Colorado AIDS Project: Four Offices Merge to Raise Clout

On Saturday, three regional AIDS organizations merged with the Denver-based Colorado AIDS Project (CAP), a move that officials say will create a more effective influence on government funding and legislation.

"Before, we all spoke independently; but now, we will have a unified front," said Ruth Pederson, interim executive director of CAP. In addition to CAP, the new organization's partners are the Northern Colorado AIDS Project in Fort Collins, the Southern Colorado AIDS Project in Colorado Springs, and the Western Colorado AIDS Project in Grand Junction.

The Boulder County AIDS Project will stay independent, said Jamie Kirkland, chair of its board. "We have very unique needs and services."

The newly merged organization's four regional offices will remain open with their same staffing, said Pederson. Most administrative roles, including accounting and grant-writing, will be centralized.

Grants will still be administered in regions where they are awarded, but now "we have a unified theme in the way we are writing grants," Pederson said. "Now that we're a statewide organization, we will have more of a voice in those national grant applications." "When we sign on to national issues like the AIDS Drug Assistance Program, we are speaking for more clients, so our voice is louder," she said.

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