Big Bend Cares to Expand Support for Tallahassee Families Experiencing Homelessness with $5 Million Grant from Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos 32 organizations across the U.S. receive a total of $102.5 million from the Bezos Day 1 Families Fund to connect families with housing and hope TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – (December 1, 2025): Big Bend Cares,…
From the Tallahassee Democrat: In 2025, HIV is no longer a death sentence, but that wasn’t the case when Big Bend Cares began this work 40 years ago in 1985. Thanks to medical advances and comprehensive care, people living with HIV can live long, healthy lives. Yet here in our community, HIV/AIDS remains a significant…
Overview Big Bend Cares (BBC), a nonprofit AIDS Service Organization serving the 8-county Big Bend Region, seeks proposals to assist the organization with developing a comprehensive, 3-year Strategic Plan in collaboration with the Board of Directors and Staff. Introduction of Big Bend Cares Our Mission To advance community wellness for all by providing comprehensive care…
From the Tallahassee Democrat: Big Bend Cares began at a time when fear and stigma latched on to a vicious disease that bore the misnomer as “the gay man’s disease.” The AIDS epidemic stole the lives of more than 100,000 U.S. residents in the 1980s and deaths soared to nearly half a million by the…
From The Body Pro: Health care providers have long worried about patients turning to Dr. Google for medical advice, fearing the reliability of the answers they find online. Now, a new issue is emerging: the rise of AI chatbots like ChatGPT, which can provide quick medical answers but sometimes deliver misinformation with an air of…
Big Bend Cares / Care Point is proud to celebrate its 40th anniversary of providing comprehensive care and promoting sexual health for individuals with HIV/AIDS across the eight-county region surrounding Tallahassee. As part of this milestone, the Board of Directors is pleased to announce Amber R. Tynan as the agency’s next CEO. Following a nationwide…
From Health News Florida: The number of HIV patients in Florida has steadily climbed over the past five years. During HIV/AIDS Awareness Month, professionals are spreading the word about risks and care access. December is HIV/AIDS Awareness Month, and health advocates across the state and country are educating the public on the various treatment and…
From tallahassee.com: Take a step in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the community at the 34th Annual Tallahassee AIDS Walk next month. Big Bend Cares, in partnership with Neighborhood Medical Center and Bond Community Health Center, will hit the Southwood Nature Trail on Thursday, Sept. 12. Each year, the walk continues to grow, drawing hundreds…
From poz.com: Is HIV stigma finally decreasing in the United States? More Americans believe so, found the 2024 State of HIV Stigma report. “For the first time in five years, [the report] found a statistically significant decline of HIV stigma in the U.S., with 85% of Americans saying they believe HIV stigma exists, down from 89% in…
From tampabay.com: Robert Gallo, 87, is still hunting for a cure to HIV. And he’s bringing his research to Tampa this summer. Gallo, an influential scientist who’s credited as the co-discoverer of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, is joining the University of South Florida faculty in July. He plans to dive into a range…
From TheBodyPro: Fewer than half of cisgender women on oral antiretroviral therapy expressed an interest in trying injectable HIV treatment, a U.S. survey found. […] Researchers surveyed 1,078 cisgender women living with HIV in nine U.S. urban areas during 2020-2021 about their interest in long-acting injectable HIV treatment. Currently, only cabotegravir/rilpivirine (Cabenuva) is approved in…
From goodnewsnetwork.org: A new study has unveiled a likely future cure for HIV which uses molecular scissors to ‘cut out’ HIV DNA from infected cells. To cut out this virus, the team used CRISPR-Cas gene editing technology—a groundbreaking method that allows for precise alterations to a patient’s genome, for which its inventors won the Nobel Prize…
From hivjusticeworldwide.org: HIV criminalisation describes the unjust application of criminal law to people living with HIV based solely on their HIV status. This includes the use of HIV-specific criminal statutes or general criminal laws to prosecute people living with HIV for unintentional HIV transmission, perceived or potential HIV exposure, and/or non-disclosure of known HIV-positive status.…
From wtxl.com: All items excluding, food and electricity, have seen a 4 percent increase in cost. That’s according to the US. Bureau of Labor Statistics. So holiday gifts have not been a priority for some in the Big Bend following a year of inflation and since Hurricane Idalia. But that’s not stopping agencies from keeping…
