign-less, white duplex set back from the street. Angela’s House is a hidden getaway for Mahoning Valley kids infected or affected by HIV, who are left out in the cold and in need of community.

Angela’s House is a product of the Ursuline Sisters HIV/AIDS Ministry, which was established in 1993.

“It started one program at a time and began as a spiritual support group,” said Brigid Kennedy, associate director of the HIV/AIDS Ministry.

Four years after implementing the ministry, it became evident that more children were attending the Guardian Angel Cafe, which was created as a networking program for adults with HIV or connected to the disease.

Read the full story in Monday’s Vindicator and on vindy.com.