Brief History of BCPWA

The initial goal of the Persons With AIDS Coalition was to provide a forum for PWAs to advocate for their rights and their health. As gay men were one of the first groups impacted by AIDS, challenging homophobia within the provincial government of the time, as within society as a whole, was an important aspect of this advocacy. The PWA Coalition became the first self help, self-care organization in Canada, entirely run for and by PWAs.

On June 15th, 1986 the first PWAs Coalition Walk-A-Thon was held around the Stanley Park Seawall. This began the annual tradition of AIDS WALKS (now WALK for LIFE) that eventually spread from Vancouver across the country. The organization also began to publish the PWA Newsletter in 1986.

After the Society became incorporated as the Vancouver Persons With AIDS Society, in 1987, the Membership Registry was created to maintain the Society's database and create statistics. It was estimated that within the first year of formation, the Society represented one third of all HIV+ people in BC.

In 1991, 30 different programs were created by the Support Committee to meet the needs of a diverse membership which included the Treatment Information Program (TIP), to provide the Society's membership with current information regarding their health and treatment. At BCPWA's five year anniversary, membership had surpassed 1,000 individuals and the budget had reached $1 million.

In 1992, the Vancouver Persons With AIDS Society formalized its relationship with AIDS Vancouver and the Positive Women's Network by moving together into the Pacific AIDS Resource Centre (PARC). The establishment of the AIDS Secretariat within the BC AIDS Network and the Minister of Health sparked the beginning of the HIV/AIDS division within the Ministry of Health years later. The first (of numerous) surveys of our membership was conducted to determine the quality and quantity of services available to PWAs based on geographical location.

The Prison Liaison Support Project was created in 1992, to provide peer-counselling visits and to assist in providing access to the Complementary Health Fund (proceeds from the AIDS WALK and other fundraised revenue) and treatment to incarcerated members. That same year, through a joint venture with AIDS Vancouver, the PARC Library was established; over the years, the Library has grown to be a valuable resource not only for the two organizations, but also for the greater community as well as for the media.

Of particular note, the Vancouver Persons With AIDS Society changed its name in 1993 to the Persons With AIDS Society of British Columbia (BCPWA) as its membership continued to grow to over 2,500 HIV+ individuals from across the province. The Living Positive Manual (a health and wellness guide for HIV+ people) was first published in 1993. The Society released its third edition of this important resource on World AIDS Day (December 1st) 2004.

Over the next few years, BCPWA Society established itself as not only a leader, but also an advocate collaborating with many other agencies involved in advocacy work. In addition, the Support Program expanded its programs including a sit down Christmas dinner for members. As well, increasing volunteer recruitment and recognition became essential, with PWAs being encouraged to take on leadership roles within the Society. The newsletter continued to be published under the new name of BCPWA Society News after the organization's name change.

Over the next several years, other changes included the creation of the Fund Development Department to separate overall financial planning of the agency from fundraising initiatives and to focus strategies of donor recognition. In addition, during the IX International AIDS Conference held in Vancouver in 1996, the Society's contribution included speaking at the conference, poster presentations and community-based marches.

The Advocacy Department was kept busy assisting members with Schedule C applications, CPP Disability applications and establishing an Advocacy Information Line. In 1997, the Treatment Information Program published their first issue of TIP News to provide current information on treatment issues; they also published a series of seven information pamphlets. Support established new programs such as Boys R Us, in partnership with other agencies, to provide support groups for the diversity of members that BCPWA Society represents.

Membership soared to over 3,000 HIV+ individuals during the 1998/99 fiscal year. And at the close of that year, the Advocacy Department won 100% of their appeals at the BC Benefits Appeal Board of the Ministry of Human Resources. Changes in TIP were seen by the expansion of their Outreach program to include a touring portion of Treatment Information and a survey of members regarding their treatment. A new program was initiated in 1999, called the Life Employment Program to assist Members returning to work.

The first full year of publishing a new resource entitled living + began in the 1999/00 fiscal year and was a magazine amalgamating advocacy issues from BCPWA News and treatment information from TIP News. In January of 2000, after previous cuts to the Complementary Health Fund to eliminate waitlists, the CHF was raised to $45, and then again to $55, after successful fundraising through the AIDS WALK. The end of the millennium also saw sad news, with the death of our 1,000th member.

Other exciting initiatives more recently launched include: the CAM Program to provide Complementary and Alternative Medicine information to under-serviced communities, and HEPHive, a program collaboration with Vancouver Native Health aimed at providing education and information around Hepatitis C and HIV co-infection. In 2002, BCPWA introduced its second annual special event fundraiser: AccolAIDS, an awards gala honouring achievements in the BC AIDS movement. In addition, in 2005, the Advocacy Department launched its online Action Kits, a step-by-step self-advocacy tool for HIV+ individuals on disability income and related benefits. And in 2006, BCPWA received the BC Association of Broadcasters' Humanity Award, entitling the Society to extensive broadcast radio and television advertising over a one year period; through this opportunity, they launched a provincial campaign to heighten awareness about HIV-related stigma and discrimination.

After more than 25 years since the epidemic began, and more than twenty years since the BCPWA Society was established, the organization now has a membership of over 4,400 HIV+ members and more than 25 full-time staff.

History Documents

In honour of our twentieth year of operation, we have published brief and detailed documents of our history.