From tallahasseemagazine.com: In our midst are dozens of meritorious organizations dedicated to bettering our community and the people who call it home. They are focused on the needs of vulnerable people and demonstrate the capacity of towns and cities and other collectives to be stronger than the sum of their parts. Their combined efforts help…
From aidsmap.com: A CRISPR-based gene-editing therapy known as EBT-101 was not associated with serious adverse effects in the first three treated study participants, researchers reported last week at the European Society for Gene & Cell Therapy annual meeting in Brussels. The presentation, however, was devoid of any data about whether the treatment works to control…
From pbs.org: Nationwide, an estimated 1.2 million people are eligible to receive medication that can prevent the spread of life-threatening HIV infection. But only roughly a third of those eligible are currently accessing preexposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, which is seen as key to eventually ending the HIV epidemic in the United States. A set of…
From the FAMUan: Immerse yourself into the dynamic arts and culture scene of Tallahassee at Artopia 2023, an annual art auction that celebrates local and regional talent while contributing to the fight against HIV/AIDS through captivating art sales, live music and cultural experiences. For the 25th consecutive year, local and regional artists, musicians and performers are…
From aidsvu.org: For National Women and Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, AIDSVu spoke with Dr. Adaora Adimora about increasing the rate of PrEP use among women and minorities impacted by HIV. Adaora Adimora, MD, MPH, is a Professor of Epidemiology at the UNC School of Medicine and Co-Director of the Center for AIDS Research. Q: Your…
Big Bend Cares offers its huge congratulations to Melissa Davis for being selected as cover artist for Artopia 2023! Her piece “Spring Embrace” will represent the event, and you’ll have your chance to bid on it and many more on June 24th! See more of her work at https://www.meldavisart.com/
From aidsmap.com: Although equally considered “older people with HIV”, long-term HIV survivors and people with HIV who are aged over 65 have markedly different characteristics and related needs. This is what a Spanish study published in PLOS ONE has found, confirming that people who are ageing with HIV are a heterogeneous group. Today, half of people with…
From WTXL Tallahassee: In 2020, more than 30,000 people were diagnosed with HIV in the country. More than 127,000 people are currently living with HIV in the state of Florida, according to the CDC. People in Tallahassee are stepping up to make sure aids awareness is on the front line in our community. Read More…
From AIDSVu.org: Black people represented 14% of PrEP users in 2021, but 42% of new HIV diagnoses in 2020, while Hispanic/Latinx people represented 17% of PrEP users in 2021 and 27% of new HIV diagnoses in 2020. ATLANTA – July 29, 2022– Today, AIDSVu released the first-ever publicly available state-level PrEP use data and maps by…
From the CDC Foundation: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in eight people living with HIV in the United States is undiagnosed, and more than one third of all new HIV infections are transmitted by people who do not know they have HIV. HIV self-tests, which can be done at…
From The Body Pro: Too many researchers working on a cure for HIV neglect to sample populations that represent people who are most affected by HIV, according to a recently published report from George Washington University. The authors reveal that only half of the scientific publications reviewed reported any demographic data from their study populations. “Given…
From NIH: The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, has launched a Phase 1 clinical trial evaluating three experimental HIV vaccines based on a messenger RNA (mRNA) platform—a technology used in several approved COVID-19 vaccines. NIAID is sponsoring the study, called HVTN 302, and the NIAID-funded…
Pictured: Robert Stuart, Dr. Thomas Hicks’ partner, standing next to the plaque naming Exam Room #1 at Care Point Health & Wellness Center “To have a room or area named after you at Care Point is the ultimate tribute and recognition,” says Stanley Kahn II, Board President. Dr. Thomas L. Hicks was both…
From independent.co.uk: Scientists appear to have cured HIV in a woman for the first time, making her the third person to be cured. A group of American researchers used a new method of transplanting stem cells that they hope could be administered to dozens of people every year. The woman, who is of mixed…
From aidsmap.com: Eighteen months ago, aidsmap.com reported on a study that suggested a mechanism behind some people’s ability to control their HIV without drugs. A new study, published in the scientific journal Cell, used sophisticated probes to uncover every bit of HIV genetic material hidden in the cells of six patients. It goes a long way towards…
