Saturday, June 27, 2009
New community group for people with HIV
Lunch Positive is a new voluntary group which will provide a weekly lunch club for people living with HIV and their carers. It will open every Friday from July 17 at the Community Room at Dorset Gardens Methodist Church (off St James Street) in Brighton.Gary, Lunch Positive's service facilitator, told me about the origins of the project and what it means for people in Brighton who are HIV positive.
"We’re a group of people who used to volunteer for Open Door and when it closed down last year we saw that although other services were given to other providers, there wasn’t any provision for a lunch service where people could meet socially and get a nutritious, balanced meal. After approaching various organisations such as the diocese of Chichester, and getting funding from the National Lottery, we managed to secure the use of Dorset Gardens Methodist Church as a place in which we could cook and serve meals. The church itself has been extremely helpful. Though I should say we’re not a faith-based project - we work within the chuch building but are completely independent of it.
"We aim not only to serve food and provide a place for people to meet, but also to help those who can’t access a good diet at home in other ways. For example there will be opportunities for those who use the service and who would like to, to work with volunteers in the kitchen so they can gain confidence and skills in cookery. So in that sense I see Lunch Positive as empowering its users, giving them the opportunity to socalise and spend time with each other once a week, something that has not been happening for many people since Open Door closed.
"We ask that any new client contacts us first before their initial visit. Then they would be greeted on arrival and a volunteer would be there to show them around and spend some time with them as coming to a new service for the first time is not always the easiest thing for people to do. They will also be given some very basic guidelines around conduct, for example around confidentiality which is very important to us.
"The basic structure is we open at noon so people can come for tea and coffee and a chat or read the papers. Lunch is served from 1 till 2 and then after clearing up and maybe talking about what will be happening within the service in the following weeks, we close at 2.30pm.
"We ask for a donation of £1 - which helps cover the cost of the food we have to buy."
Gary continued,
"If I had to sum the service up in a sentence? Well being for people with HIV encompasses many things - an informal place to meet, good diet and a space to share with others are important aspects of this- which is why we are here."
If you are interested in becoming a member of the group, as either a client or a volunteer, Lunch Positive can be contacted on 07846464384 or via their website www.lunchpositive.org
Pictured volunteers at Lunch Positive.
