After 10 years, AIDS Work is moving its office from Dewitt Mall to new offices on 501 South Meadow Street. "People might worry that AIDS Work is disappearing, but it's not," said Ann Carter, special events coordinator.

Tompkin County's AIDS Work was originally a task force of the Southern Tier AIDS Program (STAP), created in 1984 to serve eight counties. After a separation in the mid-1980s, AIDS Work rejoined STAP in January 2002, said Diane Brown, STAP's executive director. Brown said that some people might have thought that AIDS Work disappeared during the merger, but that is not true. The cities of Elmira and Oneonta have one-person offices, but that will never be the case in Ithaca, she said.

In addition to case management, AIDS Work programs include prevention efforts such as street outreach, a food pantry, and a syringe exchange program. The group's syringe program is the first implemented in rural New York.

"We're serving the most vulnerable members of our society," said Stacy Delong, a harm reduction coordinator who oversees the syringe exchange program. The exchange program began two years ago, and it already has 40 participants, she said. The exchange could not fit its operations at the DeWitt Mall offices.

Since the offices on Meadow Street can be expanded, the move is one way for AIDS Work to be more efficient, said Carter. "It makes sense to only have one office."

While the number of clients taking advantage of AIDS Work programs has not dropped, the group is getting less grant money, said Carter.

AIDS Works biggest fundraiser is the AIDS Ride for Life, a 100-mile bike ride around Cayuga Lake that will take place Sept. 11. Each rider commits to raising $500, and some training is necessary, said Carter. For more information, telephone 607-272-4098.

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