From independent.co.uk: Jake Glaser is sitting in a spacious house in Santa Monica, California, overlooking the waves he loves to surf. He’s been staying with family friends. Behind him hang several pieces of modern art, including one purchased by his father Paul Michael Glaser (best known for his portrayal of Detective Dave Starsky in…
From france24.com: From the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, as fear and isolation spread, Dave Perruzza had one thought — he had seen it before. “For me, it was thinking about the AIDS epidemic all over again, how nobody took it seriously,” said Perruzza, who owns two LGBT bars in Washington, the US capital.…
On February 28th, Board of Directors President Dan Taylor presented the Care Point Health and Wellness Kid’s Nook plaque, named in honor of Edith Rabin Linn. Linn’s daughter, Helene Linn, was in attendance and is pictured with Taylor. Edith Rabin Linn was born in Pittsburgh as a first generation American. She devoted her life to…
Due to the recent concern with the spread of SARS-coV2 (coronavirus), Big Bend Cares is continuing to monitor the situation and environment in our community. The safety of our clients and staff is our highest priority, and we want to ensure everyone has the appropriate and accurate resources. At this time, our office remains open…
World AIDS Day Awareness event in conjunction with the Quarterly Health Screening event was held on Saturday December 7th, 2019 at the Haffye Hays Park in Greenville Florida from 10:00 am until 2:00 pm. World AIDS Day designated on December 1st every year since 1998 is an opportunity to unite in our effort to stop…
Big Bend Cares will be kicking off the ‘$5,000 for 500 Food Bags’ campaign on December 3, 2019.
You can be the reason a child smiles this holiday season. We have approximately 250 children signed up for our Holiday Angels program and every one deserves to be sponsored! Email csteiner@bigbendcares.org to sponsor a child.
Big Bend Cares was happy to participate in Florida Blue’s appreciation event.
(CNN) – More than 37 million people worldwide have been infected with HIV or AIDS. For the first time in nearly 20 years, a new strain of the virus has been identified. The newly identified strain is more like an ancestral strain and likely circulating in the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to a new study…
It is with a heavy heart that Big Bend Cares must share that our colleague Frances George has passed away. Since June of 2016, she served as a Case Manager in Gadsden and Leon Counties. Coworkers remember her as “a very quiet person but she had a sharp tongue and was passionate about her clients,”…
Join Big Bend Cares in honoring the annual World AIDS Day by joining us at these events: World AIDS Day Kickoff at 926 November 30 @ 10:00 pm – December 1 @ 2:00 am 926, 926 W Tharpe St, Tallahassee, FL 32303 United States + Google Map Help us start of World AIDS Day right by joining us at 926 Bar and…
In a survey of more than 10,000 students identifying as LGBTQ+, the Human Rights Campaign found at least 40 percent said they didn’t feel their community accepted them. Steps have been made in recent years to create a more inclusive world, but LGBTQ+ students must still ensure any college they attend embraces these communities and…
Many organizations and foundations offer scholarship awards specifically for LGBTQIA students to ensure lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex and asexual students have the opportunity to pursue higher education. Some opportunities are exclusively for LGBTQIA students, while others may be open to ally and questioning students as well. These awards help students achieve their…
Tallahassee Democrat Published 5:14 p.m. ET June 26, 2017 | Updated 5:16 p.m. ET June 26, 2017 The auction is silent but the impact of Artopia 2017 is immense. Local and regional artists donate their artwork, including a few signed and numbered limited editions. Money raised from the annual event held at the Tucker Civic Center on…
Thank you to everyone who donated art to Artopia, attended, or took art home with them! Artopia was a huge success, and we are so appreciative of everyone in our #BBCCommunity. If you won an item, you should have received a text notification letting you know that your bid was the winner. If you did win…
AM Break with Ann & Audra May 25 · How much do we love Charlie Adams?? We don’t have the words! So watch this instead and find out what’s happening with Big Bend Cares and more about Charlie’s second, very special gig that’s going to impact our community for the better! (Here’s a hint “Care Point”….) Oh,…
Jeff Burlew , Democrat senior writerPublished 1:30 p.m. ET May 10, 2017 | Updated 1:30 p.m. ET May 10, 2017 The state of Florida is signing off on the environmental cleanup at Big Bend Cares new health care facility, which is being built on the site of an old auto shop. The Department of Environmental Protection told…
Artopians Nancy Jefferson, AJ Brown, Ron Sutterer, Mike Cook,and Kristen Summers are presenting their work at Chain of Parks this year. Please visit their booths this weekend and thank them and LeMoyne for supporting Big Bend Cares! Find out more info about this year’s event here!
