AEGiS-BAYW: AIDS Action Committee scores Orr

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

AIDS Action Committee scores Orr

Bay Windows - March 13, 2008
Laura Kiritsy, Editor-in-chief

As part of AIDS Action Committee's expanded outreach of the gay male community, the organization has hired Keith Orr, a former Bay Windows editor and the producer/co-host (with Bay Windows publisher Sue O'Connell) of WFNX Radio's long-running LGBT chat show "One in Ten" as its marketing manager.

Orr likened his new duties at AIDS Action to being a public advocate, working to make sure his gay male peers understand the organization's work. Because the organization now serves a diverse clientele beyond just gay men, Orr said that now, "a lot of gay men don't know what the organization does anymore. And the hope was to sort of immerse myself in it, understand the full range and depth of services that we offer to all of our clients and to try and make some inroads in the gay male community so that they understand that this organization, which was originally founded by a gay man as a response to the aids epidemic some twenty-plus years ago, still has a viable place and [fills] an important need in the community."

"Gay men suffered more infections than any other community in Massachusetts in the early days of HIV/AIDS and still do today," said AAC Executive Director Rebecca Haag, in a statement announcing Orr's hiring. "HIV remains the number one health threat to gay men and we need to do more to get the word out to the next generation."

Orr, who will continue his radio hosting duties, said he's still formulating his plan to re-introduce AAC to the gay community. "As you know I'm not really shy about talking to anyone so the hope is that if I can be knowledgeable enough about our full depth and breadth of services I can make the case to anyone and help them understand." While fundraising will definitely be a component of his work, Orr hopes to re-interest gay men in AAC events like the forthcoming annual Walk for Life. Though the event has "a huge cross section of participants" that reflects the different people concerned about HIV/AIDS, said Orr, "but there used to be a bigger [gay] male component to it. And our hope is to try and work to increase that as well."

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