Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2000. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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San Francisco Examiner - Aug. 18, 2000
J. Ward
Edwards' partner, Rick Burd, is spending the night, an unusual circumstance allowed by the hospital. Burd is concerned about a new IV line put into Edwards' arm and wants to be with him through the night.
The next morning finds the couple, who have known each other for 26 years, in good spirits even as Edwards prepares for a trip to San Francisco General Hospital for a minor operation.
With a careful touch, Burd dresses Edwards, combs his hair and puts a blue baseball cap on his head. He then lifts Edwards into a wheelchair and gives him a good-morning kiss.
Several years ago this day didn't seem possible for Edwards, but he is a living example of how the AIDS epidemic changed when a slew of new drug treatments were unveiled in 1996.
The perception of AIDS as a death sentence is gone, according to a report released earlier this year by the San Francisco Department of Public Health and AIDS Research Institute at UC-San Francisco.
It also has resulted in a reduced fear of dying from AIDS, the report said, which is likely responsible for many ignoring safe-sex measures. The result is 750 to 900 new HIV infections in The City this year.
Edwards and Burd confirmed their HIV-positive status in 1985. Burd has not developed AIDS and credits taking HIV medication early on. Edwards has experienced a number of AIDS-related illnesses, including dementia that alters his motor skills and leaves him with slurred speech.
Edwards also has osteoporosis, which contributed to him breaking his hip in a fall two years ago. He hasn't walked since. Burd has visited almost every day since Edwards was admitted to Laguna Honda's AIDS ward in 1998.
"It seems Billy and I were meant to be together. .s.s. It's not just like I'm the helper or I'm the caregiver. I almost feel as though my whole life has trained me for this relationship because it's difficult," said Burd.
Burd and Edwards met in 1974 while Edwards was teaching a Head Start class and Burd was a writer for the television show "Happy Days." That spring, they decided to come out together.
"Neither one of us had a clue about being gay in Hollywood, so we just learned together," said Burd.
The two exchanged letters through the '70s, lost touch in the '80s and became reacquainted in the '90s when Burd began looking for Edwards. He found him in 1997 in a Los Angeles hospice.
"It was so hard," Burd said. "Those first few days I had to fight back crying because here's someone who was my personal hero, and what I was seeing was a man who couldn't hold his fork."
When Burd found him, doctors thought Edwards had six months to live. Burd did a little research and found that the best place in the world to treat Edwards' neurological damage was the care unit at St. Mary's Hospital in San Francisco.
Within weeks, they moved to San Francisco. His health improved rapidly at St. Mary's, and he soon transferred to Laguna Honda's AIDS ward, the largest skilled-nursing unit for AIDS patients in the Bay Area.
"The staff is very loving, and even other patients watch out for Billy," Burd said.
The couple has since settled into the hospital, with Burd dropping by almost every night to help feed Edwards dinner and spend time together. Once a week, when he's up to it, Edwards leaves the hospital with Burd for a movie, a play or a concert and they stay at Burd's apartment.
Time will tell whether Edwards recovers enough to move in with Burd, but Goldie Davary, head nurse of the AIDS ward, said Burd gives Edwards hope and positive support, which has contributed to his will to live.
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