We are now accepting art submissions for Artopia 2017! Our Artopia page has updated info and the online submission form for those who want to give us your information prior to delivering your art piece(s). We are excited to see the creativity our Artopians will share this year! Find out more about Artopia here. Artopia…
Thanks to everyone to came out to support AIDS Walk, sponsored, joined a team, and helped us spread awareness! We met and passed our fundraising goal, with a total of $26,000 raised. A special thanks to our performers, Tuesday Supper Club, The Good Little Chickens, and the Seminole Tap Troupe for providing entertainment when the…
Dr. Jonathan Appelbaum, professor of internal medicine at the FSU College of Medicine Florida State University’s Dr. Jonathan Appelbaum remembers that day in 1981 when a young patient was admitted to the hospital with a rare case of pneumocystis pneumonia. Appelbaum, an internal medicine resident at the time, and his colleagues did not recognize the…
TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) – A new full-service medical facility on the southside of Tallahassee broke ground Tuesday. Representatives with Care Point Health and Wellness Center announced that the $11 million medical facility is intended to function as a one-stop medical home for patients in the area. They said they are positioned to serve the Southside area…
TaMaryn Waters, Democrat staff writer7:04 p.m. EDT September 13, 2016 The groundbreaking was a decade in the making. On Tuesday, a boxed frame collected ceremonial concrete that was churned and smoothed. The inaugural foundation symbolizes the start of construction of Care Point Health and Wellness Center, which will stretch along an entire city block at South Monroe…
Listen to our Deputy Director, Charlie Adams, talk about HIV/AIDS on Perspectives with Tom Flanigan here. They are joined by Candace DeMatteis, policy chief for the Florida Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease; Brenda Olsen, chief mission officer for the American Lung Association of the Southeast; and Dr. Nicole Bixler, president of the Florida Osteopathic Medical Association…
WFSU • By ARYANNA DUHL • JUL 27, 2016 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration may be lifting regulations on blood donations from gay men. The move comes after pressure from activists in the wake of a mass shooting at an Orlando gay club and blood shortages that followed. Big Bend Cares Deputy Director Charlie…
Original article from The Advocate BY KELSEY LOUIE AUGUST 11 2016 5:25 AM EDT August 11, 1981 — 35 years ago to this day — was a day like no other. Fear was spreading rapidly since The New York Times published the first article about AIDS, titled “Rare Cancer Seen in 41 Homosexuals,” July 3…
TALLAHASSEE, FL (WTXL) — Work is now underway to expand a Tallahassee healthcare organization in the city’s Southside neighborhood. WTXL first reported about Big Bend Cares’ expansion plans last September. The organization is in the process of adding a 25,000-square foot facility across from its current location at Magnolia and Monroe streets. Deputy director Charlie…
Vice Media A drug called Truvada is the first FDA-approved means of preventing HIV infection. If an HIV-negative person takes the pill every day, he or she is nearly 99 percent protected from contracting the virus. Controversy continues to surround the broad uptake of Truvada, but the landscape of safer sex and HIV prevention changes…
CNN A French teenager infected at birth with HIV has shown the ability to control levels of the infection in her body — without being on antiretroviral treatment. The finding provides new hope that a “functional” cure for HIV — where the virus is brought down to low levels but not eradicated in the body…
Jonathan Appelbaum, M.D., My View | Tallahassee Democrat The recent HIV outbreak in Indiana demonstrates that an apathetic approach to HIV testing and treatment can have devastating consequences. Saturday is National HIV Testing Day, when our country recognizes the importance of testing. Fittingly, just a few days later, a new HIV-testing law will go into…
By Nadege Green | © Health News Florida Florida’s transgender community, specifically trans women, are among the groups most at risk of contracting HIV. The series, HIV In Florida: The Rising Tide of Infection, explains that an estimated third of transgender women are HIV positive. Read the Full Article…
