Reflecting back, Moving Forward: A Mazzoni Center Retrospective

Opening reception Thu., Aug. 20, 6-8 p.m., free, through Sept. 30, William Way Community Center, 1315 Spruce St., 215-563-0652, mazzonicenter.org.

by Sherri Hospedales

[ lgbtq ]

In 1979, a group of volunteers formed the Lavender Health Project, the only LGBTQ community health center in Philadelphia and the first HIV/AIDS organization in Pennsylvania. Most of its services were offered to patients at little to no cost.

Thirty years later, its name has changed, but its purpose is largely the same — the Mazzoni Center provides disease prevention and educational services to more than 30,000 members of the LGBTQ and HIV/AIDS communities each year.

In honor of its big 3-0, the organization put together an exhibit featuring documents, posters, artifacts, photographs and newspaper clippings that chronicle its life span. Notable pieces include an original Lucky Stiffs condom dispenser from Philadelphia's gay bars, a collection of the first HIV/AIDS prevention literature from the '80s, and original board notes and rules that reveal how the community center came to be.

All this self-congratulation doesn't mean the Mazzoni Center has declared victory over HIV/AIDS, homophobia and other LGBTQ obstacles. "This exhibit represents a sense of pride and accomplishment that we as a community have made," says communications director Dave Rumsey. "But we still have a lot of work to do."

Opening reception Thu., Aug. 20, 6-8 p.m., free, through Sept. 30, William Way Community Center, 1315 Spruce St., 215-563-0652, mazzonicenter.org.