Four regional HIV/AIDS service organizations today will merge into one statewide organization called the Colorado AIDS Project.
A key goal is increasing their voice on the national stage, with the hope of influencing both funders and lawmakers.
“Before, we all spoke independently, but now, we will have a unified front,” said Ruth Pederson, executive director of the Denver metro-area Colorado AIDS Project (CAP), who is the interim chief executive of the merged organization.
Merging with Denver’s CAP 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 has decided not to join the merger, opting to keep its independence. “Boulder County is a very unique place with a unique community, and we’ve always been deeply rooted in that community,” said board chairman Jamie Kirkland. “We have very unique needs and services.”
The four regional offices will remain open, with their same staffing, said Pederson. But most administrative functions, such as accounting and bookkeeping, will be centralized.
One grant writer will write the grants, instead of each regional group hiring a contractor or having its executive director do it.
Grants will still be administered in the regions where they are awarded, but now “we have a unified theme in the way we are writing the grants,” Pederson said.
“Now that we’re a statewide organization, we will have more of a voice in those national grant applications,” Pederson said.
That also applies to fundraising and legislation. “When we sign on to national issues like the AIDS Drug Assistance Program,” she said, “we are speaking for more clients, so our voice is louder.”
Colleen O’Connor: 303-954-1083 or coconnor@denverpost.com
