History of AIDS Resource Center in Heartside
The Grand Rapids AIDS Resource Center opened in 1988 and was located at 42 South Division. Started as the AIDS Taskforce in 1985 by Jim Gardner and Larry Abbot, the Center primarily helped those diagnosed with AIDS obtain food and medication necessary to sustain themselves. In October 1992, community members associated with the AIDS Resource Center made a pilgrimage to Washington DC to submit a quilt panel to the Names Project. 52 names were included on the panel from Grand Rapids. As of 2021, about 13,723 people from Michigan have died from Aids Related Illnesses. This mural commemorates the fight for AIDS related healthcare and the impact AIDS has had on the Grand Rapids community and LGBTQIA+ persons in Heartside and West Michigan. Deeper Dive into Heartside's AIDS Resource Center
In 1991, under the guidance of Executive Director Jan Koopman, the Aids Resource Center received a $20,000 grant from the AIDS Foundation as part of a United Way campaign, which helped the center to expand its services to more clients. By 1996, Jan Koopman had retired as Executive Director and was replaced by Mary Ellen Finch. The AIDS Resource Center was an unmatched resource in the fight against AIDS from its inception in the 1980s. The Center’s buddy program matched people with AIDS to someone who would serve as a friend and support system, alleviating some of the isolation felt by those battling the disease. According to John Fraleigh, AIDS Task Force Secretary, aside from working with local hospice services, some of the Task Force’s goals included finding local individuals to provide nursing and counseling to those diagnosed with AIDS. The Center also provided transportation, medical counseling, support groups, housing, and legal and medical assistance. With the often-misguided assumptions and general misunderstandings surrounding AIDS both from within the medical community and outside it, battling the disease was often an isolating, lonely, and hopeless experience. The AIDS Resource Center provided a beacon of light at the end of the tunnel for those suffering from AIDS to be able to receive resources and compassion during a time when they were most needed. Poem excerpts from one of the AIDS Resource Center contacts who journeyed to Washington DC to witness the Voices Project and inspired the mural: “ D is dying. M is dead. L is dead. T, J and J are dead. E is dying. B is dead. Countless others. Memory is precious. Empty, broken, grief filled heart. Afraid, yet drawn to the sacred powers of the Quilt. The sad has permeated my soul for oh so long, yet the tears are locked, unable to reach the surface in surrender. Arriving to a sky-filled meteor shower over Washington…… “ “The long locked tears flow over the top to finally cleanse my weary heart. This monument of color and feeling far surpasses any monument I have known before. I am moved. A vigil of candles surround me forever” *D is dying. M is dead. L is dead. T, J and J are dead. E is dying. B is dead. Countless others. Memory is precious. Empty, broken, grief filled heart. Afraid, yet drawn to the sacred powers of the Quilt. The sad has permeated my soul for oh so long, yet the tears are locked, unable to reach the surface in surrender. Arriving to a sky-filled meteor shower over Washington… This monument of color and feeling far surpasses any monument I have known before. I am moved. A vigil of candles surround (sic) me forever. The trees above glow with the fire of many hearts. The full moon shows our path. The newly birthed power fills me to overflowing, excising all sense of lack. I am not alone. –JA 
