Ohio: Group That Feeds AIDS Sufferers Struggling

In its 10th year, Project Open Hand-Columbus (POH-C) is nearing its 250,000 meal with 100 volunteers but dwindling grant support and an uncertain future. POH-C's budget had reached $250,000 in recent years, but it has dropped to $188,000 this year, and two of three paid staff have been laid off. The agency is exploring a merger or relationship with other social-service providers, said board member Jackson Taylor, whose son Matt died of AIDS in 1994 before POH-C, Matt's brainchild, had been open a year. Jackson added that some foundations favor nonprofits that offer combined services.

Volunteers prepare and deliver meals to clients and run a food pantry. Most of the food comes from the Mid-Ohio FoodBank. About 100 people receive three meals a week, and 75 others get food and nutritional advice, including monthly lunches where health and survival information issues are discussed, said Laurie Wetlin, POH-C's nutrition coordinator. Wetlin, a former volunteer, is a dietetic technician and the agency's only paid staff member.

Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the resulting weak economy, finding operating funds has been difficult, Wetlin said. "This is a bad year," said Jackson. "We're looking at every dollar we spend. We've not cut back in services," he said. "We don't have as many ingredients," said Jan Yates, a Children's Hospital dietetic technician who helps prepare meals once a week. "We have to be more creative."

Caseworkers at the Columbus AIDS Task Force (CATF) and other agencies refer people to POH. About 2,400 people live with HIV/AIDS in Franklin County, said CATF. As AIDS care has evolved and lives have been extended, POH-C's emphasis has switched from homebound care to preventive health care.

Client demographics have changed, too, said Wetlin. About 20 percent of clients are female; and more than half are minorities. Poverty remains a constant.

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