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GAPA Community HIV Project (CGHP) papers

 Collection
Identifier: MSS-95-02

Scope and Content of Collection

This collection contains administrative, programmatic, and other information on the structure and activities of the GAPA Community HIV Project, which spun off from the Gay Asian Pacific Alliance (GAPA)'s Aids Committee in 1989. Materials include: minutes, bylaws, correspondence, reports, grant and financial documents, scripts, speeches, administrative files, newsletters, public relations and media documents, photographs, negatives, and more.

The strong points of the collection include board of directors' minutes from GCHP's founding until 1995; other founding and organizational restructuring materials, including materials on a proposed merger with the Asian AIDS Project (AAP) in the early 1990s; grant and program files covering both educational and social service projects. Most materials are in English, though two files contain Japanese language materials and a few other items are in other or multiple Asian languages.

The two accessions that make up this collection each had their own simple arrangement, either chronologically by board meeting or alphabetically by subject heading. To integrate these two parts and to assist researchers a Series/Subseries order was imposed upon the collection. Some materials were separated from the other materials during the original processing. These materials have become Series 5: Information Files. A series of photographs, apparently from a disbound album, have also been placed at the end of this series.

The series are:

  1. Series 1: Board of Directors;
  2. Series 2: Executive Director;
  3. Series 3: Education;
  4. Series 4: Social Services;
  5. Series 5: Information Files and Photographs.

Dates

  • Creation: 1989-1995

Language of Materials

Collection materials are in English and Japanese

Access

Collection is open for research.

Publication Rights

Copyright has not been assigned to the UCSF Library and Center for Knowledge Management. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Manager of Archives and Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the UCSF Library and Center for Knowledge Management as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.

Copyright restrictions also apply to digital representations of the original materials.

Organizational History

GAPA Community HIV Project (GCHP) is a non-profit, community-based organization whose mission is to stop the transmission of HIV and to support people living with HIV. GCHP was organized in 1989 by members of the HIV/AIDS Committee of the Gay Asian Pacific Alliance (GAPA), a social, political, and support organization of gay and bisexual men of Asian and Pacific Islander heritage. GCHP goals include providing education and prevention services to the public, and practical and emotional support of people living with HIV, their partners, their families, and their friends. Providing services in Cambodian, Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and French, as well as English, the GCHP was the first organization in the country to provide a spectrum of culturally appropriate direct services for Asians and Pacific Islanders living with AIDS and HIV, while acknowledging the diversity within that community.

The Asian/Pacific AIDS Coalition started the Asian and Pacific Islander AIDS Direct Services Program in 1988 with twelve volunteers who were trained by AIDS service providers and Asian health providers through an intensive 40 hour training using models developed by Shanti Project, Visiting Nurses and Hospice, and other emotional support service providers. This training was molded into an effective culturally appropriate model, presented by Asian and Pacific Islander trainers twice a year. The program was created to fill gaps in existing services and works in coordination with other agencies. This training has been providing significant numbers of trained volunteers, who provide direct emotional and practical support to clients. In 1989/1990 this Direct Services Program was transferred to the GCHP with funding for a half-time Program Coordinator, Steve Lew (the former chair of GAPA's HIV/AIDS Committee), who later became GCHP's Executive Director.

In 1992 the San Francisco AIDS Office ranked GCHP fourth out of 124 AIDS service contracts monitored by the agency. In 1993, over 1200 men and their partners utilized GCHP programs to help them with issues related to the risk of HIV infection. Also in 1993 they received funding from the Centers for Disease Control to launch a national technical assistance and training program for gay Asian and Pacific Islander community organizations' HIV prevention efforts. As of 1994 their Direct Support Services provided, annually, case management, HIV treatment counseling, and emotional/practical support to over 140 Asian and Pacific Islander men, women and children with HIV in San Francisco. In 1995 the name was changed from GCHP to the Living Well Project, the name of their very successful network of more than 80 HIV positive Asians and Pacific Islanders, which had been producing a monthly newsletter and providing monthly support activities and networking. Information on the activities of the GCHP also appeared regularly in the Lavender Godzilla, GAPA's newsletter. This included advertisements for services and support groups, as well as announcements of fundraisers and housing requests.

The Asian American Health Forum (AAHF), a national organization dedicated to sound health policy development targeting Asian and Pacific Islanders, served as GCHP's fiscal agent before their incorporation; later on GCHP served as a fiscal agent for other small organizations.

Extent

2 cartons, 2 boxes (3.3)

Abstract

This collection contains materials related to the GAPA Community HIV Project (GCHP) which grew out of the Gay Asian Pacific Alliance (GAPA) HIV/AIDS Committee. It includes, minutes, correspondence, grant and program materials, administrative, organizational, social service and educational files, and photographs.

System of Arrangement

Arranged to the folder level.

Physical Location

Currently located in Parnassus first floor vault, 12B C6 S1 and S3.

Acquisition Information

The GAPA HIV Project (GCHP) Papers were given to the University in two separate accessions. The largest was donated by Steve Lew (Executive Director) in 1996. An additional donation of the papers of GCHP board member Jaime Geaga was made by Willie Walker; the second deed of gift was signed in 2000.

Alternate Forms Available

There are no alternate forms of this collection.

Related Collections

MSS 98-49 AIDS Community Based Organizations Records

MSS 94-59 National Task Force on AIDS Prevention Records

MSS 95-03 AIDS History Project Ephemera Collection

General

Finding Aid Written By:
Julia Bazar
Date Completed:
March 2007

Processing Information

Processed by Julia Bazar in September 2005

Title
Finding Aid to the GAPA Community HIV Project (CGHP) Papers, 1989-1995
Author
Finding Aid written by Julia Bazar
Date
© 2007
Description rules
Finding Aid Prepared Using Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
Description is in English
Sponsor
Funding for processing this collection was provided by Funding for processing this collection was provided by The National Historical Publications and Records Commission

Repository Details

Part of the UCSF Archives and Special Collections Repository

Contact:
UCSF Kalmanovitz Library
530 Parnassus Avenue
San Francisco CA 94143-0840 USA