Tyler Curry, Huffington Post Ever wonder what your life would be like if you were born at a different time? As a man living with HIV, it is something I think about often. This video is dedicated to the longterm survivors and the ones we lost in the fight. Watch the Video Here…
Big Bend Cares is soon to bring the latest in HIV/AIDS management and care to Tallahassee with the construction of a new, patient centered, medical home. The new facility will be located at South Monroe and Adams Streets and Magnolia Drive, across the street from Big Bend Cares’ current home. The new facility will house…
By Ray Downs, Broward Palm Beach New Times The Centers for Disease Control released a map that shows where it rates of the “most distinctive” cause of death in each state – and Florida leads the nation in deaths from HIV. The “most distinctive” cause of death in each state means where a particular cause…
Kara Guzman, Santa Cruz Sentinel SANTA CRUZ >> For 30 years, UC Santa Cruz professor and vaccine developer Phil Berman has been chasing a moving target — the insidious, ever-changing HIV virus — and now, finally, he thinks he has it cornered. Berman’s lab has developed an experimental vaccine he believes will guard against HIV…
We’re making Artopia 2015 our best ever! Our partners at 7Hills Communications are producing several videos featuring some of the artists that support Big Bend Cares and Artopia. Artist Barbara Psimas is the next talent in our Featured Artist Series for Artopia 2015. We hope you’ll enjoy learning more about Barbara and her special approach…
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a leading global public research university with significant expertise in HIV basic and clinical research, and GSK, a global, research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare company with a legacy of success in developing treatments for HIV, today announced the creation of the dedicated HIV Cure center and a jointly…
WebMD News from HealthDay By Randy Dotinga, HealthDay Reporter WEDNESDAY, April 29, 2015 (HealthDay News) — Preliminary research suggests that an AIDS vaccine in development can ramp up the body’s immune system, boosting the response to medications HIV-positive patients take. Years of research will be required to confirm that the vaccine works, and researchers don’t…
We are excited to present you with a sampling of this year’s fantastic art to be auctioned off at Artopia. You’re sure to see something you like in our galleries, and there’s more art to come! Artopia 2015 is right around the corner, and this year’s event stands to be the biggest and most rewarding…
Big Bend Cares is thrilled our “Friends in Art” have generously decided to partner with us this year pump up our prize pool for our valued artists. The Frame Shoppe is offering a 25% discount on framing for artists participating in Artopia. The Frame Shoppe is a generous friend to Tallahassee for life, and Big…
PublicHealth.org is an organization dedicated to connecting patients, students and professionals to the latest and most useful healthcare information and resources available. When the AIDS crisis hit 30+ years ago, Americans faced a public health scare unlike anything they’d seen before. Stories of this devastating disease were a staple of the daily news. In recent…
Rob Renzi peered out a window facing South Monroe Street, pointing to an adjacent block where Big Bend Cares wants to build a two-story, 25,000-square-foot medical center. In February, the Tallahassee nonprofit submitted preliminary plans to the city’s Growth Management Department, and last week paperwork was finalized to acquire seven lots on 1.8 acres at…
Dear Friends & Artists, Artopia 2015 is right around the corner, and this year’s event stands to be the biggest and most rewarding ever for the families that we serve. It is hard to believe that Big Bend Cares has been hosting the area’s largest charity art auction for 17 years! Because the number of…
With only a few deliveries to go, #HolidayAngels has been a huge success! We would like to say thank you to all of our sponsors and donors for making this a special Christmas for some kids who could use a little lift. A special thank you must also be given to Tallahassee Sunrise Rotary, Krewe…
Today, the Elton John AIDS Foundation (EJAF) announced more than $3.2 million in new grants, bringing the Foundation’s total grant disbursements for the calendar year 2014 to more than $6.8 million. With this third and final round of grant-making for the year, EJAF awarded 12 new and 40 renewal grants to innovative projects addressing the…