Community health 'genius'

He cashed his retirement early to get a house. Not to fulfill a dream, but to give a shelter to others, a jewel for people with nothing left.

Billy Russo, 56, managed Ruby House in Winston from 1988 to 1998 to give a home and a resource center for people with AIDS. At the time, knowledge of the syndrome and funding for the victims were scarce, but he managed to spearhead a solid organization based in Douglas County and reaching other areas in the state.

Now, almost 20 years later, Russo, the executive director of the HIV Resource Center, is being recognized for his efforts.

In October, he received the Annual Public Health Genius Award sponsored by Portland-based Community Health Partnership for his achievements with Ruby House and the HIV Resource Center.

"When others saw the 'situation,' Billy saw the need and stepped forward to effect a positive change," the Douglas County Board of Commissioners said in a press release.

With the award, came a check for $3,000, which Russo gave entirely to the center's women and teen outreach program.

"He is the most self-sacrificing person I've ever known," said Janet Buchanan, Mercy Medical Center's vice president of mission and ministry and chairwoman of the HIV Resource Center board. "He is so passionate and committed."

When Russo started, he never thought he would go so far. He moved to the Roseburg area in 1977, while gay rights movements were sweeping the nation's biggest cities. He thought it was time to reach out to more remote, rural areas.

He worked quietly for a while, but as soon as AIDS became an issue, he stepped up to find solutions.

Russo's work with AIDS started in 1985 after a trip to San Francisco.

"I found out the most important issues that needed to be addressed (for people with AIDS) were housing and transportation," he said.

In 1986, he formed a task force with the support of community partners, such as Mercy Medical Center and Umpqua Community Action Network, to learn more about the disease and HIV tests.

"Being a gay man," Russo said, "I wanted to know as much as I could about issues involving gay men."

More than 20 years ago, when AIDS was first identified, he said, there was a lot of fear surrounding the disease, and most victims were gay men.

With Ruby House, he started to support people who had lost everything upon their diagnosis and also helped with initial medical treatments. In 1991, he said, Ruby House lost 21 people.

"I saw AIDS as an invasion to our community," he said. "I really believed that nobody else would (fight) it."

By 1998, with advances in AIDS treatment, the house was finally closed, the HIV Resource Center was founded, and new challenges have come up.

"Education is our biggest challenge," he said. "There's still a lot of myths out there -- there's a lot of intolerance."

Russo said some schools in Douglas County still don't allow the resource center's educators to reach out to the youth, or be part of their health class curriculum.

But no matter the challenges, Russo has been successful, focusing on what comes next.

"He made the resource center become a place where anyone feels welcome," Buchanan said.

Russo said he was surprised with the award, but grateful for the community's respect.

"As a homosexual, I believed most of my life that I couldn't get self-respect and the respect of the community at the same time," he said. "Now, I have."

And with so much focus on his work, Russo still finds time to be part of other groups, such as the Douglas County Republican Central Committee. He's also feeding another passion -- and another contribution to the community.

He is working the land of his home property near Winston, which will be donated to the community upon his death. In this park, as he calls it, he has also planted a tree for every person he helped and who died of AIDS. He is four trees behind, he said, having planted 70 trees in the past 15 years.

"He's an advocate who mobilized people to come and join his cause," Buchanan said. "Our community would be much better off with a few more 'Billy Russos.'"



* You can reach reporter Juliana Renno at 957-4230 or by e-mail at jrenno@newsreview.info.