AEGiS-WashBlade: AIDS Institute head Capello dies: 'A great loss to the HIV/AIDS community'

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2008. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

AIDS Institute head Capello dies: 'A great loss to the HIV/AIDS community'

Washington Blade - October 9, 2008
Lou Chibbaro Jr.

Gene Capello, executive director of the AIDS Institute, a public policy research and advocacy group, died Tuesday at Inova Alexandria Hospital in Alexandria, Va., from complications associated with kidney disease. He was 49. Capello has been credited with helping to transform the AIDS Institute into an important national AIDS advocacy organization, with offices in Washington, D.C. and Tampa, Fla.

He recently attended a White House ceremony where President Bush signed a sweeping global AIDS relief bill, which Capello lobbied Congress to pass.

"This is a great loss to the AIDS Institute and the entire HIV/AIDS community, and we will forever miss Gene's leadership and friendship," said Carl Schmid, an official at the organization's Washington office.

In addition to his work with the AIDS Institute, Capello served as an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health and assistant professor at the University of South Florida College of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases and International Medicine.

He previously served on the faculty and as AIDS Project Director at Vanderbilt University and as Chief of HIV Services and Programs for the San Francisco Department of Public Health.

Capello served on numerous boards and committees, including the AIDS Action Council, International Society for AIDS Education and Prevention, CAEAR Coalition, and American Academy of HIV Medicine.

He received a doctoral degree in public policy and medical ethics from Vanderbilt University, where he also received a Master of Divinity degree in ethics. He had a Master of Science degree in social work from the University of Tennessee.

A funeral service to honor Capello's life is set to be held at St. Thomas Episcopal Church near Dupont Circle in Washington at 1 p.m. Monday, Oct. 13.

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